The Student Room Group

Muslim wedding???

Im going to my boyfriends friends wedding.... i think its a muslim wedding.

Im a british girl and have no idea what to expect (although i know i will be the only white british girl there).

When ever i ask my bf what to wear etc, hes absolutly usless and just answers with "wear whatever you want" and i cant ask the block who invited us as i have never met him before.

I know there is a wide diversity of people on TSR so some first hand advice would be nice:
1) what do i wear, any rules, colours etc?
2)will i have to cover my head/ take of my shoes?
3)what does the day involve: is it like a christian wedding eg ceremany, reception, party etc???

any advice would be more than welcome.xxx

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Reply 1
Everyone in muslim weddings dress in indian/pakistani traditional outfits. There are many different styles to choose from, such as saree, shalwar kameez, churidar etc. I'll provide you with some links so u can see the different styles. There are loads of colours to choose from and u can wear whatever colour u want. take a look around the websites at the jewelry aswell its very diferent....
Shalwar kameez, this is the most popular style of clothing and i pressume most people will be wearing.:biggrin: :
http://www.suitsmeonline.com/products_1.asp?dept=807&pagenumber=2&sort_on=&sort_by=

Then thers the SAREE which is very difficult to wear its basically a big piece of material which is wrapped around ur body in a certain way n fastened with safety pins, its kind of awkwrd to wear as it goes right down to the floor so its good to wear a pair of heels with. You wont be able to put it on urself, so if u know anyone who can put it on for u....:
http://www.rupalionline.com/category-main.aspx?cat=1

Then thers a churidar which is also a popular style :
http://firstlady-online.com/online/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=138

You wont have to cover ur hair or take off ur shoes, if theres any asian clothin shops in ur area, bset thing to do is go in and try outfits on because ordering online the sizes tend 2 be dodgy.

The day basically you eat eat n eat lol. I dont know about the weddin ur goin to, but ive been to loads n loads and there are always two seperate places one for groom and men, and one for the bride and women/children.
:smile:
Reply 2
If you dont like the idea of wearing an asian outfit, id agree with the post above, wear something that will cover u to avoid stares (trust me)
Reply 3
Go to an asian clothes shop and buy something nice from there, usually they will be helpful.
Been to a couple of muslim weddings in my time.

1) what do i wear, any rules, colours etc?

Wear what'd you'd consider appropriate for any other wedding you'd go to. Obviously you'd not be too revealing(so don't go with a skirt above knee-height) and you'd be smart(ish) for the photos. As far as i'm aware there are no specific rules with colours

2)will i have to cover my head/ take of my shoes?
Nope.

3)what does the day involve: is it like a christian wedding eg ceremany, reception, party etc???
Ones I went to was just a ceremany with a dinner party at the end. It's really cool actually as you actually see what weddings are like from different cultures.

Tell your bf to come with you

Have fun :smile:
Reply 5
Could you tell us what kind of muslim wedding its going to be? My posts were referring to pakistani/indian muslim weddings.
Reply 6
muslim weddings' ceremonies vary with culture though. Indian Muslims' clothes and ceremonies is very different to, say, a Malay/Chinese Muslims' one. it's probably either a reception or an engagement.

it really does depend on how conservative/liberal they are, i'm sure your bf knows a little about that. you don't have to buy new clothes, wear something loose and with sleeves. a knee length/a bit longer-length'd dress with a cardi should be fine, as is pants with a blouse.

safest best would really be to get in contact and ask what would be suitable. generally something long-ish and loose would be alright :smile:
Reply 7
lilpink i didnt really want to go out and buy a sari as im sure you can imagin i wont ever wear it again!

iv got a bright orange dress, its sort of floaty material, falls below knee/calf length.... its a little low cut but i thought maybe with a brown wrap or something? would this be suitable?
Reply 8
trust me he is usless, i asked him what sort of wedding it would be.... what religion he is and he was all like..... "er...dunno, muslim i think" lol

plus i dont want him to know that im little worried or that im fussing about it!!!
Reply 9
does it have sleeves? a wrap's a bit shifty (moves around and stuff), something that stays would be better. perhaps a cardigan of some sort?
Reply 10
Sorry but i was jsut giving examples of the type of outfits people will be wearing, so it gives u a bit of an idea on colours etc. People tend to wear bright sparkly outfits, so the dress you described sounds perfect.
Reply 11
actually it does depens on which part of the world theri from....
if the wedding couple are arabic... then they tend to follow the christian wedding but the women and men are apart and u can wear what ever you want (i,e deep cleavage clothes)... as long as when they announce the groom is coming u cover up.....

oriental marriages.... i havnt been to one but im guessing ur boyfreinds frends are arab or asian...
in asian weddings.. oit really doesnt matter... both the groom and bride are actually together and a lot of women let their guard down on the special ocassion so they dont cover up.... i mean im muslim and i cover up.. but in these special ocassions i dont :biggrin:

dont wrry...cjust wear what u want... nowadays everyone is soo western!!!

and ur orange dresss seems nice
candy x
lilpink i didnt really want to go out and buy a sari as im sure you can imagin i wont ever wear it again!

iv got a bright orange dress, its sort of floaty material, falls below knee/calf length.... its a little low cut but i thought maybe with a brown wrap or something? would this be suitable?


the dress sounds fine.. just aslong as you cover up the top a bit.. maybe a cardigan would be better than a wrap?
Reply 13
Nissay
does it have sleeves? a wrap's a bit shifty (moves around and stuff), something that stays would be better. perhaps a cardigan of some sort?



no it doesnt have sleves, its little straps.

Its a really strange orange colour, when i got it for my cousins wedding last year, i searched everywhere for a cardigan that matched and thats as low cut as the dress is!

im not saying that the dress is rediculesly low, its normal, but as im a little larger on top it makes it look worse :confused:
Reply 14
mwaheed
actually it does depens on which part of the world theri from....
if the wedding couple are arabic... then they tend to follow the christian wedding but the women and men are apart and u can wear what ever you want (i,e deep cleavage clothes)... as long as when they announce the groom is coming u cover up.....

oriental marriages.... i havnt been to one but im guessing ur boyfreinds frends are arab or asian...
in asian weddings.. oit really doesnt matter... both the groom and bride are actually together and a lot of women let their guard down on the special ocassion so they dont cover up.... i mean im muslim and i cover up.. but in these special ocassions i dont :biggrin:

dont wrry...cjust wear what u want... nowadays everyone is soo western!!!

and ur orange dresss seems nice


What are u on about in pakistani weddings no woman shows their cleveage or anything like that. just arms and hair :s-smilie:
Reply 15
candy x
no it doesnt have sleves, its little straps.

Its a really strange orange colour, when i got it for my cousins wedding last year, i searched everywhere for a cardigan that matched and thats as low cut as the dress is!

im not saying that the dress is rediculesly low, its normal, but as im a little larger on top it makes it look worse :confused:

heh. i think it should be alright then, no worries :smile:
Reply 16
Do you have a picture of the dress. Iim a pakistani muslim, if you had a picture it would probably help everyone, see if it was appropriate (just a suggestion)

Anyway i dont think it matters if it doesnt have sleeves, because if u look at the sari's or even shalwar kameez's nowadays they are either sleeveless or have straps. So shouldnt really be a problem.
they sell pretty looking asian suits for £10-15 in the midlands! sure you could find something nice at a shop by you (:

and you are 100% it's a muslim wedding?
Reply 18
Candy - What ethnicity os your bf?. If he's Pakistani Muslim then most likely the women will be wearing sarees/churidar etc. I would wear what you would normally wear to a Christian/CofE wedding but maybe wear long sleeves.

LilPink - Would they not cover their head during the ceremony when they are in Mosque?.
I would think they do so i would bring with me a head scarf ormaybe ask your bf to get you a appropiate one from his family
I know a bit about this having gone to one recently (my cousins)

Firstly, depends hugely on how religious they are etc.
But if they are reasonably, then you will have to cover your head, would recommend simply a scarf for that, unless you actually have a proper headscarf.

If I were you a simple long skirt and blouse would be your best option, its perfectly acceptable for non-muslims to come wearing something different and simply dress conservatively. But if its in a mosque, wear a headscarf.