Wedding Guest Told She Needs To Apologize To The Bride For Wearing A Dress To The Reception That ‘Hogged All The Attention’
Despite getting compliments, she didn't think her dress overshadowed the bride.
D-Keine / Canva Pro After a woman attended the wedding of a friend’s cousin, she was perplexed when her friend messaged her the following morning, claiming that the bride expected an apology from her.
The woman learned that the bride was insulted by her outfit choice, believing it had deprived her of the spotlight that was supposed to be hers.
The woman was accused of ‘hogging’ all of the attention at the wedding reception because of the dress she wore.
Sharing her story along with a photo of the dress in question on the subreddit r/weddingshaming, the woman, who is from India, revealed that she recently attended a wedding in the United States of a friend’s cousin.
“This was a regular American wedding, and it didn’t give the impression that anyone was dressed too conservatively,” she wrote.
Photo: Neustockimages / Canva Pro
The wedding was not held at a church, and the woman said her friend approved her dress beforehand.
“The bridesmaids were wearing strapless dresses that showed off shoulders and a neckline. Women were also wearing floor-length cocktail gowns,” she shared. “[The] bride had a plunging sweetheart-style neckline as well (which was absolutely beautiful, btw). I don’t think modesty was a question here.”
The woman said she chose to wear a saree dress to the wedding.
A saree, often spelled sari, is a traditional garment worn by women in South Asia, particularly in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. It consists of a long piece of cloth draped elegantly around the body.
She said the dark blue saree looked similar to a cocktail dress.
“I also want to emphasize that in no way I felt that my outfit was revealing or too risqué,” the woman wrote. “It had a midriff (common for a saree) but my blouse wasn’t too short. The best analogy would be wearing a crop top worn with a long skirt.”
Photo: Creativa Images / Canva Pro
While she did receive a few compliments, she did not feel that her dress stole the attention of other guests, especially compared to the enchanting bride.
However, after meeting the bride and groom, the woman noticed the bride was “reserved” and “cold” toward her. “I didn’t take it personally and chalked it up to wedding stress,” she wrote.
The following day, she received an alarming text message from her friend telling her that the bride expected her to apologize to her for “hogging” all of the attention and “becoming a spectacle.”
“I was so confused and didn’t think that my choice of outfit was in any shape or form inappropriate,” the woman wrote. “The bride’s wedding gown got way more stares anyway.”
For further clarification, the woman included a photo of a dress that resembled the one she wore.
While many Redditors believed that the woman’s dress was stunning, some noted that it appeared to be a bit over the top for a wedding reception.
Some people thought that it was not appropriate to wear it based on American wedding etiquette.
“I think your outfit was lovely. But in a western wedding where everyone else will be dressed in Western fashion something like this will stand out, no matter how flashy everyone else is dressed,” one Redditor commented.
“It’s very cute but most people in a Christian wedding would consider that inappropriate. You didn’t do anything on purpose, two cultures with very different rules and there was a misunderstanding,” another user commented.
“Crop tops are considered as casual as flip flops. They're not appropriate for Western weddings,” another user wrote.
However, many people believed that the bride was being unreasonable for expecting an apology.
“The bride needs to get over herself. We should not be shaming people for what they wear,” one Redditor shared.
“It’s ridiculous for the bride to try and police guests' outfits. Especially someone that's clearly from another culture,” another user wrote.
There is only one universal rule regarding wedding attire in the United States.
While no specific dress code applies to all American weddings, women typically wear floor-length gowns, below or above-the-knee dresses, or dress shirts and slacks, depending on the wedding setting.
Wearing white, however, is considered a big no-no to avoid clashing with the bride.
Although some people may have believed that the woman’s dress was inappropriate for a wedding, she was in no way attempting to steal any attention from the bride.
The only one who deserves to be apologetic in this scenario is the bride for making her feel that she was wrong.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.