Is It Ever Ok to Wear a transparent Dress As a Wedding Guest?

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Calluna Organza Maxi Dress Appliquéd transparent Tulle Midi Dress Zanic Long Strappy Dress transparent Silk Organza Gown Gisele transparent Silk Maxi Dress Hypnotic Blouson Dress

At the beginning of July, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley attended her younger brother’s wedding wearing a custom outfit from The New Arrivals by Ilkyaz Özel. In a dusky pink, she wore a column skirt matched with a transparent flowing top with cape sleeves, her pink bra entirely visible. It felt like a bold decision for a wedding guest but, at the same time, she looked impeccably chic. hot without being overtly sexual, Huntington-Whiteley’s look echoes the choices being made by an increasing number of wedding guests.

Katherine Ormerod, writer and former fashion editor, recently borrowed an Off-White 2013 slip dress by Virgil Abloh from her friend Camille Charrière (herself no stranger to see-through dresses in a bridal context) to attend the wedding of Virginia Norris, founder of the fashion PR agency Virginia & Partners. Rendered in navy silk, the dress features transparent lace panels and a transparent skirt. “It was a distinctly ‘fashion’ crowd where head-to-toe black was both acceptable and welcomed,” Ormerod says of her choice. “I’d had a tiny glimpse of the kinds of dresses the bride was choosing, which included transparent lace, and I described my look to her in broad strokes for approval. I felt entirely like myself and loved wearing it, but I did pair it with a cropped short sleeve cardigan for the ceremony and cocktail reception to keep it a little more low key.”

katherine ormerod in an off white dress — Katherine Ormerod in an Off-White dress Courtesy of Katherine Ormerod

Norris, for her part, corroborates Ormerod’s perspective. “My brief to my girlfriends was: wear what you love. I don’t mind at all if you think it’s ‘too much.’ In fact, please be too much. I have never dressed down for anything in my life, and I certainly wasn’t about to tell my guests they should shy away from what they wanted to wear. I think a transparent dress can be incredibly flattering, particularly when some parts are concealed and it enhances your silhouette. My wedding dress was transparent, and it would have ruined the lightness and quality of it had I tried to conceal its transparent sheen.”

A result of this draw towards more risqué options, brands and designers have seen increased demand for transparent pieces, with many having to adjust their clothes to fulfill those desires. Hermione de Paula, a British designer specializing in embellished gowns, says she and her team had added linings to most of their pieces, only to find that people actually wanted to wear them without. “It’s not just for brides, either,” she says of the trend, “but for wedding guests looking to bring a sense of ethereal sensuality to their look. We’ve definitely noticed a rise in clients inspired by red-carpet fashion and transparent couture gowns fresh off Paris runways. They’re now looking for event pieces that feel as bold and beautiful as a couture moment—and something transparent offers that perfect blend of romance, confidence, and artistry.”

stylist lex alexandris wearing hermione de paula to an event in london — Stylist Lex Alexandris wearing Hermione de Paula to an event in London Kristin Vicari

Indeed, the spring/summer 2025 catwalks were awash with transparent tulle, light airy layers, and translucent lace. There were transparent skirts on 16Arlington’s party dresses and Dior’s asymmetric gowns, while Chloé’s boho silhouettes were punctuated with translucent, flowing fabrics. As always, Cecilie Bahnsen offset her oversized silhouettes with sensuous transparent panels, and Simone Rocha infused her romantic designs with a daring edge in the form of diaphanous organza and glimpses of flesh via see-through layers. As with Huntington-Whiteley’s own outfit, the overarching effect was one of sensuality and ethereality, rather than anything hyper-sexual.

Many more brands are capitalizing on this shift in opinion right now. Rat & Boa, for example, has a variety of long, slinky maxis, many of which are entirely transparent and can be located in the specific “wedding guest” section of its website. Similarly, Debute, the London-based label run by sisters Jazzy De Lisser and Lola Bute, sells lace-trimmed slips and completely transparent dresses, in-keeping with Bute’s love of slightly subversive choices; she has worn transparent designs to many formal events, including the Vanity Fair Oscars after-party last year. Paloma Wool is also seeing success with its revealing dresses and, of course, Nensi Dojaka continues to play with fabrics that showcase the female body.

lola bute wearing nensi dojaka at london fashion week — Lola Bute wearing Nensi Dojaka at London Fashion Week Dave Benett – Getty Images

So, what are the rules if you intend to eschew the traditional floral dress for the next wedding to which you’re invited? “There are two things to consider,” says Ormerod. “First, weddings are all context and, second, the bride calls the shots. If you’re attending any kind of religious ceremony, a raunchy dress is always going to feel inappropriate, so unless you’re out to make new enemies, you might want to swerve from the visible underwear. But if the bride is a naked dress kind of girl, I wouldn’t feel nervous at all.”

Harriet Davey, a fashion journalist and frequent wearer of transparent dresses (she wore one to a friend’s wedding last December), agrees. “I would say that aside from wearing white, or a mini dress to a black-tie event, there are no rules when it comes to wedding-guest dressing now. The bride actually complimented me on my outfit and loved how it worked so well with the blazer for the ceremony and without for the evening. I’d just say make sure you’re not wearing super skimpy underwear underneath to keep things appropriate.”

harriet davey in a transparent dress she wore to a wedding — Harriet Davey in a transparent dress she wore to a wedding Courtesy of Harriet Davey

If you can’t quite embrace the idea of revealing too much, wedding guest or not, there are styles that reach a happy compromise, such as Staud’s very wedding-friendly Calluna dress, available in several different colors and prints. Or, you could simply layer more transparent fabrics over something more basic—Bode’s beautiful gilded mesh blouse would look elegant over a simple black dress.

When it comes to dressing for formal events, the rules can often be abandoned in favor of a more freeing approach—just remember the bride in question. Now, it seems the most stylish woman are choosing clothes for the transparent joy they bring.