JOHANNA JOURNEYS: wedding season: what to wear

It's that time of year...dun dun dun dun..dun DUN dun dunnnnn.....WEDDING SEASON (that was supposed to be the bridal march by the way haha)! Many times in late spring/early summer, it seems like there are weddings almost every weekend (or if you're my parents, you DO have a wedding to attend every week). Being the dress-concerned person I am, I have had my fair share of stressing over what to wear to a wedding.

To decide what to wear for a wedding, I think it's best to put the wedding in context. Does the invitation specify dress code? Is the wedding outside? What time of day is the ceremony/reception? What is the location?

Taking all things into consideration, here are a few ideas to give some inspiration for those "what do I wear" moments:

follow the jump to find your perfect wedding look...

1. Casual Daytime/Afternoon Wedding
- My favorite thing to wear to this wedding is a cute little sundress. Personally, I like to go for a pink palette for the spring because it's super girly and chic, but other colors are fun this time of year too!

to see where the dresses are from click here.

2. Semi-formal/Evening Wedding

- Usually a great summery cocktail dress works great for this. Of course it depends on the time of day and location, but you can dress these up or down with great shoes, accessories, and hair/makeup!

Click here for places and prices :)

3. Formal Evening/Black-tie optional

- Here I would go with an evening cocktail dress or a floor-length dress. I would save the full on gowns for a black tie only wedding, but black-tie optional means you can choose to do so.

Click here for places and prices :)

4. Black Tie/Extremely Formal Attire/Beach Formal

- I had a lot of fun picking these out..so much fun to get all dressed up!

Click here for places and prices :) Also, sorry for my expensive taste :P

Well I hope that gave you a little inspiration for your wedding attendance this spring/summer! I know what it's like to over-stress about an outfit, especially for a wedding! In fact, recently I made my family make a run to a store less than an hour before the wedding so I could get the right shoes for the dress I was wearing. We were out of state and I didn't have shoes for a dress that I borrowed last minute. Some say that's high maintenance, but I say that shoes can make or break an ensemble. You may laugh, but it's true ;P.

Here are a few more "rules" to take into consideration when choosing the perfect "wedding dresses"

- White: Don't wear it! It's the bride's day ultimately, so remember to look for elegance not attention.

- Modesty: No revealing/risque clothing: it is a tasteful, classy occasion...so let's keep it that way.

- Black: I've heard it said that you shouldn't wear black to a wedding. Personally, I don't see an issue with it. Black is timeless, classy, and elegant...everything you want in a wedding. However, I would limit it to evening weddings or late fall/winter weddings. But for the most part, I would go on personal preference for this one!

- Casualty: There is such a thing as too casual. Absolutely NO jeans/flip flops (that scene in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants made me cringe haha).

So, I guess all that's left to say is good luck and happy styling!

Also, I put together a little personal wedding diary of recent weddings I've attended over the past year: I've added some photos of the venues as well to give context to the wedding (like we talked about earlier!)

Hawaiian Wedding

Season: summer

Location: The Third Tier at Mauna Kea Hotel Golf Course on The Big Island (honestly..could it BE any prettier?? *chandler voice* haha)

Dress: Lilly Pulitzer (both Sam and I)

Shoes: Wedges (perfect for an outdoor wedding)

Long Island Wedding

Season: fall

Location: ...SO elegant!

Dress: Kohl's

Shoes: Guess

North Carolina Wedding

My lovely sister's wedding, so of course I wore a bridesmaid dress. the perfect wedding <3

Season: fall/winter

Location: Charlotte, NC

Dress:

NY Wedding/Mass. Reception
Season: spring
Location: I am going to point you to their photographer's blog to see the location/gorgeous bride and groom for this one! Not to mention one of my favorite photographers to follow ever!

Dress: I actually wore two dresses..one to the wedding and one to the reception. The invitation was black tie so I wanted to wear a floor length gown. However we also drove from out of town so it turned out to be more practical to opt for two dress.

Ceremony dress: Lord & Taylor