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Help me dress my sister's wedding party

impolyt_one

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I have been tasked with taking care of all the groom's wear and the groomsmen's wear (which I will be included in)... I have cheap MTM at my disposal and will be going this route, the final cost per person is going to be $250 for an acceptable suit and shirt. They don't need to be the finest things in the world and we all know that; I am (and they too are) likely to ever wear this suit once, for a few hours.
That said, the main cost is $250/head for a suit and shirt, and we'll expect to add the cost of footwear and a tie, and forgo any rentals. My sister and her husband-to-be are in their early 20's and not highly paid, nor are any of the friends who will make up the wedding party, and so the entire cost of this wedding is on my mother's tab. No one is expecting extreme finery, we just need to get the job done for a good price, and still look presentable. I have got about 80% of it in my head, but I just have a few small questions:

Suits -black 2B suits to function as tuxedos. I figured that since these guys are in their mid-twenties, they're eventually going to need a funeral suit someday as well maybe, something like that, so black 2B, notch lapel that they wear at the wedding then get to take home. Fabric will be a 100% wool/cash super 180's, it's a cheap local textile but looks acceptable.

- Is a double vented jacket acceptable here?
- What kinds of design details on the trousers? I am thinking beltless trousers for a bit more elegance, anything else I should specify? Do we hem or cuff these?

Shirts (and accoutrements) I am thinking tuxedo shirts + bowties, pocketsquares, flower boutonnierre. I want everybody to look classical. Groom told me he wants to wear an ascot, and then I will have the groomsmen just wear bowties.

- I think here the only question would be, where can I get six decent silk bowties for not much money, perhaps $20 or less?
- My mother can handsew the pocketsquares.
- Any other suggestions in this area appreciated.

Footwear - these being possibly high-cost, I need to decide on a footwear style that these guys can either buy new if they want, or in the event that they can't outlay much money on these, can buy used somewhere or thrift, and so it needs to be a fairly universal style - I am thinking captoe oxfords. Any better suggestions here? The idea would be to not double the total cost per outfit.

Any other suggestions/alterations to my plan are welcome. Thanks in advance.
 

Nereis

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It's hard to believe that a man can get into his early-mid twenties without having a suit. Your ideas seem fine for what they are, a good solution to the problem of having the groomsmen show up underdressed.

The black suit idea is just fine, and double vents are really superior in every way to a single vent. Might I suggest that the idea of bowties should probably be substituted with a grey tie in a check pattern. Black tie these days is usually done so badly that if you do want to have black tie then everyone must be wearing it correctly. And that means satin lapels, piping down the leg, studs, and a cummerbund if you don't have the means to get a good fitting waistcoat.

The groom will still look great in his ascot next to his groomsmen and they won't have to look like they're trying to immitate black tie with suits. While I'm sure in Korea the difference won't really cause much pause it's always best to avoid faux pas.

As far as shoes go, if they can't provide their own then its maybe for the best to buy some Florsheims. They're good value for money and will service them for years to come.
 

cioni2k

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I think you might be better off going with a dark charcoal 2-button side-vent if possible. And as suggested, a nice grey/charcoal check pattern or solid wedding tie with a nice white spread collar dress shirt. This way you avoid the "half-way there" tuxedo look. I think it would look really sharp. I wouldn't worry about the shoes. Just tell them to wear whatever decent black dress shoe they own. Most non-SF people would never notice the difference.
 

aravenel

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Originally Posted by impolyt_one
- I think here the only question would be, where can I get six decent silk bowties for not much money, perhaps $20 or less?
Thetiebar.com. I don't have any of their bow ties, but do have several of their regular ties, and they punch well above their weight for price/quality ratio. $15 per. Not going to do much better than that...
 

impolyt_one

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Thanks guys. (and thanks for the tiebar.com suggestion) I should have noted that the wedding will be in America, and I'm just collecting the garb here in Korea beforehand because we have cheap MTM. I'm not even using my own personal tailors for this, I'm just walking in off the street to a new place and getting them done because it'll be the least hassle for me and I'm not seeking the highest quality, and I don't really know enough about MC-side stuff to get too picky about it. Note that none of the guys are or are expecting to be styleforum-approved.
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I just owe it to my mother to make everybody look presentable. Do you guys really think dark charcoal could work?
 

gdl203

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Please don't do black suits with tux shirts and bow ties. They'll look like waiters or maitres d'hotel at best.

If you're going formal/bow ties, make them real tuxedos - there's always use for a tux in a man's life. Go peak lapels and unvented. Grosgrain lapels/stripe/tie for a more stealth look, satin for a more festive/flashy.

If you're going with suits and want them to have something versatile for later, go charcoal or grey, and a long tie with spread collar shirt, not a bow. Go notch lapels and two vents. If you want to dress up a notch that option, think about adding a vest for a 3-piece look. Will look very sharp with the right tie and a boutonniere.
 

Nereis

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It really depends on if the groom is wearing the same thing. If he's wearing black then he'll look like the odd man out in a bad way. But if he's wearing the same charcoal then it will look just fine.
 

aravenel

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I think cioni was more saying to go more lounge-suit than tuxedo.

I guess that's where I'm confused as well--are you looking to have everyone wear a tux? Or a lounge-suit? I worry the lack of grosgrain/satin lapels, plus the notch lapels and the tux accouterments, will make the pseudo-tux thing look kinda funny--like a waiter.
 

impolyt_one

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I was waiting to hear something like that.
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I think the idea of them getting real tuxedos is out, but I guess I can ask - my sister, her fiancee, and most of the wedding party I believe are all opera/music performers and so they do wear tuxedos for work. I don't know if they would need their own but I will ask, because otherwise, their lifestyles probably do not call for it. If so, that would be an overly luxuriant item for them to buy or go in on this time, because I gather that none of them have the kind of money to do stuff like that. I gotta go with what other people can afford here, because well, it's not my wedding nor my tab - so think cheap...
 

gdl203

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Grey notch lapel, single breasted 3-piece suits then.
 

aravenel

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Originally Posted by impolyt_one
I was waiting to hear something like that.
redface.gif


I think the idea of them getting real tuxedos is out, but I guess I can ask - my sister, her fiancee, and most of the wedding party I believe are all opera/music performers and so they do wear tuxedos for work. I don't know if they would need their own but I will ask, because otherwise, their lifestyles probably do not call for it. If so, that would be an overly luxuriant item for them to buy or go in on this time, because I gather that none of them have the kind of money to do stuff like that.

I gotta go with what other people can afford here, because well, it's not my wedding nor my tab - so think cheap...


Well based on this then, the cheapest option is to have them wear the tuxedos they presumably already own.

If you want to do something different though, then I'd echo gdl's assessment and say go with a standard solid charcoal or navy suit. Three piece if desired. That's a suit they can reuse infinitely--far moreso than a black suit.
 

impolyt_one

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I don't think they own any formal wear as it is, and my mother would require everyone to be matching. She's got a good deal of money into this already, so it's gonna be a shame if the men's side is not dressed well enough. - The idea about the suit being reusable; the wedding is first and foremost. I have asked him just now if he thinks real tuxedos are out or not. - 3 piece suit in early July? Appropriate or not?
redface.gif
 

Sanguis Mortuum

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Originally Posted by gdl203
If you're going with suits and want them to have something versatile for later, go charcoal or grey.
This. Or navy. With wedding ties.
 

impolyt_one

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Random thought: how obviously mismatching/awkward would it be if I get these guys to get whatever black captoe, leather-soled oxfords they can get, and then I get myself a pair of C+J Audley's?
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Opinions on that?
 

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