Bride Pushes Back After Guest Says She Is Blocking Her Religious Expression

The bride and groom have a million decisions to make while planning their wedding. So the most helpful thing their guests can do is simply follow directions. The last thing anyone wants to do is make the bride and groom’s lives harder, especially if it means their invitation will be rescinded.

One bride reached out to Reddit for advice after one of her groom’s cousins decided that she wanted to wear an extravagant gown to the wedding. The bride, however, was not having it, so below you’ll find the full story that she shared online, as well as some of the replies invested readers left her.   

This bride wanted to have a simple Western wedding

Image credits: Neirfy007 / envato (not the actual photo)

But when one guest insisted on wearing a traditional Moroccan dress, she decided to put her foot down

Image credits: shurkin_son / freepik (not the actual photo)

Image credits: purpleyellou

The bride and groom have the right to decide on the dress code for their special day

Depending on what part of the world you live in, how large the bride and groom’s budget is, and how seriously your culture takes weddings, wedding dress codes can vary widely. 

If the bride and groom are simply tying the knot at the courthouse and going out for pizza after, they probably won’t require those in attendance to wear suits and formal gowns. But if the ceremony is taking place in a gorgeous European castle, they might be expected to dress up a bit more.

Now, weddings don’t have to have an explicit dress code, but providing one for guests can make it a lot easier for them to decide what to wear. Bridal stylist Maisie-Kate Keane told Vogue that “clarity is everything” when it comes to providing a dress code for guests.

“Be specific about what you want—whether it’s black-tie, cocktail, or something creative like a themed or color-specific dress code,” Keane says. “Including examples or inspiration can help guide guests and avoid any confusion, this can be linked to your wedding website so your guests can easily reference the dress code details. Clear communication makes sure everyone’s on the same page and can enjoy the wedding day without stressing about what to wear.”

The expert also notes that when a guest RSVPs, they aren’t only agreeing to attend, but also agreeing to all of the conditions outlined in the invitation. So if the couple specified that the event is black tie, guests are agreeing to follow that. 

Uninviting a wedding guest may be taboo, but it’s not unheard of

Image credits: Leonardo Miranda / unsplash (not the actual photo)

Now, nobody ever wants to rescind a wedding invitation, but desperate times call for desperate measures. And the bride in this story has realized that might be her best option at this point. When it comes to uninviting a guest, The Knot has some advice for how to do so as politely as possible. 

First, they note that doing so is probably going to be considered rude. So if the bride and groom want to go through with it, they should do so as soon as possible. But there are sometimes valid reasons for telling a guest that they can’t come to the wedding anymore.

The Knot explains that sometimes extenuating circumstances arise that require the bride and groom to cut down their guest list. And in some situations, guests do something terrible that warrants being removed from the guest list. 

In this case, The Knot recommends sending a polite yet direct message along the lines of: “Given the current circumstances, your presence is no longer requested at our wedding celebration. Thank you for your understanding.”

It might not be easy to tell someone that, especially if they’re a family member. But at the end of the day, a wedding is all about the bride and groom. They should get to decide exactly who they want to celebrate their special day with and what everyone invited gets to wear.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments below, pandas. Do you think this bride was being dramatic by refusing to let this cousin wear a takchita? Feel free to weigh in, and then you can find another Bored Panda article discussing similar drama right here. 

Later, the bride responded to readers and clarified a couple of details

Many readers took the bride’s side, noting that she gets to make the rules for her own wedding

Meanwhile, some thought that everyone could have handled the situation more maturely

And others thought that the bride was being unreasonable

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