My Best Wedding Guest Dress Was My Plus-One for Every Ceremony This Year—and I Plan on Wearing It Again
RSVP-ing "yes" doesn't have to mean buying something new.
My LinkedIn says I'm employed as Marie Claire's senior fashion news editor. Ask any of my friends or family to name my primary occupation, though, and they'll say "wedding guest."
I'm in a phase of life when it feels like everyone in my inner circle is getting married. Imagine Katherine Heigl's character in 27 Dresses as a tier-two, very good friend, and you'll get a sense of my social calendar. I've spent the past few years booking travel from Rio de Jainero, Brazil to Nice, France, and then Sitges, Spain—plus several cities on the U.S. East Coast—in the name of love. From April to September of this year alone, I thrashed to "Pink Pony Club" on six separate reception dance floors, and cheered as six couples cut into their six wedding cakes. I've cried at every father-daughter dance and at every bride's entrance. I am, in short, a pro at RSVP-ing "Yes."
As a fashion person, you may think I'd pick out a different dress for each occasion. There's hardly a shortage of "Best-Dressed Guest" edits across my favorite stores, and I generally do enjoy getting ready for what feels like Adult Prom every few weeks. But instead, I locked in one wedding guest dress I plan on wearing (nearly) forever.
I found this Delphine dress for a wedding in April—and I've worn it to every wedding I've attended since.
In past years, I'd ordered just-once styles and enjoyed them for a night, then sold them off on TheRealReal or ThredUp a few months later. I hadn't fallen out of love with how they looked—I just worried my cohort of fellow guests (and my Instagram feed) would side-eye my outfit repeating. I know, to paraphrase Jemima Kirke, that no one's thinking about me that much. But in the "pics or you didn't go" era, new outfits for every event feel like a requirement.
Earlier this year, I decided to opt out of the wedding guest dress complex with a single, perfect-for-me garment. When invites to the latest round of receptions began stacking up, I started to flinch at the costs of wedding wardrobing. "I dos" are already an expensive endeavor for guests when your friends meet their Prince Charmings abroad (or just a state away). A new dress—even an under-$150 one—for each of their nuptials adds up.
After a lot of thinking, and budgeting, I figured that a single, long-lasting, trend-proof select could be more versatile than the wedding dress codes let on. I could wear it to all my events this year and keep it going into the next. So after hours of scrolling, I landed on the Lucy by Delphine, a silky confection with layers of boho-lite ruffles and an open upper back.
Delphine, founded by New York City-based designer Tanya Taylor, excels at eveningwear for women with a glamorous alter-ego they can't often introduce in the daytime. This one's precise shade of cornflower blue felt very "me"; the layers of silk were definitely black-tie appropriate. With most of my weddings landing during the spring and summer, I knew the spaghetti strap silhouette would also fit the forecast (and the energy of the mostly-outdoor ceremonies).
I've worn this Delphine wedding guest dress to six ceremonies, including in April (left), September (center), and May (right).
I debuted my one and only wedding guest dress of the year with crystal-lined pumps and a metallic bag for a late-spring wedding. By summer, I was tying my hair back into a braided bun and pairing it with mesh, dance floor-proof Loeffler Randall flats. That's more or less the formula I followed for every other ceremony, whether it was cliffside in Spain or in the woods of the Catskills.
I didn't feel diminishing style returns with each wear. (Also, these ruffles are perfect for a slow-twirl to "Lover.") If anything, I came to enjoy it more. Wedding Halie wasn't fully activated until she had her power dress and power lip on.
If someone else wants to fuel the $11 billion wedding guest dress industry with a specialized trosseau for each invite, all power to them. I'm perfectly happy with one occasion piece that makes me smile. As my husband pointed out, he and his friends more or less wear the same tux to every wedding, and no one says a word. Is it really that different for those of us who wear gowns?
My fears about being labeled an outfit-repeater, by the way, were unfounded: The only time someone acknowledged that I'd worn the same dress twice came in the form of a compliment. "I meant to ask you—where did you get this?" a friend asked when I wore the Lucy on her third outing. I was, of course, happy to text her the Delphine link.
By the sixth wear, I felt silly for ever considering anyone would pay attention. If a piece makes me feel celebratory, why wouldn't I wear it again (and again)? Of course, if the bride asks everyone to wear black, I'll give it a break.
I felt too good in my Delphine dress to buy another wedding guest option.
My next wedding of the 2025 season is in three weeks, and I already have five more on the docket for 2026. I anticipate going through all the same celebratory motions as before. I"ll dance to Chappell Roan, I'll throw back a few custom cocktails, and I'll one hundred percent wear my best wedding guest dress again. I might try more of a statement earring next time, or swap in a platform heel for my flats. But I don't need—or want!—an entirely new outfit.
Anyone in love can tell you it doesn't matter what other people think when you find the one. In the case of my wedding guest dress, I'm in it for the long haul.
