Dress for civil ceremony?

Family, Education, Health and Pets
1
Hello,

Any tips as to where one can find dresses appropriate for a civil ceremony?

So far, I haven't found anything apart from one store that has only gowns for brides that want to tie the knot in the church---any suggestions??

Cheers

Vera

2
What sort of dress do you have in mind?

When we had ours, I wanted a white dress of some sort, but not a full-on "wedding gown" since we were still planning on a church ceremony later. I wound up with a plain cotton sundress from Marks & Spencer, dove grey handbag and shoes, and white flowers in my hair... simple, informal but sweet. One of the other brides I saw at the registry office was getting married in a bright red cocktail dress. There doesn't seem to be any set attire for civil weddings - you can play it up or down as much as you are comfortable with, so don't worry about being inappropriate.

3
You could have a look at C&A or Moddissa (Bahnhofstrasse branch).

4
I think it's pretty much the same as if you had a civil wedding in the UK - if you want to wear a wedding dress than that's perfectly OK (assuming it's your wedding we're talking about and you're not just a guest!) otherwise I think you can wear whatever you want.

Mrs. Federer looked quite nice in her dress at the Basel registry office:

http://tennisinfoblog.com/photos-roger-federers-wedding

If you want something special but not in the "white frock" category then why not try an Atelier and have something made?

5
I got married in a registry office - the India Buildings in Edinburgh - I wore a kilt (Hunting Stewart) and Prince Charlie outfit complete with sporran and skean dhu. Our guests had a few snifters in the Bow Bar while we got the snaps done in the New Town.

Cheers,

Nick

6
Just wanted to also add, it's worth trying a few bridal shops and just asking them what other brides wear to their civil weddings and I'm sure they would be able to show examples. I mean, every single bride in Switzerland has to do the civil part - some also do the church but not all. I guess it depends on what you intend to do i.e. whether this is just a formality or whether you see it as a "real" wedding.

For example - if it were me I think I might go for something whitish and bride-like but not long - like this:

http://das-braut-atelier.de/margaritte.html

(bit like Mrs. F!).

7
Yes, I agree to all the above posts....it can be as 'official' and 'formal' as you want it to be. Will go and have a look at the suggested ateliers for sure!

Thank you all for the replies!

8
I was at a church wedding in the UK last weekend. The bride chose not to wear white. She simply wore a smart, pretty dress. A few years ago a friend got married in Basel registry office. The bride wore a "proper" wedding dress.

It's entirely up to you.

9
Wether you are the bride or just a guest, try first the shops for wedding dresses like zoro.ch, pronuptia.com, merys.com, etc . Modissa is also ok and I have a friend who has second hand wedding and evening dresses if you want to go for the less expensive choice ( www.traumbraut.ch )

I've got married here and only had a civil ceremony but I wore a long white dress anyway. If you're not going to have a religious ceremony, that might be your only chance to dress like a princess