Effie Kats for Wedding Guests, Mother of the Bride and the Races: The 12 to Buy, by Dress Code

Effie Kats is the label Australian wedding guests reach for, and the reason is simple: a fitted crepe gown in a strong colour, under $520, that fits like it was made for you and does not compete with the bride. The same qualities make it the mother-of-the-bride label for a modern mother and the Melbourne Cup label for a woman who wants a column rather than a frock. This guide sets out which Effie Kats gowns and dresses to wear as a guest by dress code, the colours that are safe and the ones to check, the mother-of-the-bride picks, the races, and the etiquette, with the twelve to buy.

Key facts

• Luxury Handbags stocks 239 Effie Kats pieces; the wedding-guest core is the four continuity gowns in cherry red, wine and coffee at $440 to $480.
• For a cocktail dress code the midi and mini styles run $390 to $780; the Marbella Dress is $390.
• The brand offers bridesmaid fittings by appointment at its Melbourne showroom; the pale seasonal colours, Ice Blue and Taffy Pink, are the most bought for line-ups.
• On The Volte, the Monroe in Cherry Red, the Greer in Coffee and the Inaya in Ivory are among the most hired Effie Kats gowns, at about AUD 93 to 117 a rental.
• Colour rule: no ivory unless the couple asks; check red for a Chinese, Indian and some Middle Eastern ceremonies where the bride may wear it.

By dress code

Black tie and formal evening: a floor-length gown. The Verona in Cherry Red, the Monroe in Wine, the Audrey in Wine and the Inaya in Coffee are the four the Luxury Handbags editors send first, and a black gown, the black Verona, is correct at a black-tie evening wedding in every city Luxury Handbags ships to. Cocktail: a midi and a structured mini. The Marbella Dress in Cherry Red, the Kaya Midi, the Evie Midi and the Kathryn Mini. Daytime and garden: the lighter colours and the softer lines, the Romi Dress, the Marbella in Taffy Pink, the Verona in Ice Blue. Beach: the Jackie Dress in Blush and the Haven Dress in stretch jersey.

The twelve wedding-guest pieces to buy

1. Monroe Gown in Cherry Red, $490

The most hired wedding-guest gown in Australia: strapless, in the signature red. The Monroe guide has the strapless sizing rule.

2. Verona Gown in Wine, $480

High neck, low back, in deep claret. The evening-wedding Verona for autumn and winter, and the colour that flatters most skin tones. The Verona guide.

3. Audrey Gown in Wine, $480

A straight neckline, an exaggerated low back and an over-the-shoulder drape, in wine. The Luxury Handbags editors’ first pick for an autumn wedding.

4. Inaya Gown in Cherry Red, $440

Slightly off the shoulder in cherry: seen without being bare. The Inaya guide.

5. Marbella Gown in Coffee, $480

The bustier bodice in coffee: the daytime formal Marbella, and the colour that has replaced black at Australian daytime weddings. The Marbella guide.

6. Hayward Gown in Cherry Red, $480

Off the shoulder with ruching through the hips, in cherry. The most flattering guest gown on a curve.

7. Marbella Dress in Cherry Red, $390

The bustier line under draped detailing at midi length, in cherry: the cocktail-dress-code guest dress.

8. Greer Gown in Coffee, $510

An asymmetrical one-shoulder gown with an open back and ruching, in coffee. The daytime formal guest gown and one of the most hired in the country.

9. Kaya Midi in Cherry Red, $510

A high neckline that runs into a back drape, at midi length, in cherry. The covered cocktail option for a church and a mosque.

10. Marbella Gown in Taffy Pink, $480

The bustier in warm candy pink for a summer garden wedding, and the gown bridesmaids buy in fours.

11. Verona Gown in Ice Blue, $480

The Verona in powder blue, the colour that photographs best outdoors and the safest pale shade for a guest.

12. Romi Dress in Coffee, $580

An asymmetrical neckline with sculptural draping, in coffee crepe: the garden-wedding dress that is dressed without being formal.

Mother of the bride and groom

The modern mother of the bride wears a column, and the Effie Kats gowns with sleeves and coverage are made for her. The Orabella has long sleeves and a high neck; the Avian Gown an asymmetric high neckline and long sleeves in Chocolate Plum; the Rhi Gown a high neckline and an open back in coffee; the Alessia a high asymmetrical neckline with a modest low back. For a mother who wants bare arms with support, the Marbella in Wine with the Olympia Cape for the ceremony, and for a daytime wedding the Marian Gown, a halter bodice with a sweetheart neckline at midi length. Avoid the open-back Verona and the strapless Monroe unless she wants them; the brand makes both in every colour and nobody will stop her.

The races and Melbourne Cup

Spring racing is a daytime dress code with a hat, so it wants the midis, the minis and the tailoring rather than a floor-length gown. The Marbella Dress, the Kathryn Mini in Coffee, the Primrose Mini in ivory for a Derby Day black-and-white brief, the Harlem Blazer Dress, and the Bowie Blazer in red over a black bodysuit with the Mereen Midi Skirt for Cup Day. Colour rules by day: Derby Day is black and white, Cup Day is colour, Oaks Day is feminine, Stakes Day is relaxed.

Etiquette

Not ivory, unless the couple asks; the ivory Effie Kats gowns read as bridal in every photograph. Not the bridesmaids’ colour if you know it. Red is welcome except where the bride may wear it, so ask for a Chinese, Indian and some Middle Eastern ceremonies. Black is correct for an evening wedding and, increasingly, for a daytime one; coffee is the polite alternative by day. Sequins after dark only. And the gown comes second to the fit: a crepe column that fits is more appropriate than a fussy dress that does not, which is the whole argument for this label at a wedding.

Frequently asked questions

Which Effie Kats dress is best for a wedding guest?

The Monroe Gown in Cherry Red at $490 for an evening wedding, the Verona in Wine for autumn and winter, the Marbella in Coffee for a daytime one, and the Marbella Dress in Cherry Red for a cocktail dress code.

Can I wear black Effie Kats to a wedding?

Yes. A black Verona and Monroe are correct at an evening wedding in every market Luxury Handbags serves, and coffee is the daytime alternative.

What should the mother of the bride wear from Effie Kats?

The Orabella with long sleeves and a high neck, the Avian and Alessia with asymmetric high necklines, the Rhi, and the Marbella in Wine with the Olympia Cape for the ceremony. The Marian Gown is the daytime, midi-length option.

Is Effie Kats good for the races?

Yes, in its midis, minis and tailoring: the Marbella Dress, the Kathryn Mini, the Primrose Mini in ivory for Derby Day, the Harlem Blazer Dress, and the Bowie Blazer with the Mereen Midi Skirt.

Can I wear ivory Effie Kats as a wedding guest?

Not unless the couple asks. Choose the same gown in cherry red, wine, coffee and the pale pinks and blues instead.

Should I hire an Effie Kats gown for a wedding?

For one wedding, a rental at about AUD 117 in Australia makes sense; from three weddings on, buying is cheaper, and the core gowns in red, wine and coffee are the ones worth owning. Outside Australia, Luxury Handbags ships them with a 14-day return window.

Read next

By colour: the red dresses, the coffee and chocolate dresses and the pinks and blues; for your own wedding, the white and ivory guide. Then the size guide, hire versus buy and the capes for the ceremony layer. Shop every wedding-guest piece in stock at the Effie Kats collection at Luxury Shoes .