What's your take on a casual wedding?

Question

My fiance and I were talking and we've decided we'd like to have a casual wedding where everyone wears their best clothes. I would get a nice pair or dress slacks and a nice sweater and he would get a nice pair of slacks and dress shirt or a suit. If he gets a suit he'll get one from Goodwill. I'll have my bridesmaids wear either black dresses or black slacks and a black sweater (their choice) and they can wear one from their closet so that they are comfortable. The groomsmen can wear their best slacks and button up shirt with a black tie (we'll buy the ties). We'll do pretty bouquets and bouts and in colors of red, brown, and orange with accent colors of gold and green. We'll invite around 60 people to our wedding with some simple invitations and have something like a Thanksgiving feast. What's your take on this? How would you feel if you were a guest at this wedding? What other ideas can you give me?

And no, I do not want to get an informal wedding dress. There is no point in spending that much money on a dress I will only wear once.

Answer 1

1st of all - Congrats on your upcoming wedding!

The best answer to your question, is in yourself.  Of course, it will be perfect, if you & your fiance want it that way.  These days, there are no rules to weddings.  The best thing about your wedding, is that it will be unique.  What more could you want.  Your wedding party will be thankful to not have to spend alot of $$$ on clothes they will never wear again anyway.  Another place to check, check out consignment shops, I just saw a nice suit this week for only $15!  

The most important part of the day will be the vows, not your clothes.

Enjoy your day!

Answer 2

I go to a wedding purely to see two people who love each other make a commitment to each other . The rest is all window dressing. I would rather see a happy  bride and groom wearing something that  suits them and they  feel comfortable in.  I got married in a borrowed outfit  and  just went to a little bit more trouble  with my hair and makeup than I usually would.  Everybody  commented  that  it was great that I still looked like me, just the best version of me that I could be.  

Answer 3

i did a casual wedding. i wore a simple white dress, it wasn't a big gown or anything. my hubby and his groomsmen all wore khaki pants and button up shirts. and my bridsmaids just wore summer dresses. and we told all of our guests 'casual attire'. it was great!! alot of guests told us how they were so comfortable all day being able to wear shorts and short sleeve shirts instead of a full suit or something like that!

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Answer 4

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Answer 5

I agree with you completely!!!

A simple wedding is just as good as a way overpriced one.

Money doesn't always make things better.  You don't want to remember the $500 pair of shoes that hurt your feet, or the $6,000 dress that got stained.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a simple wedding.  Even more, I thing your wedding party will love you for it as well.  The colors sound  beautiful!!  The invitaions can be printed from home even - on beautiful paper, and look prof!  I do that stuff too!  

My husband and I eloped, so it cost us all of $50 to get married.  To be honest, I'm happy we did it that way.  We weren't in debt from a wedding, and there were no mother vs mother in law matches to worry about!  

What's more; it is your day and any way you choose to celebrate it is perfect!!!

Do what makes you happy!

Answer 6

I feel that if you're on an extremely tight budget and having around 30 people it's okay. But since you're getting flowers (and a possible suit) I think that you should spice it up a bit.

How about you get a nice white suit and your fiance' a black suit? Have your bridesmaids/groomsmen wear the nice slacks with color coordinating sweaters.

It seems very nice otherwise!

Answer 7

Historically speaking, a bride wore her best dress for a wedding (back when women wore only dresses). It was sometimes a new dress which then became her Sunday (i.e. best) dress. This mainly applies to the working classes who didn't really want to waste resources on an overly elaborate wedding. My recommendation, in this tradition, would be to wear your "best" outfit - perhaps an interview suit, or use this as the first time of many wearings of a formal outfit for company parties etc.

The rest sounds good, although there are women who would be uncomfortable with the informality of your bridesmaids arrangements. Given your take on the wedding industry I doubt you'd be asking them to be a bridesmaid for you.

I say go for it, and good for you for being sensible about this wedding!

Answer 8

Sounds wonderful.  By the way, if you don't already know about it, you should go check out a website called offbeatbride.com.  

Answer 9

Hi and congratulations!

I like your ideas.  And, yes, I love the idea of a casual wedding and reception.  Did you say "Thanksgiving feast?"  Mmmmm....my favorite meal of the year!

I do think, however, that you are taking the casual just a "wee bit" too far.  Why can't you feel a "little special" and get a dress off of the clearance rack?  Yes, I TOTALLY agree that spending thousands on one day is ridiculous, but it IS your wedding.....not just another day.  There are clearance dresses (both wedding and non-wedding) that are going to be cheaper than a pair of dress slacks and a sweater.  Have your ever looked at Chadwicks?

Here is a link to their site with all of their clearance dresses:

http://www.chadwicks.com/Womens-Special-...

OK....now the bouquets and boutonnieres.  Again, you do as you wish....and I like the idea of the bridesmaids with a small nosegay.  However, do NOT do a boutonniere for the guys on a shirt (no jacket).  Have you ever seen that?  It looks absolutely terrible!  

If the guys are wearing a pair of slacks and a shirt/tie....just leave the bouts off.  The girls can still carry small bouquets/nosegays if you want them to.

Those are my only suggestions.  You do as you wish.  It's your day.

Answer 10

do what makes you guys happy. you don't have to spend a lot of money to have a nice wedding. we spent under $1000 on are wedding and we loved it and would not have had it anyother way. everyone eho came loved it also and still talk about it 6 years later. Good Luck!

Answer 11

That is a great idea! I love it when people think outside of the box. I would love to be a guest at a wedding like that. It shows creativity and a great reflection of who you are as a couple. My fiancee and I will also be having a low-key wedding. I will be wearing a pale gold dress that I can wear again.  

Answer 12

You write you will get a nice pair of dress slacks and a nice sweater. Ask your fiance if he would like you to wear a dress. If yes, then it wouldnt cost any more to 'get' a dress than the slacks and sweater. If he wants you in slacks, fine. Sounds like you want a different and casual wedding so go for it

Answer 13

I think they can be really lovely.  The wedding should be about spending the time with friends and family and celebrating your love.  There is no reason why you should have to spend a ton of money to do that, and you can still have a casual event with only those things.