Clueless about men''s attire

[zoebartlett]

Some people have questions and/or issues with bridesmaids and what they will wear. This, for us, was very easy actually. My sister is the only girl in our wedding party and she has her dress already. My concern is about the guys. My FI is only having a best man, no other groomsmen. I do have a few questions:

1. Do the best man, my dad, and my FI''s dad need to coordinate with my FI''s attire? My sister''s wedding was so informal that my dad wore a light yellow sweater and khakis. My wedding will be more formal so a suit (or a tux?????) is needed.

2. Our wedding is at 11AM in mid-July. I''m assuming a suit is more appropriate than a tux but is this dictated by the style/formality of the bride''s dress? Pics of my dress are on here somewhere. I''ll see if I can find the thread.

3. If going with a suit is more appropriate than a tux, what color suit would be best? Should we go with a vest too or just do ties? This may be a matter of personal preference but is there a recommended way of dressing?

4. If the guys should coordinate, it will be hard to find matchy matchy suits (if that''s what we should do). My FI is tall (6 feet) and doesn''t have the most slender figure. My dad is about average height and is thin. The best man is average height as well and I think he''s in the middle, size-wise.

So, what advice do you have for us? Thanks in advance!

 

[julabean]

I don''t have answers to all of your questions, but I think I can help with the first. I think groomsmen and the groom wear matching tuxes, but different color vests/ties/bowties, whatever you end up going with. I think the father of the bride has to "match" the occassion in formality, but doesn''t have to match the tux exactly. My FI is wearing a different color vest and tie for his tux than the groomsmen and my dad is wearing a very nice suit. So in your case, if you went with suits, your FI and best man should probably be wearing the same color suit, but maybe wear different ties?

According to my bridal planning book (take this with a grain of salt), an outdoor wedding is semi-formal and suits would be fine. (Also, probably a lot more comfortable if you live somewhere warm!)

 

[cdt1101]

Zoe - our wedding is outdoor mid-afternoon in June. The guys are wearing Navy blue suits. We actually were able to find a place to rent them. Wasn''t easy, but we found it! It took a lot of calling around to tux places. They are not wearing vests. Just ties. We are purchasing the ties as gifts. And for us, they are all wearing the same tie...groom, best man, groomsmen, and my dad. The grorom and my dad are wearing different bouts than the GM though. I know traditionally they groom is a little different, but I LOVE the tie I found so much I want all the guys wearing them

 

[gtn]

1. Your FI, BMan, and dad do not need to match. However, it is customary that the Groom and the BMan/Groomsman Match, but not exactly. Change the vest/tie/etc. My friend changed the boutonnières and had all of the men in matching tuxes.

2. They could wear either a suit or Tux, however since your wedding will be during the day in the middle of summer, I would recommend getting a suit as it is easier to find more appropriate material in suits than in tuxes

3. I would say that you pick a color that you would be happy with. Since I''m guessing your wedding day will be hot, pick something that your FI will be comfortable wearing all day. So if he sweats a lot, he might want a vest to hide the sweat. You want to make sure he looks good in the pictures.

4. If you live near a Men''s Wearhouse they have a huge selection. It might be easier to rent than buy, but I think they would be able to help.

 

[zoebartlett]

Thanks for your replies! Sorry for asking several questions all at once but it was on my mind and I didn''t want to forget anything. Gtn, we''re actually going to Men''s Warehouse this weekend. There are two near me so if we don''t find what we''re looking for at the first one, we can always go to the other store.

I''m pretty sure we''re going to go with suits instead of tuxes and I''ll let my dad know that he doesn''t have to match my FI or his best man. He already has plenty of suits so he may be able to wear something he already has. My FI and his friend don''t have too many suits so we''ll definitely check out what Men''s Warehouse has to offer.

Oh, I forgot to ask one thing. If it''s okay for my dad to wear any suit and he doesn''t have to match or coordinate the others, I''m assuming the same holds true for my FI''s dad, right?

It''s funny -- I''ve been to a zillion weddings but I''ve never really paid attention to what the guys wore.

 

[Gypsy]

I''m so glad you asked this. Our wedding has changed to an early evening one and I just was wondering if tuxes (which John prefers) or suits (which I prefer) would be better. I''m still not sure... but at least there''s input on the subject now!

For yours I would definitely do suits, but then... I''m favoring suits period.

 

[zoebartlett]

Gypsy, I kind of think "whatever floats your boat" but there''s a part of me that wonders if there''s a way it *should* be done. Maybe I''m over thinking it.

One of my friends told me today that that if a wedding is a morning or an afternoon wedding, a suit is more appropriate. For an evening wedding (early evening or later), a tux is more appropriate.

But again, whatever floats your boat.