Life Designer, April 2015
14
SARTORIAL ELEGANCE DESIGNED FOR ALL OCCASIONS
BLACK TIE means formal. Women wear long
evening or cocktail dresses or dressy evening
separates. Men wear traditional tuxedoes with
formal white shirt, black bow tie, and black
cummerbund. Men may also choose to add their
own flair to their tux by wearing a traditional style
tie (silver or gold) or colored bow ties and
cummerbunds.
CASUAL means anything goes, but please be
tasteful, no holes, tears or paint spots.
COCKTAIL ATTIRE simply means short,
elegant dresses or
dressy pantsuits for her
and dark suits for him.
WHITE ATTIRE
simply means wear all
white; such as white
dress or pantsuit for her
or white shirt and
slacks for him, however remember depending on
the time of event will determine how dressy the
occasion.
DRESSY CASUAL usually means no jeans or
shorts. A cocktail-length dress for the ladies and
your standard khakis with a button-down shirt and
tie for the guys... no jacket required. This attire is
similar to business casual, but a bit dressier.
FORMAL usually means the same as Black Tie.
If your host is especially trendy, men may wear a
black shirt, no tie with a tuxedo. Tradition,
however, requires that men wear the standard
tuxedo and women wear long cocktail dresses or
dressy evening separates.
INFORMAL can mean the same as casual,
however, when the event is associated with a
wedding or another special occasion, some form
of decorum and respect should prevail. A dress for
her or a nice pair of slacks and a shirt for him are
informal, but respectful of the event.
FORMAL OR INFORMAL are two terms
usually found with weddings. The time of day
determines the dress.
. . . IF the event or wedding is held before 6 pm,
women may wear a tailored suit or pretty daytime
dress (avoid black before 6
pm). If it’s a religious
wedding, bring a wrap to
cover bare shoulders. Men
may wear a traditional
business suit, shirt and tie
(dark colored for winter,
lighter colors for summer)
or a blazer, dress slacks,
and tie. One never wears
formal attire before 6pm,
except for the members of the wedding party.
. . . FOR an event after 6pm, men wear dark suits
or dinner jackets, women should wear a cocktail
dress, dressy evening separates, or dinner suit.
Black is fine to wear after 6 pm.
. . . FOR an event labeled “Informal”, even if it’s
after 6pm, you may dress as though it’s a before
6pm event.
. . . IF the invitation requests Black of White tie,
men and women should follow the guidelines
listed for those terms.
nightclub chic suggests nothing other than black
and sleek.
SEMI-FORMAL is the trickiest of all dress
codes. Typically it means that tuxedos are not
required, nor are long dresses. An evening event
(after 6:00 pm) would still require a dark suit for
men and a cocktail dress for women. Daytime
semi formal events mean a suit for him and an
appropriate short dress or dressy suit for her.
SOPHISTICATED RESORTWEAR means
upscale sundress for her and subtly colored linen
trousers for him.
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