Wedding Guests Spill the Tea on Most Atrocious Outfits They've Seen at a Wedding, 'They didn't get the memo.'

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Ely Bulnes • Writer and Editor
Aug 23, 2024 6:00 PM EDT

Wedding etiquette varies wildly from culture to culture and from region to region. Where in some parts of the world, every wedding guest - even the friend of the neighbor of the cousin of the bride - is expected to dress to the nines, in other parts, it is perfectly acceptable for some guests to show up in shorts and sandals. There are no universal rules for wedding attire; even wearing a white dress as a guest is not considered a faux pas at every wedding ceremony given that in some cultures, brides traditionally wear red for luck or dresses with multi-colored fabrics. In any case, wedding guests should be able to read the room, use the internet, or ask the bride or groom to ensure that their wedding attire will be culturally appropriate and fit the vibe of the wedding. However, some people march to the beat of their own drum and demand attention. Read below for some hilarious stories featuring wedding guests that stood out like sore thumbs.

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  • 01
    r/weddingshaming u/Samba Bamba95 • 2d What is the worst outfit you've seen on a wedding guest
    via u/SambaBamba95
  • 02
    curryp4n. 1d My friend's mother in law wore a near replica of her wedding dress. She thought people were looking at her because she was more beautiful. ... Reply 471
    via u/curryp4n
  • 03
    Disastrous Jicama562 1d • If I was the groom I would have sent my mother HOME! ... Q 8 4 3
    via u/DisastrousJicama562
  • 04
    SparrowArrow27.1d Two different weddings. First one: The bride's uncle's wife was wearing a dress that wouldn't have been out of place in "Gone with the Wind". It looked like the white and green dress from the movie. Except the fabric was cheap and it was at least one size too small. This was the early 2000's, everyone else were wearing your standard fancy clothes. Her husband had a constand thousand yard stare going on.
    via u/SparrowArrow27
  • 05
    Second one: A guest showed up to the reception (she changed clothes after the ceremony) in what I can only described as a cheap Jessica Rabbit Halloween costume. The only thing missing were the purple gloves. This lady was also in her late 40's and did not have the body of Jessics Rabbit. She ended up getting drunk and falling asleep in the bushes outside the venue, at which point anyone unlucky enough to be near her could see that she wasn't wearing underwear. Reply 400
    via u/SparrowArrow27
  • 06
    NoltsNotThat Jessica • 1d I want to be that level of delusional and self- confident. I would give no great and that's it. You see my I give no . None. I look ? Good. See it. 147
    via u/NoltsNotThatJessica
  • 07
    FriscoHusky • 19h Awesome descriptions! So the first chick was in a hoop skirt and crinolines? I think I wore something like that to my first prom.
    via u/FriscoHusky
  • 08
    Digital Disimpaction • 1d I went to a casual backyard BBQ wedding in July where the invite literally said casual. I was wearing a sundress as a lot of other women were. It was 92°. There was a woman there, mid-20s, wearing a floor length red satin gown with a train that had a V neck down to the belly button and a slit up the leg that almost met the V, with a big old ruffle on the side like some wild west saloon girl. She had a matching fan à la 1850s London or some . She was clearly drenched in
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  • 09
    boards_and_beach • 1d She didnt care about the casual attire or the weather. She was going to wear that saloon dress no matter. 187
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  • 10
    potsieharris. 1d Im imagining she has a big fight with her. boyfriend over the dress purchase. They were on vacation in Vegas. They'd had a few. She saw the dress in a vintage shop, tried it on, he loved how she looked in it but couldn't believe she actually wanted him to buy it for her. 245 _ dollars.
    via u/potsieharris
  • 11
    They bickered over it and he said that's the kind of dress you buy it but you'll never wear it. She said she would so wear it. He said, Like will. It'll be just like with that damned leather jacket. And the Vitamix. And that Yorkie. you
    via u/potsieharris
  • 12
    A pause, cause they both know he should know better than to bring up Mr. Piddles. Which is maybe why he bends when she says, I will so wear it. I'll wear it to Kitty and Matt's wedding. I will! So he bought the choice but to wear the dress, and she had no wedding. She had her pride. thing to the 2211
    via u/potsieharris
  • 13
    RaggedyAnn18 • 1d Oh man I have some doozies. Half of my family is from a rural area, and they absolutely refuse to follow dress codes. My cousin got married at a fairly casual event. Think girls in sundresses and guys in khaki shorts with a polo. The groom's dad showed up in an Eminem T- shirt and ripped basketball shorts. That is his thing, since he just wore an Insane Clown Posse T-shirt and camo shorts to a funeral.
    via u/RaggedyAnn18
  • 14
    A cousin on the wealthy side of my family was getting married. It was a gorgeous venue, open bar, tons of food including a pasta bar where you could choose your sauce, noodles, and protein and a worker would heat it in front of you. The dress code was formal, with lots of men in jackets and ties. Another cousin walks in late wearing ripped jeans and a tiny white tank top. It later turned out that she was addicted to meth. Reply 247
    via u/RaggedyAnn18
  • 15
    midnight-queen29. 1d finances aside, if someone like that turned up to my wedding they are getting turned right back around. i expect my family to respect normal human codes of conduct. 23
    via u/midnight-queen29
  • 16
    Extremely Retired • 1d For an afternoon garden wedding, the mother of the bride wore a low-cut white taffeta ballgown (so full it was just this side of a hoop skirt) with white summer furs (the kind with head and paws still attached) and a lot of pearls and diamonds, including in her hair (along with a couple of white camellias behind one ear).
    via u/ExtremelyRetired
  • 17
    Meanwhile, her daughter was in a pair of cream palazzo pants with a coordinated camisole. It was all rather puzzling. ETA: I can't believe I forgot the white-kid opera gloves... ... Reply 583
    via u/ExtremelyRetired
  • 18
    ThreePartSilence. 1d lol I've never heard the term "summer furs" before, but I feel like I can picture exactly what type of person would wear them. I would give anything for a picture of this outfit. 289
    via u/ThreePartSilence
  • 19
    that_was_way_harsh. 1d A waffle knit henley shirt with baggy jeans and dirty work boots at a semi-formal event. This person also didn't want to let the hired photographer do their job, so he stood directly behind the bride and groom taking photos with his phone during most of the ceremony. So he was in all the pro photos of the ceremony. That marriage didn't last, so it's less of a tragedy that the photos were ruined. ← Reply 157
    via u/that_was_way_harsh
  • 20
    JaCroix476 • 1d - This one's on me for not investigating — I went to a wedding of my fiancé's childhood best friend, invite was emailed to him so I never saw it, but he told me it was black tie optional. We fly down (we are in NYC, wedding was in Alabama) and go to this wedding, he's in a full suit and I'm in a black floor length dress, decked out in gold jewelry.... Khakis, tshirts, sneakers, and shorts as far as the eye can see. I didn't know a soul there, so I was mortified, and actually got
    via u/JaCroix476
  • 21
    Turns out the wedding was "semi-formal" and people ran with it. It ended up being ok, a perfectly fine wedding, but I am NEVER trusting anyone but the bride to clarify the dress code EVER again. Reply 300
    via u/JaCroix476
  • 22
    bbgorilla13 1d Oh god, almost never can the groom be trusted to accurately portray the dress code. I told my now husband a thousand times, our dress code is "semi-formal picnic". He told people all kinds of different things, from "black tie" to "idk picnic I think?". People from his side showed up in every kind of clothing under the sun. It wasn't a big deal, but looking back, I would have put the dress. code on the invites. Oops. ↑ 37 ↓
    via u/bbgorilla13
  • 23
    ambiguousluxe • 1d I went to a wedding in Austin and the dress code was earth tones and semi-formal. One brides' grandpa showed up in denim overalls and a straw hat. He was just charming enough to pull it off so I think everyone gave him a pass AA Reply 137
    via u/ambiguousluxe
  • 24
    Supe_scienceskilz. 1d I have a big family so I've been to lots of weddings. For one of my first cousins wedding, one of his future sister in laws was not included in the wedding party so to her drunken behavior. She showed up quite plastered to the wedding wearing 4 inch white platform sandals, baby pink and blue tutu over what was the smallest white skirt imaginable, bone white stockings, and white men's dress shirt. Now Let that marinate! Reply 240
    via u/Supe_scienceskilz
  • 25
    Jilltro. 1d Two immediately come to my mind. First was at a really beautiful and elegant upscale wedding and one woman wore cargo shorts and a polo shirt. I'm all for women wearing pants (the groomswoman wore a lovely black and cream jumpsuit) but this was ridiculous.
    via u/Jilltro
  • 26
    Second was the groom's sister in law wore this skin tight dress that was so short you could see the bottom of her cheeks and she paired it with a pair of sky high platforms. This was a nice day time wedding with the reception at a kid's summer camp. Reply 110
    via u/Jilltro
  • 27
    Secret-Relationship9 • 1d Mother of the groom wore a floor length satin white wedding dress. The bride wore muted colors, but not white. So it was especially awkward. ← Reply 76 ↓
    via u/Secret-Relationship9
  • 28
    Nopeaceonlyproblems. 1d My husband's aunt showed up to our wedding in her pajamas... Reply ୪ 69
    via u/Nopeaceonlyproblems

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