A celebration of life is different from a funeral. It’s a ceremony that will focus on celebrating the events of the dearly departed life rather than mourning their passing. Wearing all black isn’t appropriate when you’re attending a celebration of life, so what should you wear?
Here are some easy guidelines on how to dress for a celebration of life.
What to Wear to a Celebration of Life
When attending a celebration of life, you should wear conservative clothing similar to what you’d wear to work on a casual day. You may dress casually wearing a nice pair of jeans and a button-down shirt with a pair of flats or as dressy as a day dress or suit.
Celebration of Life Dress Code
A celebration of life isn’t as formal as a funeral and focuses on celebrating the dearly departed’s life rather than mourning the loss. It’s not appropriate to wear traditional black clothing.
That being said, everyone’s attention should be on the dearly departed, so you should ensure you’re not wearing any clothing or accessories that will attract attention and distract people around you from the ceremony.
You should not wear loud prints, sparkling or jangling accessories, or graphic tee shirts. You must avoid neon colors, mini-skirts, swimsuits, and revealing clothing. Open-toe shoes such as flip-flops and sandals are also not appropriate.
What Should a Woman Wear to a Celebration of Life
Women should wear simple conservative clothing such as a nice pair of jeans, slacks, or a colorful skirt. You may also wear a respectful day dress with heels or flats. Top your outfit with a colorful blouse or flowy top. Pull on closed-toe shoes such as heels, flats, or boots rather than flip-flops and sandals.
Add some simple accessories to your outfit, but make sure the accessories don’t make noise or sparkle. The goal is to fade into the background rather than attract attention.
When unsure about your outfit, ask yourself if you would wear the clothing to work on a casual business day. If the answer is yes, then your clothing is appropriate for a celebration of life.
What Should a Man Wear to a Celebration of Life
Men, like women, should focus on wearing casual business clothing to a celebration of life. This may be wearing a nice pair of jeans or pants with a button-down shirt or polo. A nice tee-shirt may also work, but double-check to ensure there are no graphics or writing on the shirt before you leave your house.
Accessorize your clothing with simple accessories, dress shoes, or a nice pair of sneakers.
What Should Kids Wear to a Celebration of Life
While children have more latitude regarding their clothing, they should still dress similarly to adults. Check to ensure the children are wearing clean and good-quality clothing. Avoid loud prints and accessories that may be distracting.
Your child may wish to wear a good quality tee-shirt, but you must ensure that the shirt doesn’t have any graphics or inappropriate writing.
When in doubt, have the children dress in conservative casual clothing as they’d wear to school.
What Color Do You Wear to a Celebration of Life?
A celebration of life allows you to wear a wider variety of colors than you’d be able to wear at a funeral. However, you must still avoid wearing extremely bright colors such as neon green or neon pink to the ceremony. Often you will want to avoid wearing black as well. The secret is to avoid the extremes of neon bright and dark mournful colors.
Focus on wearing solid or subtle prints in pinks, reds, yellows, oranges, blues, or greens. You can wear your favorite colors as long as they’re not so bright that they will distract people from the ceremony.
Can You Wear Black to a Celebration of Life?
A celebration of life is considered a celebration, not a funeral, so it’s best if you avoid wearing all black to the ceremony. You can check with the family as some families prefer that you avoid wearing black to the ceremony while other families are comfortable with the color.
If you choose to wear black, add a splash of color to your outfit or wear a colorful top. The goal is not to dress in mourning colors at a celebration of life, as you’re there to celebrate a life rather than mourn the passing.
Can I Wear Bright Colors to a Celebration of Life?
You can wear bright colors to a celebration of life, but it’s preferred that you not wear extremely bright colors such as neon green or neon yellow. These colors can be extremely eye-catching and draw people’s attention away from the ceremony and toward you.
You should also avoid wearing extremely loud prints for the same reason. They’ll attract attention and cause people to focus on you rather than the dearly departed.
What to Wear to a Celebration of Life at a Church
When you attend a celebration of life at a church or funeral home, you will want to ensure that you wear tasteful, conservative clothing such as a day dress, slacks, polo, or button-down shirt. Pull on casual and stylish pants paired with a flowy dress top or button-down shirt.
Avoid wearing shorts, mini-skirts, and revealing tops. Double-check to ensure your accessories such as watches, bracelets, rings, necklaces, and earrings are simple and don’t rattle together, making any noise. This will be distracting for other people attending the celebration of life.
What to Wear to a Casual Celebration of Life?
If you’re attending a casual celebration of life, feel free to pull on a pair of clean, neat jeans and a nice tee shirt. Ensure that the tee-shirt doesn’t have inappropriate images or words that may draw attention away from the ceremony. You can also wear a nice pair of sneakers.
Avoid wearing a suit or formal dress to the casual celebration of life. You will be overdressed and attract attention to yourself. While you don’t need to dress in jeans and a tee-shirt, wear casual clothing appropriate for the venue, such as slacks, polo, or a simple day dress.
What to Wear to a Celebration of Life at a Park
A celebration of life at a park, picnic, or beach allows you to dress more casually than you would for a celebration of life at a church or funeral home. So pull on clothing appropriate for the outdoor venue, such as shorts and a polo.
Think about the type of footwear you’d like to wear at the park or beach. As you walk on grass or uneven terrain, heels may be uncomfortable or difficult to wear at the park. Flats, nice tennis shoes, or sandals will be easier and more comfortable to walk around at the celebration of life.
You will still need to avoid wearing swimsuits, flip-flops, and revealing outfits as the clothing is too casual for a celebration of life unless the family has stated otherwise.
What to Wear to a Summer Celebration of Life?
A summer life celebration requires wearing clean, conservative, and casual clothing. Pull on a day dress and flats with simple accessories such as a gold chain, bracelet, and tasteful earrings. A clean pair of jeans without holes and a polo shirt or nice tee-shirt is also acceptable.
You will need to avoid open-toe shoes such as sandals and flip-flops. Shorts, mini-skirts, and revealing tops are also not appropriate for a celebration of life.
Conclusion
The dress code for a celebration of life is to wear casual, conservative clothing that’s appropriate to wear to work. Casual dress can be outfits such as a simple day dress, flowing skirt, blouse, or jeans without holes. You may also wear a colorful button-down shirt with pants and simple accessories.
Make sure you avoid wearing any clothing or accessories that make noise or attract attention to yourself, such as a pair of jangling earrings, a dozen bronze bracelets, or a revealing top. The people around you will be distracted from the ceremony by your outfit.
Remember that you can always ask the family if you have any questions about what is and isn’t appropriate to wear to a celebration of life. They may have strong opinions on what they’d like people to wear or colors they’d like you to avoid.
Do Wear:
- Neat jeans or pants
- Flowing skirt
- Day dress
- Blouse or button-down shirt
- Polo shirt
- Closed-toe shoes such as dress shoes, flats, heels, boots, or clean sneakers
- Quiet Accessories
Do Not Wear:
- Revealing clothing
- Mini skirts
- Shorts
- Neon bright colors
- Loud prints
- Open-toe shoes such as flip-flops or sandals
- Swimsuits
- Loud or sparkly accessories
