Swath of blue silk puts a wrap on wedding ensemble

Here comes the bride, all dressed in white.

But what about the guests?

Fall weddings are always dicey because you never know what to wear – and how to stay warm or cool, depending on September’s fickle weather. Sure, a cardigan may look cute at an afternoon affair, but once evening comes, elegance prevails. At least it’s no longer taboo to wear black.

One of my best friends from childhood is getting married this weekend, and since I’m in the wedding, my attire already has been chosen for me. Though the dress is, as most bridesmaids’ ensembles are, somewhat unflattering, it’s tasteful and could possibly be worn again. It is neither seafoam green nor poofy, and I won’t have to carry a parasol.

My problem lies not in what to wear to the event, but what to wear to the pre-event. The rehearsal dinner (which promises to be more formal than most of the weddings I have attended in recent years) will be held on the water in Massachusetts, which means I’ll undoubtedly freeze.

After a quick perusal of my closet, I realized I had one dress that would keep me somewhat warm. But it’s fitted, so when I wear it, I either can’t eat or must wear a skinny slip. Both make me lightheaded -not an idea that I savor, especially when champagne toasts are involved. So I decided to go shopping for a dress, preferably one with sleeves.

At T.J. Maxx ‘n More I found a slinky evening gown by DKNY and another black dress by Donna Karan that looked suspiciously like one that resides in my closet. Neither had sleeves. At Filene’s, I found dozens of classy, cocktail-esque dresses, but nothing that fit within my $25 budget. And alas, none of the ones I liked had sleeves, either.

I’m all for the right to bare arms, but not when it’s 40 degrees outside. Then it hit me, as I was prematurely admiring a winter scarf – I would wear a wrap with my little black dress. Not a pashmina. Not a scarf. Not a fancy poncho. No, I would wear a glamorous, elegant wrap.

Fortunately, the trend gods were smiling on me. Everyone has some sort of shoulder-warming accessory right now, from the ubiquitous poncho to the embroidered shawls at T.J.’s and the sublime, weblike wrap that I admired on a guest at last weekend’s Maine Press Association gathering. She got it at Chico’s.

For my own wedding, my mother-in-law gave me a gorgeous Echo wrap from Filene’s, but that’s a keepsake, and, as my mom said, “Everyone’s already seen that.” She had a point. So on a recent jaunt to Portland, I decided to duck into a few shops and see what they had.

Since a mall is a mall is a mall, I obviously had as little luck in South Portland as I did in Bangor (I did like the long, paisley wraps at Chico’s, but they were a little heavy). But in the Old Port, I hit paydirt. I breezed by Carla’s, knowing I wouldn’t be able to afford anything in there. Ditto for Betsy’s. I stopped at Serendipity, but as wraps go, it wasn’t serendipitous.

Then I went to Tavecchia. I saw floral scarves and faux pashminas, and I was about to leave when a swath of ice-blue raw silk caught my eye. Hoping against hope, I pulled it from the pile, and as I draped it over my shoulders and saw my mother’s look of approval, I knew I had found what I was looking for. When I saw the price tag ($26), I knew it was meant to be.

It was a wrap.

ShopNotes

. No sweat! Mark your calendars for the Fair Trade Festival – a celebration of sweatshop-free clothing, sustainable wages and democratic working conditions for garment manufacturers (and coffee growers, too). The event, sponsored by Peace through Interamerican Community Action, will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2, on the Bangor waterfront. Shopping highlights include a fashion show and a fair trade marketplace. For information, call 947-4203 or visit www.pica.ws.

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