The Best Hat to Wear to a Summer Wedding

You get a wedding invite (woohoo!). I’m sure, like me, the first thing you think is, What am I going to wear…?

Now I know that this question isn’t quite as important to you and me as it is to the bride and bridal party, but still, you always want to make sure you get it right AND feel great in what you wear, don’t you?

I reckon the biggest question these days (and one which has become more and more prevalent over the last 10-15 years or so) is, DO I WEAR A HAT. Do I have to wear a hat? Will I be the only one wearing a hat? Can I wear a hat if I want to? What if I turn up wearing a hat and then see that no one else is wearing a hat, will there be somewhere that I can hide my hat so no one knows my hat-wearing secret?

Okay so that’s five questions, I said there was one… but it’s still one big lump of a head-scratching question slash dilemma.

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Me: I’m a hat-wearer all year round. On casual days at home I’m rarely without a baseball cap; in winter I’ll always be donning a beanie or bobble; in summer it’s something to shade my face from the sun. So when I was invited to my niece’s wedding (it was in June, I’m a little behind on publishing photos), I knew I’d probably be wearing a hat, and I’d probably be the only one wearing a hat because we were told it was going to be a super casual wedding.

But there IS a way you can do the hat thing if you either really want to, or because it’s going to be super hot, or because you have to (though can anyone insist on hats being worn to a wedding these days? Is that a thing anymore? Or is it only a prerequisite for a garden party at Buckingham Palace or a royal wedding?).

Easy solution: wear a straw fedora, or a Panama hat (same kinda thing). A smart Panama is my no.1 go-to hat in the summer, even more perfect for a wedding because I LIKE wearing hats (and actually feel a bit weird and pinhead-y without one) and because it saves me squinting if it’s sunny during the wedding photos part. Yet I didn’t feel out of place (yes, I WAS the only person wearing a hat), and I actually felt much better that I did go with the hat option.

I actually changed my mind about what I was wearing until the night before – it was the blazer/trousers combination that I couldn’t decide upon. In the end, I did summery pastels with this oversized yellow blazer and the lime green wide-leg trousers (similar) plus a few fabulous accessories (the Carrie Bradshaw-style rose corsage being the one thing I knew I was definitely wearing). But to be honest it was such a wonderful wedding – one of the most relaxed I’ve ever been to – that you could have got dressed up to the nines or worn a simple cotton dress and felt fine. The day and the event were much more important, and hats off (see what I did there?) to the bride and groom because they put on a wedding that everyone actually enjoyed.

But the irony of a British summer wedding is that you have no idea whether you’ll be freezing and wet or baking hot and sticky… we got the latter (June was wall-to-wall sunshine). So the blazer was hardly worn and I spent most of the day showing off my guns in my cream sleeveless vest top.

But who knew I’d be wearing a 22-year-old plain vest top to a wedding one day?! C’est la vie 😉

Your turn – got any Hats-at-Weddings tips for us? Are you in the Yes or No camp when it comes to wearing a hat? Tell me in the comments…

Thanks for reading xoxo

Blazer: Asos / Trousers: Asos (similar) / Hat: Old (similar) / Shoes: Asos (I like these) / Rose corsage: Amazon / Bag: Asos (similar)

More wedding guest outfit hat options:

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