Is this an awful wedding guest dress?!

[Bumblingbee101]

Looking for opinions! I'm a mum of 2 little children and rarely go to events anymore, both children under 4, size 14-16, 5.3 and wanted something that hid my legs and tops of arms and skimmed over tummy so that I felt slightly more comfortable. I've always had reasonable success with Monsoon dresses and found this in the sale. I've been told by brides friends to all send photos of our outfits (unsure why!) And that I cannot wear this and will upstage her. I asked if it was anything like her dress and they said not even remotely close! I read all the reviews before purchasing and most have worn this dress as a wedding guest! Is it my poor taste?!

If you're worried about it after the obnoxious comments by the bridezilla squad, you could have it shortened so it's not full-length. I think that's why they're saying it looks like a bridal party dress.

Wearing a long ivory dress to a wedding is rude behaviour.

I have to think you’re on a windup now though tbh, no one could be so socially inept to actually do this, especially not more than once.

Honestly, where do these brides get their ideas! Send a photo of your outfit indeed.
I was asked to one recently and instructed that I had to wear a specific colour so that all the guests were co ordinated in the photos.
I've also been to one where the photography team (!) took about five hours to photograph us all, with drones, cameras on wheels and (kid you not) make up artists. Just why? Bride and groom weren't famous. Who is going to watch that film?

It’s not frumpy at all, and perfect for a wedding guest.

I can assure you I wore an ivory slip dress to a few weddings as a guest, it’s a go to dress
Fortunately, no one was vexed nor was I

Sending a photo is unreasonable. I wouldn't!
That dress is fine.

If you turn up to a wedding wearing a long, white dress (which this dress isn't) when you're not the bride

1. You won't be mistaken for the bride unless you carry flowers, wear a veil/tiara and elbow your way to the centre of all the photos
2. You won't upstage the bride (even if you're Pippa Middleton)
3. Even if you accomplish 1. and 2. you will look like a twonk, never be invited to another wedding and the bride will receive so much sympathy you won't spoil her day at all.

My bridesmaids' dresses were long and ivory with a very subtle contrast pattern printed over the top. They chose these themselves as I was ill on the day we were scheduled to go shopping and we didn't have time to reschedule. I thought they made a lovely choice. Granted they were bridesmaids, but no doubt there are some on this thread who would still accuse them of trying to upstage the bride. 😂

But that was because the bride wanted her to!

I think it's nice and perfectly appropriate for a wedding. Unless you're in the wedding party the bride really has no business telling guests what they can and can't wear.

How close to the bride are you? Could you ask her directly what the problem is? It seems that everything has come from her friends. Are you not her friend? Is it the groom you know?

If you're not particularly close to her I'd suggest you ignore all this ridiculousness and wear the dress you want to.

If you do change your outfit whatever you do don't send her a picture. You can be deciding what to wear right up to the wedding day when she'll have other things to go bridezilla about. She sounds very hard work.

Is the style similar to the bridesmaids dresses because if they are all in pale green pale pink and then you turn up in pale blue in a similar style could you be mistaken for a bridesmaid?

I do find it crazy that brides are now demanding to see guest outfit choices before the wedding

Um… what in either of my posts constitutes a “narrative”, @Zone2NorthLondon? They are both clearly my opinion that the dress looks like a bridesmaid’s dress or something a bride might wear for a low key small civil wedding on a budget if she didn’t want to wear white. No “made up stories” there…

Post 1

🙄 at the idea of checking out the guests outfits for approval but…
It is such pale blue that I thought it might be white at first. Full length, floaty fabric in almost white does look too bridal/bridesmaidy IMO. I could imagine a bride wearing that dress for a low key wedding.
I think if you hadn’t said anything about the CF request to submit a photo of your dress for approval and had just asked if the dress is suitable for a wedding guest, you would have got different answers.

Post 2

I doubt it will upstage the bride but it is very “look at me, I wanted to be a bridesmaid” rather than a wedding guest dress. I think the photo you chose makes it look more like a day dress but it looks even more bridesmaidy in the other pics.

OP, Monsoon describes that dress as an evening dress. It doesn’t look very evening dress like to me 😂 🤷‍♀️ Actually, some of the dresses they have in the bridesmaid section actually look more suitable as wedding guest dresses and fit your bill for length and tummy skimming 😂 Have you looked at those?

It’s frumpy and somehow at the same time manages to look like something you might dress a toddler in.

you can do better than this I’m sure!

It looks very very pale to me and with the chiffon fabric and little details do look bridal to me.

I’ve just googled wedding guest dresses and yours looks pretty understated next to some of the ones coming up!

May I ask were there cultural differences? There's plenty of cultures that don't use white or ivory as part of their colour palette for Brides.

Yes but no one got confused.

I have to agree tbh, I’m sure there are better dresses.

its the floatyness of it mainly

Various weddings, Various hot locations. Bride in white. And bride not in white. Bride in trouser suite, Bride in black.

No , too much like a bridesmaid’s dress. Plenty of other nicer stuff in Monsoon.

Fab i see. I guess the common denominator is that the Brides were chilled out then and not total Bridezillas 🤣

The bride and groom will watch the video when they get the final edit (probably in 3 months time). Then they'll watch it with great granny who wasn't well enough to travel. Her mother will play it on a continuous loop at a bbq this summer. It may get shown at Christmas if all the family are together but there will be complaints about the length. Might watch it again on their first anniversary. And their 10th, if they last that long.

Its a nice dress but with that kind of response from a "friend" I wouldnt be going or I'd be turning up in a wedding dress

Absolutely. Beautiful relaxed confident women who don’t adhere to stifling rules or made up etiquette
They wouldn’t have an issue with a guest in ivory

The only person here struggling with reality is you, love. If you carry in with that daft attitude, you’re going to be friendless very soon in real life!