Note: Today’s post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Something Good.
It’s wedding season! I feel like we all go through this at the beginning of the summer and then at the beginning of fall: the race to find good wedding guest dresses. The past two years I’ve been set with dresses, so I didn’t have any problems. But this fall, I hit a weird challenge. I was going to a black tie optional wedding and then a cocktail attire wedding where I would also be going to the rehearsal dinner. Aka I would need lots of dresses.
My former black tie dress is actually up for sale on my poshmark site (it’s time for me to move on), so I knew I would need to get a new one. In the past I would have looked at Rent the Runway, but I realized that I was just going to look at the under $100 section there. But what’s the point of renting a dress under $100 when I could get a dress around that amount and just keep it for future weddings?
So I began hunting for dresses. Before we get to all of the wedding guest dress reviews, I do want to mention, that while there are only a few dresses below, I tried on A LOT more. Unfortunately, I definitely got dress fatigue and did not take pictures of every dress. However, I tried to get a lot of the dresses included in the widget below. If I didn’t take pictures, it was either too dark, I didn’t bother getting the zipper up all the way, or I pulled the dress out and didn’t even bother trying it on.
Wedding Guest Dress Reviews
J.Crew Silk one-shoulder dress in polka dot, Size 0 Navy Peony
Is it bad to start with the winner? Oh well. I loved this dress! It fit like a glove and the silk looked so good. Unfortunately, I should note that there were two downsides to the dress. First, notice the slit in the front? It meant I had to be really careful about how I sat. Second, I think some of the fabric on the side was puckering, but I couldn’t fully tell. I did feel fabulous wearing it, and that was all that mattered. I ended up wearing this to the black tie wedding.
Verdict: Keep
J.Crew Ruffle hem sheath dress, Size 0, Academic Green
I was hoping this dress would be the major winner so I could wear it to both weddings. Unfortunately, it was a major failure. This dress made NO sense. The bottom was too tight. Then, the top was too big. If you look at my shoulders, there was at least an INCH too much fabric there. And that’s not even looking at the space in my chest. Finally, the fabric which looked really nice on the site just looked cheap in person.
Verdict: Return
Adelyn Rae Lily Mixed Lace Dress, X-Small, Navy-Nude
I thought this dress looked like of cool, with the mixed lace and netting. It also had a little bit of stretch, which would make it perfect for dancing. If you’re interested in this dress, you should know that the netting around my neck is see-through. However, from there down, it’s lined, which is really nice.
This was on my maybe list, but when my boyfriend saw it, he just looked super confused. At the end of the day, that combined with the fact that I didn’t love it made it a no go.
Verdict: Return
Adelyn Rae Freya Sleeveless Sweater Dress, X-Small, Wine
This dress is so completely comfortable. It’s a sweater material though, which made it not appropriate for the black tie dress. However, since it fit like a glove, I decided that it would be perfect for the rehearsal dinner! Also, you can’t really see it, but there’s a little cut out right above the small of my back. This dress just has so many cute little details like that and the scallops that really make it perfect.
Verdict: Keeping it and you need to as well.
Eliza J Asymmetrical Lace Fit & Flare Dress, Size 2, Navy
Have you ever felt like you were being attacked by lace? That was kind of how I felt with this dress. Overwhelmed by lace really. The fit was dead on, but I think that maybe I’m just too short for it? Between the uneven hem and the lace cap sleeves, this dress was just too much.
Verdict: Return
Adelyn Rae Alicia Long Sleeve Lace Cocktail Dress, X-Small, Blue-Violet
Okay, so this dress would be a no-go for the formal wedding, but I still maintain that it’s super cute. I felt a little bit like a figure skater, but with tights and a pair of heels (or booties), it would be perfect for a less formal wedding! The downside to this dress though was that it was a pain in the ass to take off.
Verdict: Return.
Okay, that’s all for now. I do have one more dress that I tried on last night that I’ll be wearing for the wedding this weekend. I’ll try to get some pictures of it later so I can add it into the post tonight or tomorrow. In the meantime, make sure to check out some of the dresses below! I really loved the red Ali and Jay cutout one, but it was too long and I needed to go one size up for a perfect fit (which I definitely did not have time to do). If you have a formal wedding coming it’s definitely a great choice!
