Stretching Your Wedding Budget: One Dress, Multiple Outfits

Wedding season is here. As anyone who has watched Wedding Crashers knows, weddings can be a great place to drink, dance and dine...for free! But, like everything else, there is a price. Between the gift, the travel to get there, and of course, the outfit, weddings can wreak havoc on one's budget.

My solution is to find a dress that you can dress up or down, depending on the occasion. And, since it is unlikely the same guests will be at each wedding (unless the people attending your Uncle Ralph's commitment ceremony somehow got invited to your college roommate's wedding), there's little reason NOT to wear the same dress more than once.

The challenge is to find a dress that can go from a formal, big city event to a casual beach wedding. Although it might be tempting to find a dress that is bland and neutral enough to be forgettable, this will only result in you feeling bland and forgettable. It's a wedding! Break out the floral prints and the color, but retain flexibility by choosing a cut that is classic, in fabrics that always look dressy.

You can never go wrong with a silk dress. It's soft, rich looking and unlike cotton or linen, will hold up through an afternoon of dancing without wrinkling too much. V-necks are universally flattering for all body types, so look for a dress that is cut just low enough to look elegant, but not low enough that you are a distraction. For those who want to conceal less-than-flat-abs, a (very slight) empire waist gives you a flowy, feminine silhouette. However, stay away from exaggerated empire waists. The cut should remind you of a Jane Austen heroine---not the ladies at the prenatal class.

Accessories are the most important part to creating your look.

For a dressy wedding, wear stiletto sandals in black or metallic colors. Match with a metallic or bejeweled purse and a solid colored pashmina wrap or shrug. Add dangly earrings, and you're set.

For a casual wedding, lower the heel height and lighten the color. Nude, beige or tan are the newest neutrals for shoes, and the go with everything. Even better, the color elongates your leg. A two-inch thong sandal works well in a beach setting. Dress down the outfit even more by wearing a cardigan sweater and a small straw clutch. Don't want to go that casual? Take this season's boyfriend blazer, roll up the sleeves and wear that as a cover-up. Add a flower brooch a la Sex and the City's Carrie Bradshaw. This is a good look for business casual, or non-traditional, weddings.

There are several shopping choices to put this outfit together. Spiegel has a floral silk dress on sale for $69. Match this with a structured jacket, or a shrug to create two very different looks. For more wedding ideas, look at the layouts on my blog: http://overfortystyle.fabsugar.com/dresses-weddings-8570853