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Do you want a smashing suit for your wedding? Not to worry, as we’ve you covered with this smart and tailored guide to picking the perfect wedding suit for your big day!
1. Try on all Choices Before you Purchase
You shouldn’t just purchase the first suit you see without trying it on! The worst thing you can do is this, and then only try it on just before your wedding to find it doesn’t fit. It will be easier to try each of your suit options and look at a wide variety before closing in on the sale.
2. Get it Custom Tailored
Regardless of how or where you acquire your suit, if it doesn’t fit right, you should get it custom tailored so that it looks perfect.
Many people wear too baggy or too tight suits, making their experience of wearing formal wear uncomfortable. They also find that they don’t look as sharp in photos as they could’ve if they’d taken the time to get their pants shortened and tapered.
Many suit shops offer this as an additional service when you buy from their collection, and they are more than happy to aid in any of these to ensure your wedding suit is perfect.
3. Concerning the Material of Wedding Suits
You can aid in a suit’s appearance and feel by what materials you choose to purchase or add to the final accessorizing of the final look.
For example, an inlaid woolen suit would be warm and cozy–perfect for winter! Or if you prefer a lighter suit, linen or cotton are perfect for summer.
Even with these options, you can play with all fabrics, colors, and patterns to find your ideal wedding outfit.
4. What to Consider for Suit Patterns?
Most people prefer to stick with the basic suit pallet of plain black with a white undershirt. However, for those that dare to be bolder, a popular pattern includes pinstripes (often brown with white lines) or checkered stripes (ranging from red to blue as the base color and white to green lines). If you are looking for something different, looking at various patterned suit options is a great way to fulfill these goals.
5. A Classic or Modern Wedding Suit?
So what is a classic wedding suit versus a modern suit?
When we think of classic weddings, we might think of celebrity weddings like Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, where the groom dresses formally in military clothes, often a long-tailed tuxedo. More recently, in the 1950s and 1960s, classical suits were still vastly more popular than standard ‘suits’, mainly consisting of black tuxedoes with minimal flair. However, even if there was a range of classic suits on offer, grooms often resorted to the basics to not take away from the bride and her stunning dress.
On the other hand, a modern suit allows a groom to express themselves in many ways. They can express themselves through color, suit cut, tie or bowtie patterns, crazy socks, a range of hats, lapels and cufflinks–as you can see, a modern suit allows its wearer to control almost all aspects of what they wear. There are virtually no rules!
6. Cufflinks for a Wedding Suit
Cufflinks are a hidden gem in the world of standing out from a crowd of other suit wearers. If you opt for a classic black tuxedo, you can still show off some air of individuality with sleek, decorated cufflinks. See above these cool typewriter keys fashioned into a collection of cufflinks!
For those unfamiliar with this accessory, they replace the buttons that hold the cuffs of an undershirt under the suit jacket. They are used almost exclusively for formal occasions and big business adventures.
7. Wedding Suit Color
For those who want to push the boundaries of their wedding suit, the most obvious way is to pick bold designs, patterns, and colors. Although a western wedding might be relatively tame in traditional colors, in other parts of the world color is celebrated and encouraged.
If you’re struggling to find a color, you could think about what they each represent. In addition, Although not specific to suits, we have a guide on the meanings of colors in the post on What color wedding ring should I get? From these suggestions, you’ll have the perfect suit color pinned down in no time!
8. All About Socks and Shoes
Like other small accessories, socks are a great way to add color and personality to your perfect wedding suit look. Most opt for plain-colored, discrete and comfortable socks, but pattered ones can do this too!
I always smile when I see fun patterned socks at a formal engagement, even more so when they depict mundane items like these sliced lemons on a blue background (see above). The blue background compliments the blue suit trousers and doesn’t look garish, so it is an excellent choice. The bottom line is if you decide to go down this alley, opting for colors complimenting your suit will go a long way.
9. All About undershirts
Undershirts are a must-have item! You might find that wearing the suit alone makes you sweat, but that’s even more reason to have a thin shirt between you and the layers on top. It will allow your skin to breathe; any sweat will get on that and not your button-up when you take your jacket off at dinner. The last thing you want is sweat stains!
Then, many opt for white linen button-ups with long sleeves for the shirts under your suit jacket. Some may cover this shirt with a vest and tux or opt for an unbuttoned suit jacket on top. In addition, those that like classic suits might have this shirt tucked into their trousers, held up by suspenders.
For the color, the most basic choices range from white to black, but many opt to choose this based on the color of the suit. So naturally, for black suits, most opt for white, but black looks great with any color so go wild!
10. All About Hats
If you want to be a classy suit wearer, a fantastic way to complete your outfit is with a hat. This could be a victorian top hat to compliment your tuxedo or military-inspired attire or a 1940s fedora to compliment a rustic mid-century suit. You could even have a cowboy hat with a modern suit to express your Texan heritage or love for cowboy movies. The choices are endless!
If suits aren’t your style, you can choose to dress like a Viking.
11. All about bows and ties
Bowties and ties are traditionally the way suit wearers can express their personality through formal attire. Both these neck bows often have bright colors and fun patterns, with elements to compliment the color of the suit.
These have fallen out of everyday fashion and are reserved for these special formal occasions, so good luck finding anyone who knows how to tie them properly! However, there are also many tutorials online, and you can even buy pre-tied ties or pin-on bows, so you’ll be safe regardless!
12. Pins, Flowers and Other Accessories
A pin is excellent if you want to find a way to tie your suit to your wedding theme, your partner’s outfit, or express a small aspect of your personality without going crazy on suit patterns. This can be presented in many ways, from a simple pinned flower, or an elaborate natural piece like those given in the image above.
So what about other accessories not discussed on this list? Suits almost always have a breast pocket on the left-hand side of the jacket, so add a patterned pocket handkerchief. These are mainly for decoration, but sometimes weddings can be an emotional affair and when both bride and groom cry, they need something to wipe away these tears of joy.
13. A Wedding Suit on a Budget
So you’ve thought about how a suit looks, but you’re on a tight budget. So how do you fulfill your dreams?
You can start by thinking about whether you already own a suit and find ways to freshen it up so it looks like a new outfit. In addition, if you don’t, you can always purchase a second-hand suit from a charity shop.
Once you have the suit, you can take it to a tailor and get it fitted to look like a newly acquired suit and one made just for you!
A Wedding Suit for the Perfect Ring
So how do you pick the right suit for your wedding rings? It is the same process you made to choose the perfect wedding rings; you had to think about a range of things.
Firstly, what type of person you are and how you dress. You want a ring to look good no matter what you wear, so you’d have accounted for this. For example, if you already wore suits, a plain band might be better than a crazy-colored one.
But what about choosing the suit for the ring you’ve already purchased? Think about how this ring might clash or complement the outfit and go from there. But in all honesty, if you have a heart set on a suit, you should take it for a spin no matter what ring you have. You might be surprised at what you discover!
Final Remarks Picking the Perfect Wedding Suit
We are at the tailor end of this tale. So whether you seek a suit for yourself or your significant other, this guide will help you in your endeavors to find the perfect wedding suit. To conquer the trials of wedding planning and finding the most striking outfits to look great on the day and in the wedding photos you’ll fondly look back on in the future.
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