Dressing for a Passover seder seems like it should be fairly simple — isn’t it just a dinner party at its core? Of course, there’s more to it than that. There’s the length of time you’ll be sitting, the amount of food you’ll be eating and the color of the wine you’ll be dipping your fingers into, among other things.
“In general, I think it’s important to be thoughtful about clothing, especially as a spiritual leader, since clothing has the ability to communicate so much,” says Rabbi Arielle Stein, the assistant rabbi at Congregation Rodeph Sholom in New York City who has been profiled by Vogue for her thoughtful and modern rabbinic style. “For seders, I like to be a bit formal, choosing something that feels elevated, special and helps me get into the mood of the holiday.”
We asked Stein and some other trusted fashion experts to weigh in on what they’ll be wearing to Passover seder. Here are their tips:
Dress for reclining
“My ideal seder outfit is a cute top, comfy bottoms (re: on this night we recline),” says Lily Lester, our colleague at The Nosher and actor whose most recent role was in “Love Story,” playing John F. Kennedy Jr.’s assistant RoseMarie Terenzio.
Stein agrees. “In general, I like to wear something comfortable enough to lounge in until late at night, since our seders tend to last for many hours,” she says. “I also make sure that my outfit works whether seder is on the warmer side of the month of Nisan or the chillier.”
We also think writer and stylish dad Jason Diamond’s solution to Rosh Hashanah dinner applies here: embrace a track suit, like this one.
Nod to tradition, but leave room to mix it up
For Ashkenazi Jews, it’s traditional for the leader of the seder to wear a white robe called a kittel. Stein doesn’t wear a kittel, but she does wear white.
“For me, the custom of wearing white/a kittel translates into finding and wearing unique, white or ivory, garments. This year, I’m planning to re-wear my wedding rehearsal dinner suit from Delfina Balda’s ready to wear collection for first night, which is a bit more formal in our household. With the suit, I’ll add this cream, pointelle tanktop from Sezanne. If the weather is surprisingly hot either night, I’ll substitute a white dress from ATA, one of my favorite Israeli brands.”
For more alternative seders, Stein mixes white with playful, spring-like colors.
If you’re not leading the seder, maybe wear burgundy?
There’s an interactive component involving red wine. This feels like a smart move.
Dress for the seder you’ll have
“This year my theme is survival,” says Bess Kalb, author of “Nobody Will Tell You This But Me,” the Buffalo Fluffalo series, and The Grudge Report. “I will wear flats for chasing after children when there’s afikomen drama. Probably the Aeyde cream colored ones that feel like glorified socks. I will have pockets for the food my kid doesn’t eat. I will not wear any jewelry from the other grandma to avoid angering the alive grandma.”
Channel the Passover story conceptually…
“Especially on Passover, where we celebrate our journey to freedom, I like to honor Miriam and the women who are so central to the Passover story and will wear Jewish, female designers,” says Stern. “In addition, I try to focus on designers who have sustainable practices or who make pieces that can last for many years, since caring for the earth and nature also connect with freedom and longevity of the Jewish people.”
…Or channel the Passover story more literally
Make like Miriam (and the women dancing with their timbrels) and wear a flowy dress. Use your blackest eyeliner to draw a cat eye that would make Pharoah jealous. If you can handle the risk (see tip three above), wear yellow for the desert, for the pyramids and for spring.
Think above and below the table
“My mom loves to take portraits of everyone at the table enjoying the seder so I’m always sporting a cute top and lots of jewelry,” says Lester. “But it’s also my favorite food holiday, so I don’t want to feel too buttoned up and like I can’t enjoy myself. I generally like to think of my seder outfits in two parts: above and below the table. What’s going to show in pictures and what’s going to be comfy to sit in.”
Add a dose of kitsch, but make it chic
“The amazing thing about the seder is that it’s one of the most important Jewish rituals and it takes place entirely in the home,” says Stephanie Butnick, founder of the Jewish lifestyle newsletter GOLDA. “What that means practically is that we have more leeway with our outfits than we do on other major holidays like Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
“Passover welcomes the arrival of spring, and I’m leaning into all things green and floral for the seder, including my outfit. Everything from Rachel Antonoff’s Borscht Belt-inspired spring collection is exactly the right vibe, especially this radicchio and citrus dress, which is the chicest take on bitter herbs I have ever seen. For something a little more nostalgic, you can’t go wrong with her Borscht Brochure pants or shirtdress, which are both covered in menus and other Catskills ephemera. Wear those and you will win the seder.”
Other ways to let your kitschy side shine: Plan your outfit around one of the 10 plague masks (the color story on that boils mask is just asking for an outfit), wear a necklace with a matzah charm or whip out frog adjacent reading glasses when it’s your turn to read from the haggadah. The drama!
Don’t forget your nails
Speaking of kitsch, there are 10 plagues and 10 fingernails — coincidence? The beauty of plague nails is that they can be as kitschy or as subtle as you want. Some inspiration here, here and here.
Dress defensively
“Depending on the weather, I’ll either wear a v-neck sweater or some kind of blouse that will invite zero commentary about my body,” says Kalb. “I will make sure my hair is perfect and my skin has been pre-lasered and my under-eyes look like a 12-year-old’s to avoid any commentary about how tired I look.”
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