Winter Wedding Outerwear

Winter weddings can be great. They are cozy and romantic, and often very elegant. They also tend to be very cold! Whether you are the bride or a guest, you will want to find beautiful outerwear to wear to the wedding.

Often, we get so wrapped up in the rest of the wedding outfit that more practical things like coats, wraps, and cover-ups get forgotten. This can be as true for the bride as it is for the female guests. It is usually not an issue for the groom and the male guests, first of all because they will be wearing suit jackets, and secondly because most men have some sort of dark wool topcoat already hanging in their closet. Outerwear is not so easy, though, for most women, because the parka that you might throw on to go to the mall or the trench coat you wear to work would look out of place with a formal dress.

To complete your look, you want to make certain that your outerwear coordinates with the rest of your ensemble. If you are planning to wear a strapless or sleeveless dress, you will also want to think about a wrap that you can wear indoors during the reception, as you may be chilly. Actually, that goes for summer weddings too, as they are often heavily air conditioned. Don't just grab an old cardigan on your way out the door - think elegance!

Fur is always a fabulous option for winter, whether you prefer real or faux. If you like genuine fur but find it to be out of your price range, check out the vintage and resale shops in your area. You can often find great pieces, especially wraps, at very reasonable prices. If you are shopping in the summer, be sure to talk to the store manager, because they may have their winter pieces in storage during the warmer months, but they will bring them out for you once they see that you are interested in buying.

For outerwear, look for luxurious pieces like velvet capes or full length fur coats. A dressy cloth coat could also work for a guest, especially if you jazz it up with a pretty brooch or pin. Sometimes you see evening coats in festive fabrics like satin, which would be gorgeous as well. The bride will want to find a garment that can drape over the fullness of her gown, which is why most will choose a long flowing cape or something short like a fur wrap.

Ideally, any piece that you are planning to wear during the reception will have some sort of fastener to keep it in place. Certainly, you can wear something like a pashmina which just drapes over the shoulders, but you may spend half of the evening fussing with it, which gets annoying. If your wrap is long enough, you can knot the ends behind your back and let the tails flow behind you. This works very well with softer fabrics like chiffon. One beautiful look is to have the edges of the wrap beaded with crystals to match the bride's crystal bridal jewelry. It looks elegant, and the weight of the crystals helps the wrap to stay in place.

For a fur wrap, a great idea is to secure it with a wide satin bow. Choose a ribbon that either blends in with the wrap, or one that pulls in a color from your dress. If you do not care for a bow, you can use a large rhinestone brooch, which ties in wonderfully with crystal bridal jewelry. For brides who prefer to let their jewelry speak and to keep their wrap simple, a hook and eye can always been hidden within the wrap as a fastener.

The right accessories will always make a good outfit great. This is true whether you are the bride, the mother of the bride, or merely a guest at a wedding. Elegant outerwear is the perfect finishing touch for a winter wedding.