Help. What to wear for a summer family funeral.

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Sorry for such a depressing post. I have a family funeral coming up in August. It’s in a church. I have no idea how to dress if it’s hot. (I’m not good with clothes at the best of times).
I’m in my early 50s. A size 14 apple, quite small chested. Any ideas?

My condolences on your loss.

A simple A line or shirt dress in linen or cotton is probably easiest. I suppose it really depends whether you think you’re likely to wear the outfit again.

Uniqlo has this in black:

https://www.uniqlo.com/uk/en/product/linen-blend-square-neck-short-sleeved-dress-464771.html

This from Community Clothing is very plain and simple (they do have shirt dresses if you’d prefer):

https://communityclothing.co.uk/collections/womens-dresses-jumpsuits/products/womens-crew-neck-gathered-dress-black-linen?variant=45126343885077

This is more expensive but again very plain - would work with a light jacket:

https://www.studionicholson.com/products/beck-dress-in-black?_pos=2&_sid=8628213b1&_ss=r

I went to a funeral Friday and most women were wearing shirtwaister type dresses with short sleeves.

https://www.fatface.com/women/clothing/dresses/dresses-with-pockets/adele-shirred-midi-dress/0001052.html?cgid=women-clothing-dresses-and-skirts-dresses-with-pockets&dwvar_0001052_color=PLUM#pagination=true&start=2
I have this in dark navy and wore it to a funeral a couple of weeks ago (when it was hot and sunny)

A few more - all of which should be cool if it’s unexpectedly hot on the day:

Arket

Cos

Loulou Studio

A black dress? A black trousers suit? Pretty straightforward really. My DM died in summer. Funeral was in June but in the morning and it was a bit chilly. I wore a cap-sleeved black shift dress with a black blazer.

Are you sure it will be a black clothes funeral?

I went to one last summer where the dress code was "cheerful colours" Lots of pretty dresses for the women, colourful shirts and ties for the men. A few children in football kit which was entirely appropriate in that particular situation.

Tbh it’s worth asking other people who are going. When I went to my Nanna’s funeral I just wore my normal clothes, colourful and pretty as we’d all agreed she wouldn’t want to see us all in black. I wore something I knew she would have looked at and told me I looked lovely in.

So check it is a traditional black do, see what other people are wearing, and as long as you’re not wearing anything obviously inappropriate (ie a sexy get up, anything too revealing, anything with sparkles or logos over it…) I think you should be fine. If you’re wearing a skirt keep it knee length at the shortest 🩷

I have a linen fit and flare calf-length dress in navy with a fairly muted pattern. And some plain navy kitten heels.

It's cool, subdued but doesn't make me look ill (which black does).

It can be dressed up a bit for office hot weather wear too.

I wore a brown linen dress to a spring funeral.

My condolences. I would try to find out their preference because the majority of funerals I've hosted (church) in recent years are more relaxed and many are no black. If you can't find out opting for a navy blue with delicate floral pattern is a good compromise. For men a dark suit and have two ties, one black one light in pocket is a good idea

The OP has said it’s a family funeral - so it’s likely she already knows the dress code or will be setting the tone by her own choice.

So presumably if it were ‘rainbow colours’ or whatever, she would have said so?

(Purely as a matter of style, very plain outfits do seem to meet the solemnity of the occasion best, particularly if mourners have jewellery or other accessories they want to wear in honour of the deceased person.)

Sorry for your loss.

I'd choose layers in black. Take an umbrella in your handbag. It's four seasons in one day just now.

Churches are always freezing at any time of year but wherever you go after will likely be warm. Hence layers you can take off.

I very sadly have my mums funeral this week. I’m wearing a black tailored midi dress which I already owned and I’ve bought a smart fitted black cardigan to go over the top if it’s cool weather, which is looking likely. It’s not super formal because she didn’t want that.

I was going to wear heels but have bought some black ballet flats in case I feel wobbly.

My condolences to you. I wore a silky cream and black shirtwaister dress to a recent funeral and a lightweight black jacket, as the weather was unpredictable. Most of the women, including the widow wore something similar.

Sombre colours unless otherwise stated. Doesn’t have to be black though most people have lots of black in their wardrobe anyway.

Thank you so much for all the replies. I will check out the links.
It is a black/dark colours sort of funeral.
I like the idea of a shirt dress I will order some and see if they suit me.

My condolences. I went to a relatives funeral on the hotest day of last summer and I was worried about it being quite religious and conservative, but needn't have worried - people were wearing sleeveless and open toe shoes. I wore a plain navy shift dress in the end. I bought a couple of options from Vinted and sent to the charity shop straight after, didn't really want anything new to keep. There is loads on there.

M&S are generally good for this kind of thing.

My condolences for your loss.

When I was sadly in a similar situation I wore a a line knee length black wrap cotton dress with cap sleeves. It was incredibly hot and so I didn’t wear anything on top of it. I could have added a cardigan or jacket if needed. I already had the dress luckily.

Sounds like you probably need something similar: simple, dark, natural fabrics and able to be worn with a layer on top of it isn’t too warm. Churches can be cold even in the height of summer.