Weddings come in all shapes and sizes, from the over-the-top event no one wants to miss to the more intimate family-centered celebrations. It is totally up to the couple to plan the day of their dreams, which every bride and groom deserves. And there is one cardinal rule that no wedding guest dare break: A woman shouldn't wear white to someone else's wedding.
With a bazillion other colors to choose from, this should be simple. But there will always be those who feel that rules — even if they are unwritten — don't apply to them and that they can do whatever they want. A TikTok posted just a few days ago went mega-viral with more than 28 million views. The nine-second video shows a wedding where not one, but two women, showed up wearing white. And to no one's surprise, the bride was upset. The vast majority of TikTokers said her reaction was totally justified.
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Can we all agree wearing a white dress to a wedding is a no-no?
A bride's gown is one of the most important details for her big day. Some women spend thousands of dollars on a dress that all eyes will be on when she walks down the aisle. This is her moment, and no one should steal that thunder.
In the viral TikTok, the camera pans to two female guests who are definitely wearing white. The second woman, whom we see only from the back, looks like she could be the bride. Text over the video reads, "This one wore a legit WEDDING DRESS." And, yeah, we see it.
Why? Just why?
Was there nothing else in these women's closets that they could have worn that day? Let's be honest, you can even get dresses delivered by Amazon on the same day. There really is no reason for this. What was the motive here? Were these women intentionally trying to upstage the bride because of some personal vendetta? TikTokers don't get it.
"It's always an unspoken 'rule' to dress well at someone's wedding but not wear a wedding DRESS like WHY IS THAT SUCH A HARD CONCEPT?????" someone asked.
"As someone who told her sister-in-law do not wear white on my wedding and then wore White I feel this," another commenter wrote. "She even posted as if it was her own wedding."
And would you believe some people had to spell it out for their own weddings?
"I put no white of off-white dresses for guest in the wedding site FAQ and that they'll will be asked to leave if they do wear one," another comment reads.
Red, red, wine.
Can you guess where this is going? So many comments said they'd be happy to dump a glass of wine all over a guest's dress. Is that going too far? Maybe. But if you are the bride's ride or die, you'll do anything for a friend.
"I believe each bride needs a friend who is known to be clumsy be in charge of spilling red wine on them or make it a game for the groomsmen to," one TikToker wrote.
"Red wine goes excellent with those dresses if you were to hand them a drink," another person suggested.
"We had that happen at a family wedding," another person wrote. "Some paid a waiter to walk with a tray full of glasses of red wine and [spill] on her. She left ."
Although they were in the minority, some said it wasn't a big deal.
A few TikTokers didn't think the dresses were a big deal and feel like the bride should get over it. But not many agree.
"I don't get all the fuss," one person explained. "I really don't. Can't say I really noticed what people were wearing at my wedding. Also, my dress was not white."
"Someone wore white to mine & I didn't even notice till after the wedding was over because I was so in my element and the person was so irrelevant ," someone commented.
And then someone made a pretty good point.
"I will never understand why you'd get so upset about this – if someone is at YOUR wedding and doesn't know you're the bride, why are they there?" the comment reads.
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What do the experts say about wearing white?
There are mixed feelings about whether you should wear white as a guest at a wedding. In an article for Martha Stewart Weddings, professionals mentioned what they thought about white for a wedding guest. In most situations, white should be reserved for the bride. There are exceptions, say for a wedding theme or at the couple's request, but traditionally, the bride is the woman in white.
"The bride may or may not wear white (maybe ivory, maybe champagne) but it's her color for that day. You don't want to be mistaken for the bride in a white or lace gown," Brandi Hamerstone, owner and wedding planner at All Events Planned, said. "You don't want to stand with the bride and look as though you were attempting to look bridal on someone else's day. Even when or if that wasn't your intention, that's what people (and possibly the bride) will think and who wants to be 'that' person?"
We agree. It's one day, find something else to wear. If you really need to get your fix in your white dress, go to brunch the following day or a nice date night. Shoot, you can wear that sucker on Wednesday afternoon to Target if you want to. Just let the bride have her moment.
