Suit / Tux advice for my wedding

[stanwelks]

I'm getting married at the end of June early in the day by the beach and have been looking for suits/tuxedos for the past few weeks and do not know what I want, though I do not want to wear the same thing that everyone else wears. I also want it to have a vintage 20's - 40's feel if possible. I just found some pics of Johnny Depp in several different suits/tuxedos, and I like them all.

I am curious to hear what others thing regarding:

1. Is it appropriate to wear one of these without a tie like he is doing in the pic of him on the red carpet with the black tux and white shirt?

2. Is the 3-piece suit he is wearing in the other pic an appropriate style for a wedding?


Thanks!

 

[Last Year's Man]

Originally Posted by stanwelks

...

I appreciate that you want to look different, but black tie is one of the last places in menswear where tradition really has to be adhered to. While the styles you've posted might look great now, you're likely to feel a little silly looking back at your wedding pictures in 10-20 years time.

http://www.blacktieguide.com/Classic/Classic_Intro.htm

follow these rules and you'll look great and the pictures will still look great for years to come.

oh, and congratulations.

 

[bleachboy]

Purchase a Jos A. Bank signature peak lapel tuxedo. 100% SF (and Black Tie Guide) approved: one button, peak lapel, grosgrain lapel and trim, flapless pockets, no vent, no belt loops, single pleat trousers.

 

[bringusingoodale]

When I went to prom I also wanted to look different, but thankfully was talked out of it by mother, some friends etc.

I am grateful now that when I look back on pictures I can only mock my mustache, my long hair and silly expression on my face and not my outfit (to an extent).

Point is, just get a traditional tux, and search on here for the endless threads on wedding attire for my information on the shirt, collar, shoes etc. Seriously, there is a thread like this every month.

 

[AlexE]

Well, if you really wanna wear a tuxedo you should follow the standard rules (see previous postings). Stay away from the Johnny Depp look unless you are Johnny Depp.

However, since your wedding is early in the day and next to the beach, I don't think that a tuxedo is the right choice (tuxedos are meant for evening functions and wearing a tuxedo on sand sounds odd to me...). The traditional dress for a day-time wedding is a morning coat, waistcoat and striped trousers (http://www.blacktieguide.com/Supplem...ing_Dress.htm). If you do not wanna dress that formal, I'd go with a suit in a lighter color (which should fit properly as opposed to the suit of Johnny Depp).

 

[stanwelks]

Originally Posted by Last Year's Man

I appreciate that you want to look different, but black tie is one of the last places in menswear where tradition really has to be adhered to. While the styles you've posted might look great now, you're likely to feel a little silly looking back at your wedding pictures in 10-20 years time.

http://www.blacktieguide.com/Classic/Classic_Intro.htm

follow these rules and you'll look great and the pictures will still look great for years to come.

oh, and congratulations.

I actually thought that these two styles had enough traditional elements to make them "classics/timeless" though I really do not know much about this stuff.

 

[stanwelks]

Originally Posted by bleachboy

Purchase a Jos A. Bank signature peak lapel tuxedo. 100% SF (and Black Tie Guide) approved: one button, peak lapel, grosgrain lapel and trim, flapless pockets, no vent, no belt loops, single pleat trousers.

1. Has this suit actually been reviewed by SF to be approved?
2. What about this criteria "one button, peak lapel, grosgrain lapel and trim, flapless pockets, no vent, no belt loops, single pleat trousers" is good? Is this just a list of criteria that makes it a timeless piece?

Thanks!

 

[bleachboy]

Originally Posted by stanwelks

1. Has this suit actually been reviewed by SF to be approved?
2. What about this criteria "one button, peak lapel, grosgrain lapel and trim, flapless pockets, no vent, no belt loops, single pleat trousers" is good? Is this just a list of criteria that makes it a timeless piece?

Thanks!

1. "SF approved" a figure of speech we use around here, which is half-serious, half-joking. Nobody on SF seems to approve of Jos A. Bank, but the list of criteria I enumerated IS exactly what people on SF seem to agree is the "perfect tux" -- they just want it to be made by somebody in Italy.

I do personally own this exact Tuxedo and I think it's fantastic. Also, it can be had for only about $250 if you watch the sales.

2. If you check out Black Tie Guide (links above), that's pretty much what they define as the most classic, elegant, refined set of criteria for a tux.

 

[GBR]

The primary advice you need is SUIT NOT tux for a weddding.

 

[Mr. White]

Oh, man, so many couples get married on the beach at Hotel Del Coronado that it's a running joke. (Hotel Del = Some Like It Hot). It's your wedding; if you don't like a church, that's your business. Just that these beach weddings are full of hung-over parties with awful mixes of attire.

I could never figure out why men wore funeral black to weddings. Seems a major faux pas. But I see that all the time in Coronado.

 

[stanwelks]

Now I am confused, in this thread I am being told to both wear a tux and to not wear a tux.

A bit more detail about the wedding. It is at the end of June and at 11am. It is taking place inside a hotel overlooking the beach. We will not have the ceremony actually on the sand.

I have read that a black tux is not the best choice for a summer ceremony in the morning, and, I do not even know if I want a tux, though I'm not sure if I should care if people typically do not wear them in the morning? Are people going to laugh at me? Is it really that big of a deal?

Thanks.

 

[Wiker]

I would go with a brighter outfit, seems more appropriate for the summer.

 

[dasai]

Originally Posted by stanwelks

Now I am confused, in this thread I am being told to both wear a tux and to not wear a tux. A bit more detail about the wedding. It is at the end of June and at 11am. It is taking place inside a hotel overlooking the beach. We will not have the ceremony actually on the sand. I have read that a black tux is not the best choice for a summer ceremony in the morning, and, I do not even know if I want a tux, though I'm not sure if I should care if people typically do not wear them in the morning? Are people going to laugh at me? Is it really that big of a deal?
A tuxedo at 11 a.m. is inappropriate for the time of day. A tuxedo at a beach, even with a white jacket, is just too formal for the occasion. I wouldn't recommend morning dress (daytime formalwear) for the wedding, either. Too much black contrasting with too much white sand. A mid-grey morning suit might work, but is just a step above a mid-grey suit-suit (though you do get to wear a top hat). I'd go for light grey wool, cream linen, or white/navy striped seersucker cotton if you're intent on a suit. A blue blazer with off-white trousers would also do well, and in this case is probably the most traditional choice for what amounts to an exotic garden ceremony. Will there be any walking on the beach, though?

 

[stanwelks]

Originally Posted by dasai

A tuxedo at 11 a.m. is inappropriate for the time of day. A tuxedo at a beach, even with a white jacket, is just too formal for the occasion. I wouldn't recommend morning dress (daytime formalwear) for the wedding, either. Too much black contrasting with too much white sand. A mid-grey morning suit might work, but is just a step above a mid-grey suit-suit (though you do get to wear a top hat).

I'd go for light grey wool, cream linen, or white/navy striped seersucker cotton if you're intent on a suit. A blue blazer with off-white trousers would also do well, and in this case is probably the most traditional choice for what amounts to an exotic garden ceremony. Will there be any walking on the beach, though?

1. I guess my question is, what does it mean to be "inappropriate?" with regards to wearing a formal black tux.
2. There might be some pictures taken on the sand later.
3. Could you provide any links to images of what you are suggesting?

Thanks.

 

[tgt465]

The tuxedo is meant to be worn at night, not in the daytime. This is what is meant by "inappropriate". Those who gave suggestions regarding a tuxedo did so before you were specific about the time of the wedding, and probably assumed it was a late afternoon or evening event.

Since the event is before noon, your (appropriate) choices are morning dress or a suit. I think most would recommend the suit given the relative informality of the location.

http://www.blacktieguide.com/ has all the information you need about tuxedo etiquette.