What to Wear to a Wedding in Africa

September kicks off wedding season, and that means it’s time to get your lewks together. Looking your best as a wedding guest is tremendous fun, but it’s also, well, expected—emphasis on the latter. As far as the bride is concerned, her wedding is the event of the year, and everyone must look the part! Dressing for a wedding as a guest can be tricky in some cultures, but in many African cultures, it’s straightforward. Traditional weddings remove the guesswork —you wear traditional African clothing (in many cases custom-made) or traditional attire representing your respective culture. White weddings or “westernized weddings” usually take place on a different day. White weddings present a unique opportunity to dazzle as a guest while not outshining the bride. The only rule of thumb for both weddings is to avoid the colour black — unless instructed (by invite) or otherwise. Wearing black to African weddings may negatively affect the pending marriage and can be offensive to the family’s older generation, especially Aunties. Ok, now that we have sorted the rules, let’s get into my white wedding guest attire top picks for this season!