01 Aug How to choose your wedding suit?
Semi-casual wedding
Occasion
Ordinarily, this is the first question you’d ask yourself when shopping for a new suit – what’s the occasion?
Fortunately, you already know this!
But we still need to consider what time of day you’ll be having your wedding. For instance, events at night usually require a darker fabric, while lighter shades like grey and tan are better for occasions held during mid-day.
Now, this isn’t to say that you can’t bend the rules a bit and sport an elegant white or cream tuxedo for an evening event, but as a rule of thumb – lighter shades for during the day and darker shades of fabric for the evening.
Level of formality
Now that you know when you’ll be getting all dressed up, you need to ask yourself a few questions about the level of formality of your wedding.
As you may expect, a very formal wedding will likely be a black tie event. But what about a very casual wedding? Or someplace between the two extremes?
Casual
For discussion sake, let’s take a look at a beach wedding. This will likely mean a linen or linen/wool blended suit is appropriate. Or, at the very least, a 100% cotton suit. The weather is going to be warm so your fabric will need to breathe well to keep you comfortable and your shoes will probably be relatively casual, since you may be standing in the sand!
And you’re probably going to want to stick with a tan or other light colored fabric to refer to the beach theme.
Semi-casual
But what if you’re someplace between a formal, black tie event and the beach?
You’re not going to be wearing a tuxedo in this instance. And maybe you’re considering a venue outside. It could be a grassy open space, a chic barn, etc.
Consider the featured image above; the couple had an outdoor wedding, but the groom still opted for a 3-piece suit. He chose a softer shade in almost a grey tone, but up close the suit fabric still had a lot of texture and character.
It’s a great look.
Formal
This is the look that you’re probably most familiar. It’s what you see at a lot of weddings and it’s become the go-to standard. On one end of the spectrum, you have a full tuxedo with a black bow tie, and on the other end, a dark suit.
Regardless, a formal wedding means that you will want to make sure that everything else in your wedding is at a similar level of formality. Mason jars at the reception will clash with your elegant tuxedo, for instance.
According to Heather Dwight, of Calluna Events, “The groom’s individual style should match that of the bride, neither being more formal or less formal than her but right in line. For example, if the groom is wearing a tux the bride shouldn’t wear a short dress, but a more formal gown…The groom could opt to match the bride’s coloring – if her dress is more of a champagne his tie or pocket square could also be in that tone.”
Ask your bride about your wedding suit
Did you ask your bride-to-be? She probably has an opinion!
Heather makes a good point, “Obviously, she doesn’t have to tell [you] what her dress looks like, but what type of suit would best pair with her would be a good conversation to have.”
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