Oh, dear readers, grab your popcorn and clutch your pearls, because have I stumbled upon a wedding tale that’s as juicy as a ripe peach in summer. Now, as the in-house sassy savant at HotTakes, I’ve seen my fair share of wedding drama, but this story, plucked straight from the wild garden of Reddit, might just take the wedding cake for its blend of cultural traditions, fashion faux pas, and family feuds. Yes, this is a real story from a real person, and trust me, you’ll want to stick around for my Hot Take at the end.
Our protagonist, a 25-year-old lady, found herself in a stitch (pun very much intended) when the wedding of her cousin ‘Dan’ and his beloved ‘Elle’ beckoned. You see, this wasn’t just any wedding; it was a cultural cornucopia, with a dress code straight from the pages of a traditional fairytale or, for those less poetically inclined, think ‘Dirndl.’ Now, these outfits aren’t just lying around in your local department store; they’re as special as they are pricey. So, when our lady realized her purse strings were tighter than a corset, she understandably panicked.
Her solution? To wear her trusty ivory dirndl, adorned with dirty pink flowers and a matching apron, a garment that, while not pure white, could potentially ruffle some feathers or, in this case, wedding veils. Being the conscientious guest she is, she sought approval from the bride and groom, who, after a brief consultation, gave her their blessing. Costume crisis averted, right? Wrong.
As it turns out, memories can be as unreliable as a bridesmaid after one too many glasses of champagne. Despite the preemptive peace treaty, the bride’s family launched an all-out assault of dirty looks and backstage banter, presumably upset over the dress’s resemblance to bridal white. The situation escalated, with our protagonist being relegated to the back rows, away from the photographic evidence and, presumably, the good appetizers.
Now, this is where I, Roger, your guide through the perilous world of wedding etiquette, must interject. The rule of thumb is clear: don’t wear white (or anything close to it) to a wedding unless explicitly instructed to do so. Yet, our dear guest did her due diligence, securing approval from the very top. So, where does the blame lie? With the changed heart of a stressed bride or the risky business of wearing anything remotely resembling white to a wedding?
Here’s Roger’s Hot Take: This story isn’t just about a dress; it’s about communication, expectations, and the gray area (or should we say, ivory area) they sometimes land in. Yes, perhaps our protagonist could have anticipated the volatility of wedding attire and opted for something less controversial. But at the end of the day, she acted with consideration and respect, seeking and receiving approval from the people who mattered most.
So, is she the antagonist in this ivory-tinted tale? Absolutely not. If there’s a lesson to be learned here, it’s that weddings, much like life, are unpredictable. And sometimes, no matter how hard you try to please everyone, you end up being the villain in someone else’s story.
But hey, on the bright side, at least she has a story that will entertain dinner parties for years to come. And let’s be honest, isn’t that worth its weight in bridal tulle?
Until next time, remember: in fashion, as in life, it’s not just about the color you wear, but how you wear it. Tread carefully, darlings, and when in doubt, maybe just go with black. Cheers!
Original story
My (25f) cousin “Dan” (29m) got married to the love of his life “Elle” (28f) last weekend. They both like taking part in our countries traditions which is why the dress code was traditional clothing. If you want to get a feel for what that looks like, google “Dirndl”. Everyone in my family owns one, however, mine consists of a short ivory dress with dirty pink flowers, pink embelishments and a pink apron (I’ll put a link to a simmilar dress at the bottom of the post).
As you can imagine, traditional wear is not cheap, and since money is tight for me at the moment, I knew I would not be able to affort a new dress and I already checked if I could borrow one from someone else. So I texted Dan to ask what I should do. These were my suggestions:
Wear the dress I have (he and Kristen know the dress since I wear it pretty regularly at family functions)
Wear a non traditional dress in a more appropriate color
Use the money I had saved as a wedding present to buy a new dress
Dan said that he talked to Elle and wearing a non traditional dress was not an option, since I would stick out too much, but since my dress is not white allover, its okay if I wear it since Elles dress is gonna be a huge ballgown anyways, so there is just no way my dress would be in competition with it.
The weekend came, I wore the dress, and immediatly, I got dirty looks from Elles family. I just assumed they were not aware that my dress was pre aproved by the bride and groom. Shortly before the ceremony, the MOH took me aside and asked if I had anything else I can change into. I informed her that I talked to Elle beforehand and she said “I know, but her mum sent her a picture of you and Elle said the dress is a lot more white than she remembered and it’s really stressing her out now.” I felt really bad, but the best I could offer was getting my leather jacket from the car. But since the Jacket doesn’t match the dresscode, she just asked me to sit in the back and stay in back rows for pictures (which kinda sucked since I’m short, but it’s her day, so I didn’t wanna argue)
The whole thing was really uncomfortable, and made even more so by Elles family constantly talking shit about me, just loud enough to hear it. I talked to Dan in a quiet moment and he apologized for the whole thing but said that Elle was still really upset and I should give her a few days before trying to talk to her. I don’t know what to make of this? I feel terrible for causing her so much stress, but I feel like it isn’t really my fault? My family is kinda split about it, with one saying I did everything I could, and the other saying I should have known better and just brought a non traditional dress for this case. What do you think? AITA here?
(Link to a simmilar dress. My flowers are a little smaller and pink is less saturated: https://trachtenshop.de/media/image/93/ee/ec/mini-dirndl-trendy-weiss-3061-0133-ro3-19-02h-4895-a_600x600.jpg )