The invitation thumps on to your doormat – or, as likely, into your inbox – and rather than feel excitement for the ensuing nuptials, you feel dread. What on earth to wear?

Weddings are full of sartorial pitfalls. If there’s no dress code, the limitless options can feel daunting; if there is, it can feel a different kind of daunting, but with a useful guide to prevent you from feeling overwhelmed.

The trick, dress code or not, is to make an effort – never flip-flops, for instance. If the invitation calls for black tie, stick to as close to floor-length as you can with a fabric that denotes formality, such as silk or velvet, depending on the season. For a destination wedding, which often translates to “somewhere hot”, be mindful of fabrics and what your hosts may have been hoping for when they planned Mykonos over rural Shropshire, and apply that to your wardrobe. Breezy linen and cotton are smarter than sweaty polyester (this bold red linen dress or this similar, shorter style would be winners).

If it’s a beach wedding, why not lean into the holiday atmosphere with unexpected colour combinations, prints or the kinds of accessories that might look odd in a field but fun on a beach? Think night out on holiday, but turned up.

For a quaint countryside wedding, you may need a fancy layer for evening chill – that doesn’t have to mean a pashmina in 2026. In fact, it probably shouldn’t. Would a fancy blouse work? Or could you lean into the current trend for tying a silk scarf around everything and transition one from your bag or waist to around your shoulders when it gets nippier? Secondhand sites, such as Vinted, and charity shops are your friend here.

Get your footwear right – remember, spiky heels sink into grass. Ballet flats have been around the block for enough years now that there are some fun iterations out there, such as these from Hai (in fact, Hai’s entire stock speaks to panache-filled wedding guest dressing).

And wedding guest dressing doesn’t have to mean dresses: consider jumpsuits (dressed down, this one from Me+Em would double up as brilliant warm-weather wear), or trousers and skirts. A pretty skirt, like this one from Omnes, could be dressed up for the day with a silk shirt, and then worn on repeat for the rest of summer with a T-shirt.

Co-ords are also your friend – they look put together, and can feel more relaxed than a full-blown dress. This one from Kitri (top and bottom) could be dressed up or down and worn and worn. And don’t forget about tailoring. Far from cheap, but the 100% linen suits from Kipper would be perfect for a casual summer do.

There’s no need to buy a new outfit for a wedding because, ultimately, if you’re sticking to outfits that are more broadly “your style”, you should have at least some of what you need in your wardrobe. Wearing something you already own is also a brilliant way to avoid a new-dress clash. Alternatively, why not rent? Hurr and John Lewis have great options, from the flashy to the simple, the disco and the fashion to the laid-back.

As for accessories, ask around – friends and family may already have panic-bought the perfect little bag or statement necklace – or scour secondhand sites such as Vinted and Depop.

But if you do opt to buy new, and are still stuck for inspiration, here are our top picks for what to wear to nuptials this summer, whether you’re a guest or the bride herself.

Decoding the dress code

There are uncodified but largely assumed rules of wedding guest dressing: don’t wear white; don’t “outshine” the bride, whatever that really means; don’t wear anything too skimpy; wear a floral tea dress for country weddings, for instance.

But I think they could do with a bit of healthy subversion; think Scarlett in Four Weddings and a Funeral, looking resplendent in orange, pink and edgy sunglasses amid a sea of grey suits. If you want to nod to the floral look, but give it a twist, then how about this Rat & Boa unabashed orchid print dress, with a black leather strap? Or you could go for gingham and traditional lace that’s been given a bit of fashion-forward oomph here with the asymmetric cut.

Otherwise, have fun with unexpected, “unwedding-y” colours, such as brown or leopard print. The goal is not to feel like you’re cosplaying “wedding guest” – read: no fascinators – but turn up feeling yourself, even if that means nudging at the edges of a traditional wedding guest look.

But be warned about pushing it too far – I still regret wearing a short navy dress to a wedding in a field, not because I felt inappropriately dressed but because now, years later, I stick out like a sore thumb in all the photos.

For more, read our pick of the best wedding guest dresses for every budget and Jess Cartner-Morley’s 52 women’s summer wardrobe updates for under £100