Smart Beach Wedding Clothes for Guests

If you’ve been invited to a wedding on the beach but you’ve never attended one before, you may be unclear about how to choose appropriate beach wedding clothes. Most weddings are formal, and if not, they are at least dressy. But this one will be on the beach!

Is a man’s designer silk suit appropriate, or should guys wear beach shorts with tropical prints? Is it better to adopt a surfer look with unkempt hair, or should you comb your hair neatly? And should ladies wear their special-occasion $500 red Prada pumps or a simple pair of flip-flops? The typical seaside ceremony is more casual than a traditional church wedding, and beach wedding clothes are usually more casual as well.

If you are lucky, your wedding invitation contained hints for what to wear. If not, before planning your outfit, send a short email asking the bride and groom if they have clothing suggestions for the wedding. Beach attire with an upscale look is probably what they will recommend. No matter what clothing they suggest, they will appreciate that you are interested enough to ask…and that you are planning to attend!

If you are still in a quandary after asking, use these guidelines to help:

Men’s Wedding Beach Clothing: You can forget about wearing black beach wedding clothes. Black is usually reserved for the groom (although this rule isn’t quite as strictly followed as the rule that says white is reserved for brides). A white cotton shirt with a button-down collar is usually safe for a less formal ceremony when it’s paired with dress slacks.

If you’d feel more comfortable in a suit, go with linen slacks and jacket in a lighter color with a casual, striped shirt underneath – this will give you an air of relaxed formality and help you strike the perfect balance between casual and dressy. If you want to be more adventurous (or beachy) go with well-tailored cotton, linen or silk-blend draw-string pants or shorts and a tropical-print silk shirt.

Leather sandals are a satisfactory choice for shoes, although you’ll want to make sure they have enough openings to let the sand escape. That’s not an issue with leather flip-flops, which also work well. Depending on how informal the ceremony is and what else you’re wearing, you can even go barefoot. Take care not to overdo it though. You wouldn’t want to go without shoes if you’re wearing a classy linen suit.

Beach Wedding Clothes for Women: You want to be sure you don’t upstage the bride by out-dressing her. You have more freedom to dress up if it’s a formal wedding. Beach attire of the sort you might wear to an upscale resort is the best choice for a casual ceremony. Light-weight cotton or rayon skirts are ideal for tropical destinations. Wear these with island-style cotton or rayon tops in bright, primary colors for the perfect look. Well-tailored jersey dresses work well too.

It’s usually a good idea to stick with shorter dresses or skirts on the wedding beach. Long dresses and high heels should be avoided as both can make walking through deep sand extremely difficult. An island-themed bracelet, necklace and earrings, or some similar stylish but understated “bling,” are just the thing set off your outfit.

Sandals or dressy flip-flops with pretty painted toe-nails are the perfect complement to your beach wedding clothes. If you decide to go barefoot, wear a piece or two of attractive foot jewelry such as a toe ring, ankle bracelet or barefoot sandals. These work especially well if they are fashioned from sea shells, coral or other items with a beach theme.

BeachWeddingMagic is devoted to helping couples create their own magical on beach wedding. Visit BeachWeddingMagic.com for suggestions and advice on beach wedding clothes, decorations, flowers, invitations and much more.