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If you have never attended a beach wedding but you’ve received an invitation, you might be bewildered by how to go about selecting appropriate beach wedding clothes. Most weddings are either formal or dressy, but now you’ve been invited to a wedding where the ceremony is on the beach!

Is a man’s designer silk suit appropriate, or should guys wear beach shorts with tropical prints? Is it better to adopt a surfer look with unkempt hair, or should you comb your hair neatly? And should ladies wear their special-occasion $500 red Prada pumps or a simple pair of flip-flops? The typical seaside ceremony is more casual than a traditional church wedding, and beach wedding clothes are usually more casual as well.

Some wedding guests are fortunate and receive invitations with hints about what they should wear. If your invitation didn’t give you a clue, send the bride and groom a quick email asking for their suggestions before you start planning your beach wedding clothes. They will probably suggest some type of upscale beach attire, but no matter what they recommend, they’ll appreciate your concern and the indication that you are planning to attend.

If you are still in a quandary after asking, use these guidelines to help:

Beach Wedding Clothes for Men: Forget about wearing black – that color is typically reserved for the groom (although the restriction is usually not as rigidly observed as that of brides and white clothing). A white, cotton, button-down collar shirt with dress slacks is usually a safe clothing choice for a less formal affair.

If you’d feel more comfortable in a suit, go with linen slacks and jacket in a lighter color with a casual, striped shirt underneath – this will give you an air of relaxed formality and help you strike the perfect balance between casual and dressy. If you want to be more adventurous (or beachy) go with well-tailored cotton, linen or silk-blend draw-string pants or shorts and a tropical-print silk shirt.

For footwear, leather sandals are a good choice (though you want to make sure they’re open enough to let the sand out). Leather flip-flops work well too. It can be fine to even go barefoot, although that depends on how formal the occasion is and exactly what you’re wearing (you wouldn’t want to go shoeless if you were sporting an expensive linen suit).

Beach Wedding Clothes for Women: You want to be sure you don’t upstage the bride by out-dressing her. You have more freedom to dress up if it’s a formal wedding. Beach attire of the sort you might wear to an upscale resort is the best choice for a casual ceremony. Light-weight cotton or rayon skirts are ideal for tropical destinations. Wear these with island-style cotton or rayon tops in bright, primary colors for the perfect look. Well-tailored jersey dresses work well too.

As for length, a shorter dress or skirt will be best on the wedding beach. Try to avoid wearing a long dress and high heels, because these can make walking through deep sand almost impossible. Add some chic, subdued “bling” like a bracelet, necklace and earrings with an island or beach theme and you’re almost there.

To complete the look, wear sandals or dressy flip-flops with pretty painted toe-nails. If you’d rather go barefoot, wear a toe ring, ankle bracelet or barefoot sandals. Foot jewelry works particularly well if it is crafted from coral, shells or other items that show off your beach wedding clothes.

BeachWeddingMagic is devoted to helping soon-to-be-married couples create their own magical on beach wedding. Visit BeachWeddingMagic.com for expert advice on beach wedding clothes, decorations, flowers, wedding planners and much more.