Dress Codes Decoded

You’ve just received an invitation in the mail to an event whether a wedding, birthday or ball. It must be special because who sends invitations in the mail unless it’s a big deal. You might want to check your inbox at this point too.

Then you see those words at the bottom of the invite … dress code.

It’s something you probably need to abide by. I mean you don’t want to be the only person at the party wearing the ‘wrong’ thing or anger the host.

It’s hard enough to pick an outfit without having to wonder about what the dress code means and whether you even have anything in your wardrobe to match the specification.

So here are those dress codes decoded.

Black tie

For women it usually means a floor length gown in black or muted tones like nude, navy blue or grey, maybe even red if you’re feeling daring. This dress code isn’t actually the most formal of them. I’d stick with block colours, avoiding bold patterns or print because it makes it a little more casual.

For men, it’s a tuxedo and they can choose a tie or bow tie. A vest is always a smart touch too.

Formal

This sits between black tie and cocktail and is your chance to do something a little different. Ladies can wear short or long dresses or even a pantsuit.

For men, I’d wear a suit and tie and while neither of them have to be black, they should be dark so that’d be navy or dark grey.

Lounge suit

This is the dress code I chose for my wedding. I picked it because even though our venue was iconic and the reception room was grand and could have called for something more formal, I wanted the guests (particularly the ladies) to have outfit options.

With this dress code, ladies can wear a floor length dress or something a little shorter, depending on what you prefer and feel comfortable in. Something mid-thigh might be creeping into cocktail dress territory though.

For the men, wear a suit and tie. Again, it doesn’t have to be black.

Cocktail

This is a more casual event, so a floor length dress doesn’t work here. How short you want to go depends on what you feel comfortable in. You can wear something above or below the knee or to the ankles so you can still see your shoe. You also have the luxury of wearing more colour here and throwing in some pattern. If in doubt though, go the little black dress.

You can read about the different styles of LBDs here. With so many options, there’ll be at least one to suit you.

Men can wear a suit with an open shirt or even leave the jacket behind.

White tie

This is the most formal. For the ladies we’re talking floor length ball gowns, usually with a full skirt. Elbow length gloves are an acceptable accessory. There’s little room for creativity or too much colour here.

For men it’s coat tails and all and a white bow tie (thus the name).