Gala dinner and wedding - what to wear?

[LynnLynnLynn]

In late April I've been invited to a dinner where the dress code is "formal". The advice is "Formal or semi-formal evening dress or suit / black tie / tuxedos / formal National dress. Cummerbunds are optional". There's a bit of wiggle room on this dress code and I don't think many people will be turning up in tuxedos. So, I can tone it down a bit.

A couple of days later I'm going to a wedding. It's a pretty relaxed wedding but I still need to dress up a bit (I mean it's not jumper and jeans).

I was thinking I could wear the same thing to both but I have no idea what. I'd rather not wear a dress really but I don't know what to wear if I'm not wearing a dress.

I love jumpsuits but I don't want to go in black and it's quite hard to find non-black but formal-ish jumpsuits. I saw this one but do you think it's too casual?

I want something I can wear again (hence not wanting a dress because I very rarely wear dressed) and that isn't too expensive.

I'm 32, 5'4, slim, athletic build (so no off-the-shoulder outfits because I look like Jeff Capes). I can't wear heels so I'll be in flats. I'll most likely have pale pink hair by the time this all comes around.

Please help me - last wedding I went to was when I was 14 and I've never been to a formal dinner in my life.

I should say, I'm not totally against a dress as long as I could easily dress it down afterwards and wear it for everyday on the few occasions when I do wear a dress!

I think the jumpsuit would be lovely for the wedding but for the dinner it isn't dressy enough from the description of the dress code

Thank you, that's good to know. Would the Boohoo jumpsuit look okay with patent flats and a chunky necklace for the wedding?

For the dinner, I have this jumpsuit. Is that smart enough do you think?

I have also now found this for the wedding... or is it a bit OTT?

Hi the first jumpsuit would look fab at a wedding with big jewellery and fabulous patent flats. Second one - no. You could find a dress for the wedding that you could wear a big jumper over afterwards for more everyday wear?

I think the black one is lovely for the dinner.The dogtooth jumpsuit is gorgeous!

My favourite jumpsuit is the black one. You could wear more colourful accessories with it for the wedding. I don't know about a jumpsuit for a gala dinner though...

The palm print one is my second favourite

I'm going to disagree and say that I think the dogtooth (third) jumpsuit is hideous. It isn't even flattering to the model. The cropped length is brutal enough to make anyone with legs shorter than 6 foot look dumpy. And it most definitely isn't wedding appropriate unless the goal is "look at me!!".

The black/Amazon jumpsuit would work for the dinner if it genuinely is less formal. If it's very formal, a jumpsuit is not appropriate.

Okay, so the dog tooth is out then!

I'm leaning towards the palm one for the wedding then. I think it'll look okay with trainers afterwards as well. Do you think the wide legs are okay? I don't want to look like I'm on stilts (not keen on the wide leg trend at all!)

I'm not entirely sure quite how formal the formal dinner is going to be. It's a dinner for academics and I just can't see that many academics (especially the men!) turning up in tuxedo-level formal get-up.

But, let's say the dinner is very formal and the black jumpsuit isn't appropriate. What kind of non-dress thing would I wear to this?!

Thank so much for everyone's help... I'm so rubbish at stuff like this.

Just ordered the black and white striped jumpsuit. Excited.

The dress code for the dinner reads as cocktail wear, so a full length gown not necessary but definitely something smart. You could probably get away with a super-smart jumpsuit, especially if it's wide legged so looks less sporty:
eg: www.johnlewis.com/french-connection-bessie-crepe-jumpsuit/p3913232
www.johnlewis.com/french-connection-bessie-crepe-jumpsuit/p3913232
and some good accessories.

OOh this is nice...
www.johnlewis.com/phase-eight-tia-sleeveless-jumpsuit/black/p3300723

@maggie I don't really know what cocktail wear is to be honest!

I'm really not keen on the wide legs of those and I'd never get any more wear out of them! And the price

When I've been to academic dinners in the past, there have been plenty of men in tuxedos. Academics seem to love an opportunity to dress up!

I think a super smart jumpsuit could work though, particularly if it's well structured. Black would probably work better for that, but agree it's not a natural choice for a wedding. Shame you can't wear heels, that always helps make an outfit look smarter unfortunately...

That's interesting @uncooperativefingers I just can't imagine some of the men I work with even owning smart trousers let alone going to a dinner in a tuxedo!

So, I also have a black dress, round neck, slightly A-line, just above the knee, very smart. Would that work as a dress for this academic dinner thing do you think? I'll see if I can find a picture of something similar.

Just looking for something similar to the black dress I've got and I found this listed as a cocktail dress. This is totally appropriate, right?

The Dorothy Perkins dress I have is a bit like this apart from the neck's higher and it doesn't have that weird waist wrap thing.

Yep, I reckon you could accessorize that dress up smart enough. Long drop earrings, a nice bracelet and clutch bag?

@Uncooperativefingers
Okay, sorted, thank you!

I was thinking of wearing think tights that have a seam up the back with a pattern on the seam just to make it a bit more funky.

Thin tights obviously