It frequently consists of a mess jacket, trousers, white dress shirt and a black bow tie, along with orders and medals insignia.
The winter mess kit is made of thicker material, with jackets in the colour (scarlet or dark blue) of the wearers' corps.
It is worn only after 18:00 hours, at ceremonies in the presence of HM the King, a member of the Royal Family or a foreign Head of State.
The winter mess dress of the Royal Canadian Air Force consists of a midnight blue jacket with gold rank insignia worn on the sleeve, black-laced midnight blue trousers, white shirt with soft collar, and a cummerbund in the colours of the Royal Canadian Air Force tartan.
2C is a relaxed, ship-board only order of mess uniform, worn by members of all elements when dining formally onboard HMC Ships at sea.
2D is the CF standard pattern mess dress, now superseded, which was authorized for wear prior to the reversion to separate environmental uniforms for Army, Navy and Air Force.
[3] Until World War II officers of the French Army wore their full dress (grande tenue) uniforms for evening as well as daytime formal and ceremonial occasions.
Female soldiers wear a long dark-blue skirt and a white blouse with the Bundesadler ("Federal Eagle" coat of arms) on the right collar.
[6] The mess dress of the Hellenic Armed Forces, adopted in 1953, resembles the "rolled collar" jacket, waistcoat and trousers pattern of the British Army as described in this article.
New Zealand Army mess uniforms authorised for officers were simplified about 2000 in that the distinctive corps and regimental colours previously worn were replaced by a universal scarlet and blue pattern with only insignia distinguishing one branch or unit from another.
Royal New Zealand Air Force mess dress consists of grey/blue jackets, trousers and waistcoats with white shirts and black bow ties.
[9] While officially the Soviet and post-Soviet military forces do not wear mess uniform, a version of it was introduced in July 1969 for senior generals only (Russian: парадно-выходная форма), who wore light-grey tunics on special occasions (mostly reception of state awards).
It differs from the full mess dress in a number of ways: Army officers and cadets may replace the blue vest and sash or the lining of a cloak with traditional regimental or branch-specific colours.
[12] Formal and society wear (rather than mess dress) are the mandatory uniform types for any military event, funeral, parade, state visit, or any other non-festive occasion.
When tropical rig is ordered, a white, double breasted mess jacket with a shawl collar is worn instead of the blue, with shoulder boards to indicate rank.
Senior rates-Warrant Officers (of both grades), Chief Petty Officers and Petty Officer- may either wear their Number 1 Dress uniform with a bow tie and medal ribbons, or they may optionally wear a navy blue mess jacket with shawl collar that is worn with the black cummerbund and a white Marcella shirt and navy blue mess trousers.
The Elder Brethren of Trinity House are authorised to wear a mess dress based upon that of a Royal Navy captain.
[17] The original purpose was to provide a relatively comfortable and inexpensive alternative to the stiff and elaborate full-dress uniforms then worn by officers for evening social functions such as regimental dinners or balls.
Immediately after World War II the cheaper "blue patrols" were worn for several years as mess dress, but by 1956 the traditional uniforms had been readopted.
Jackets are, therefore, usually scarlet, dark blue, or rifle green, with collars, cuffs, waistcoats, or lapels in the former facing colours of the regiments in question.
Most British Army regiments' mess dress incorporates high-waisted, very tight trousers known as overalls, the bottoms of which buckle under leather Wellington or George boots.
11 Warm Weather Mess Dress", a white drill hip-length jacket is worn with either a waistcoat in the same material or a cummerbund of regimental pattern.
[27] Female officers and soldiers wear mess jackets in a pattern similar to those of their male counterparts over dark-coloured ankle-length evening dresses.
8 mess dress.. For women, mess dress currently consists of the same style high-waisted blue-grey single-breasted jacket and white marcella shirt as men, a small bow tie and cummerbund, and a straight ankle-length blue-gray skirt, worn with patent-leather court shoes and barely-black tights or stockings.
While the blue full dress was worn from 1902 to 1917 by all ranks for ceremonial parades within the continental United States, the two optional evening uniforms were authorized only for officers.
It is common for soldiers to wear suspenders in their branch color with the army dress uniform trousers, although they are concealed under the coat.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the U.S. Air Force formal uniform consisted of a civilian black tailcoat with added military sleeve braid and rank insignia.
The current pattern was introduced in 1981 and is also similar to the Royal Air Force design, except that the coat and trousers are dark blue.
Women's mess dress uniforms have a long skirt replacing the trousers and delete the button chain clasp for the coat.
The individual also has the option to wear the boat cloak of dark blue broadcloth material lined with scarlet wool (for male officers and SNCOs) or an optional dress cape of dark blue polyester-wool tropical material lined with scarlet satin rayon cloth (for female officers and SNCOs).