Wedding Suit - Suggestions

[FedoraGent]

My Dearest FedoraLoungers,

Now is the time when I am sitting back early in the morning unable to sleep thinking about what I want to wear to Magneto and my wedding. I have decided that I DO NOT WANT TO DO THE TUX THING. Therefore, in our aspiration to have a Golden Era wedding...which we are unanimous in this...I am thinking of what might other FLoungers have worn at their weddings. So, ladies and gents...I'm looking for ideas for myself as I believe my lovely wife to be has already an idea of what she is going to wear.

So let the ideas flow cats and kittens, I know you folks have TONS of them.

Jon

 

[manton]

Heh, funny you should ask, I spent all weekend researching and writing about this.

The Golden Era classic outfit would be this:

Navy DB suit, white shirt, woven shepherds check tie (in black & silver), plain black oxfords.

The picture shows the father of the bride wearing that; the groom is in uniform. But the caption makes clear that one of the reasons daddy is dressed so is because of wartime cloth restrictions: morning coats and striped trousers were not allowed to be made. So even if the groom had been a civilian, he would have worn something like that. I have a picture of my grandfather, married in 1941, dressed almost exactly like that.

The idea was to make the clothes look something like daytime formal wear:

An alterternative that I like very much is a dark gray SB suit with a DB vest:

Same shirt, tie and shoes as in the wedding picture above, not as shown here. However, this would have to be custom made, or else you would have to be very lucky to find one, as they are not that common. Also, a lot of guys just have no use for the DB vest, and so the navy DB suit is more practical as you can wear it to your heart's content later.

An SB peak suit would also work well. Whatever you do, I would stay with solid colors. If the wedding is in the spring or summer, a lighter shade of gray would work. Medium gray, though, I wouldn't go as light as dove or pearl.

 

[Orgetorix]

Sigh. I was typing out a response, but while I was hunting for that very illustration (above, top), manton beat me to it. Oh well.

So I'll content myself with observing that Magnoli Clothiers will do a SB peaked-lapel suit with a DB vest for a reasonable price (their Fairbanks model, I think).

 

[Senator Jack]

An alterternative that I like very much is a dark gray SB suit with a DB vest:

Went to my friend's engagement party just last night and he requested that I take him out to find a wedding suit because he, too, doesn't want to wear a tux. I immediately saw the possibility of the SB jacket with DB vest and here I come to find the very picture I had in my head. Thanks for saving me the trouble of finding a pic, Manton. I'm going to forward it to Joe at mytailor to see what he can do.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[manton]

Here is a sketch that shoes a DB vest a little more close up:

That little point in the middle bottom is one option. They are also cut without it, not straight exactly, but in a continuous curve. No point was probably a bit more common back in the day, from what I have seen.

Here is a drawing that shows the whole vest (center):

That one is peak, but shawl also works very well. Golden era DB vests had these big wide lapels with lots of belly. I would avoid skimpy lapels. The wider lapels have a lot more life.

 

[Mr. Rover]

Getting the buttons positioned in that keystone shape is important to the aesthetic, methinks.

 

[Orgetorix]

Here are a couple of screen shots of Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster in just such a suit (though in a lighter shade of grey):

 

[manton]

Notice Bertie's vest has eight buttons rather than the more common six. I just got one of those last year--first time for me--and I love it.

 

[Orgetorix]

Also, for whatever it's worth, a DB vest with a morning coat:

 

[FedoraGent]

Ironically...

Folks,

Ironically, I just had a suit made with the first specifications, but the vest is all wrong and that can be fixed. Has anyone used these Magnoli Clothiers and can they speak to their quality?

Jon

 

[skillbilly]

I say stick with Al. He made my wedding suit and i couldn't have been happier with it.

 

[FedoraGent]

Problem with Al

I say stick with Al. He made my wedding suit and i couldn't have been happier with it.

Well, the problem with Al is that he has been taking WAAAY too long with my suit and there were problems with communication back to his tailoring studio...therefore everything is delayed.

To appease me, he's gone ahead and made me two vests that have been phenomenal. However, I'm still left with wondering where ALL of it is.

Jon

 

[Smithy]

I'm getting married next year and I won't be wearing anything but a morning suit.

 

[Fletch]

Heh, funny you should ask, I spent all weekend researching and writing about this.

The Golden Era classic outfit would be this:

Navy DB suit, white shirt, woven shepherds check tie (in black & silver), plain black oxfords.

The picture shows the father of the bride wearing that; the groom is in uniform. But the caption makes clear that one of the reasons daddy is dressed so is because of wartime cloth restrictions: morning coats and striped trousers were not allowed to be made. So even if the groom had been a civilian, he would have worn something like that.

Just for the record - the Army officers could no longer get formal "blues" during the war either. The service "pink & greens" were the most formal clothes they were permitted to wear as active duty military, who during WW2 had to remain in uniform at all times, on leave or on duty. So even if the old man had a morning suit left over from pre-war days, it would have been very poor form to out-dress a soldier during wartime.

As to real-world choices today - I agree with the blue, charcoal, or (for summertime) light grey suit with peak lapel (DB or vested SB). Avoid medium grey; it's too businesslike.

 

[FedoraGent]

Well, I'm getting married on September 29th...

Just for the record - the Army officers could no longer get formal "blues" during the war either. The service "pink & greens" were the most formal clothes they were permitted to wear as active duty military, who during WW2 had to remain in uniform at all times, on leave or on duty. So even if the old man had a morning suit left over from pre-war days, it would have been very poor form to out-dress a soldier during wartime.

As to real-world choices today - I agree with the blue, charcoal, or (for summertime) light grey suit with peak lapel (DB or vested SB). Avoid medium grey; it's too businesslike.

I'm getting married on September 29th and as far as the time of year, do you feel that the blue would be fine or the grey?

Jon

 

[manton]

I would say, that late in the year, don't go with mid-gray. As to charcoal or navy, it's really up to you. Though if the wedding is at night, I would lean toward blue; if in the day, toward gray.

 

[Cherry_Bombb]

I'm also trying to find a suit for my fiance for our upcoming nuptuals. I love the look of these suits, but would they look good on a heavy set man? My fiance is only 6'2" but weighs in at about 280lbs. (He's a hockey goalie, so he's incredibly muscular.)

Would he be able to pull a suit like this off?

 

[Jovan]

I think if anything the one button long cutaway coat and stripes on the trousers would only help him look less wide. That is, if you're talking about morning formal.

 

[Cherry_Bombb]

I think if anything the one button long cutaway coat and stripes on the trousers would only help him look less wide. That is, if you're talking about morning formal.

That does sound nice... I'm not sure if he'd like the formal look though. Although I agree that stripes would slim him down.

 

[Orgetorix]

You might look at this thread on thelondonlounge.net for a (rather comprehensive) overview of proper wedding attire for grooms.