A few weeks ago I attended the wedding of two old friends and co-workers. Weddings are always beautiful occasions. A summer wedding outfit is fun to pick out because it’s the perfect excuse to dress up during what’s normally a very casual season.

{A Summer Wedding Outfit – Featuring Carry Maternity}

On my hunt for a summer wedding outfit, I headed to Carry Maternity. This was the 2nd of two dresses I picked up from the Yorkville boutique and as soon as I put it on, I knew it was the one!

I was approaching 30 weeks of pregnancy at the time of the wedding and purchased this dress about 4 weeks prior. I was worried there was a possibility it wouldn’t fit but it still fit beautifully and comfortably.

Tips For Picking a Summer Wedding Outfit

Whether you’re expecting or not, here are some of my tips for choosing a summer wedding outfit as a guest:

• Consider the type of wedding venue

Is the wedding casual or formal? You’ll want to make sure you know what type of wedding attire is appropriate for the occasion and generally you can figure that out by the type of venue. In my case I knew the wedding was taking place outside of the city and in a banquet hall on private grounds. So my thought was that it was more casual and a bit like a garden party.

• What will the weather be like?

In Toronto, summers can be unpredictable. We’ve had more hot and humid days this summer than cold ones so I had a pretty good idea that I wanted something short sleeved and in a comfortable material. I kept a shawl handy in case the weather took a turn and also to accommodate for air conditioning during the reception.

• Pick something you can wear again

Unless the wedding is extremely formal, it should be easy to find a summer wedding outfit that you can wear again. Think about whether you can wear it to another occasion coming up or even to work or to meetings. The dress I chose will work well with a blazer and pumps for the office and can also work more casually with flats and a jean jacket.

• Think about your accessories

It’s always an unexpected expense to have to purchase an outfit for a special occasion so be sure the dress you pick will go with accessories you already have. The last thing you want to do is to run around trying to find the perfect jewelry, shoes or clutch!

When I’m buying a new dress I make sure it will go with either black or nude shoes and that the colours in the dress can be complimented by the clutches I have. I already have a lot of jewelry on hand so it was just a matter of picking from my collection.

(I realized I forgot to take a complete outfit picture with the clutch and earrings! Oops!)

I decided to keep it really simple with a black clutch from Rag & Bone and floral earrings to mimic the flowers on the dress from Shop For Jayu. For my shoes (not pictured here) I went with simple wedge heels from Nine West since part of the wedding was held outdoors.

Completing The Look

While not a necessary step to being a wedding guest, I would still highly recommend getting your hair and makeup done by a professional if you can. Usually I do my own hair and makeup, however I knew it was going to be a long day and the weather forecast was predicting a hot, humid, windy day with a chance of rain!

I booked with Stephanie of BlushPretty and asked her to create an easy updo with my natural texture and simple makeup that would last all day.

My hair is naturally curly and I didn’t want my look to be too “done”. I encourage everyone to embrace their natural hair texture, especially in the summer months!

My makeup was very soft and pretty. While it’s a look I could do myself, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to have it look so perfect and last all day and night. In my opinion, great hair and makeup can pull a whole outfit together!

Do you have any tips on choosing a summer wedding outfit? I’d love to hear your thoughts!