Australian Summer wedding outfit

[HollaHolla]

I’m thinking ahead here, as I don’t want to get to October and panic..... but I’m going to a wedding in Australia in October, and am a fairly pasty, squishy size 16/18 - with a plan to be more svelte in a 14/16 by then! I know it will get into the high 20s/low 30s, and that I know Aussie weddings are a bit less formal, from previous experience.

I’m 42, 5’7”, typical pale Scottish, but very dark hair. I wear greens, blues, reds. Yellows and browns are terrible on me. I’d thought of a dress, but don’t really want to have to wear a jacket. Do I need a headpiece? I’ve got a lovely pair of black wedge sandals which I know I can wear all day - but they’re fairly chunky....

I need something that will pack fairly easily, as making this part of a 4 week holiday, and don’t want to take up half my bag! Please can I ask no jumpsuits - I’ve got very long legs and a short body and they don’t look right on me... Oh, and I’m also the partner of the best man, who will be in a kilt. Help!!

Thanks in advance!

I'm in Australia, and also work in a church so have seen a LOT of weddings! My advice would be to go for summer evening wear. I'm not sure where in Aus the wedding it, but in Sydney all the women seem to be dressed in the kind of dresses I would wear for a night out. You won't need a jacket, unless you are in Melbourne and even then you can get away with one of those floaty shawl things

Thank you! It’s in a rather chic boutique winery in Tassie (outing), so may well be cooler in the evening.....

Take advantage of the sales as Aus trails the UK fashion wise by a season. Get a longer or mid length dress that could double up for the rest of the trip. No lining or stiffness. If you bought something like the picture you could wear a little black cardy over at night and use it for the cool parts of your travels.

I know Aussie weddings are a bit less formal, from previous experience

I think you need more experience to judge that accurately. It’s no different to the UK in that some will be incredibly formal and some will be very casual.

I'm an Australian. Tas usually doesn't get that hot in October, I'd be more inclined to dress for an Australian winter in Tas at that time of year. What is the dress code?

I'd expect a wedding in Tas to be more casual than one in Sydney or Melbourne, although if most of the guests are coming from elsewhere then you might find that they will be better dressed.

I agree Tasmania is definitely more casual than the big cities.
Headwear is definitely not required.

A nice dress with a cardigan would be perfect. More smart casual than evening smart. The dress posted above or similar would be fine
Hope you have a fantastic time.

Ps the black wedge sandals sound fine too

Agree, it may not be as hot as you think in October, the ideal outfit would include a jacket or equivalent in case. Is there a "dress code" on the invitations? If not then you are probably fine with anything that you will feel comfortable in accompanying your partner. I've never considered any sort of headpiece for a wedding (except my own!); we dressed up for my brother-in-law's wedding (in a Sydney October) but not to that point.

I would strongly suspect "make your own style" will work in the setting you desribe.

It's very unlikely to be high 20s, low 30s in Tassie in October - could be anything from warm to very cold (esp in evenings). You def won't need headwear, and black wedge sandals sound fine. Aus weddings do in general tend to be less formal than UK ones, but there are always exceptions (even in Tassie - I live here and have been to v formal weddings) - is there any kind of dress code on invitation? That said the dress posted above would be suitable for pretty much any wedding here - you would def need some sort of jacket/cardi/wrap tho!

October isn't Australian summer, and definitely not in Tasmania.

I agree with previous poster that all the weddings I've seen in Sydney (and that's a lot, as so many are held outside in public places) are far less formal than in England. I don't mean they wear jeans or board shorts, but I've never seen the men wear morning suits for example, nor the women hats. In fact most women I've seen wear really short dresses that I'd only wear on a night out!

Thanks all! I should have added I used to live in Sydney for 6 years, so I’ve been to a fair few Aussie weddings - but the last one was almost 10 years ago, so wasn’t sure about how things had moved on.

Thanks for the reminder that it will be a fair bit cooler in Tassie than Sydney..... in my head I’m thinking of October evenings in the city.

There’s no dress code listed (and I don’t know the bride at all), and the Brits are grooms side, being mostly men who are all doing kilts, at the groom’s request. Nice and easy for them! Actually looking in the summer sales will be a good idea. I had a sudden flap I wouldn’t be able to get something in season, but it might just work out perfectly.

So evening wedding but no dress code? Not formal then - all the formal weddings I've been to have specified formal/evening/black tie dress code. Anything cocktail-y would be fine. Or a drapey jersey dress would work and pack well. You will def some form of jacket/arm cover for Oct evenings here.

Average temps in Hobart in Oct hover around a high of 17 - 18 degrees so brrrr. Evenings would be pretty cold.

Long johns under kilts and def something warm for you

Australian weddings aren’t necessarily less formal but guests don’t wear your typical floral “wedding guest” outfit that you would see in the UK. Dress code is closer to cocktail attire as most Australian weddings start mid to late afternoon. Avoid floral patterned fabrics and hats and you won’t go too far wrong.

It’s only 8 to 18 degrees in Tasmania in October so most guests will be dressed for a variant of winter. You probably won’t see many guests in summer sandals, it will be either peep toes, court shoes or evening sandals most likely.