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What to Wear
One of your first tasks will be to decide what you and the groomsmen will wear.
Traditionally, the groom and groomsmen all wore matching or coordinating outfits. As the groom, you may decide to wear something completely different or alter your outfit slightly – different coloured cravat or waistcoat.
When deciding what to wear, you’ll need to consider the following:
What type of suit to wear?
There are several different options available:
- Morning suit (aka top and tails) is the most common choice of wedding attire.
- Frock coat (aka Edward jacket) is a ¾ length jacket worn as an alternative to the morning suit.
- Dinner suit (aka tuxedo) is a good choice if you’re having an elegant black tie wedding.
- Single breasted suit is a less formal option worn with a tie or open necked shirt. A popular option for those buying their suit.
- Highland dress is the perfect choice for a Scotsman - no Scottish wedding would be complete without one.
Hire or buy?
Suit hire is the preferred choice for many grooms, especially if you want to wear a traditional morning suit or frock coat – it’s also cheaper than buying. However, if you’ve always wanted a tailored suit – now might be the opportunity to get one. You could save money by asking your groomsmen to wear their own suits with matching coloured ties.
Who pays
You’ll need to decide whether the groomsmen will pay for their own suits or whether this will be paid for by the groom. Let everyone know as soon as you decide. Whilst it is common for everyone to pay for their own hire – you should always ask if they mind paying for their suit hire (or can afford to).
Get measured up
If you decide to hire the suits, measurements will need to be taken in advance (usually 2 months before the wedding). If you don’t have time, why not ask the best man to be responsible for organising the fittings for all the groomsmen (including you).
The best man is usually responsible for collecting and returning all the suits.
Shoes
A lot of grooms don’t think about what shoes to wear, but it’s pretty important that you and your groomsmen wear similar colour shoes. There’s no need to buy new shoes if you all have similar coloured shoes that match your outfits. The important thing is to make sure that everyone knows what shade of colour to wear. If only one of the groomsmen wears bright tan shoes – they’ll stick out like a sore thumb and look very odd in your wedding photos.
Buttonholes
The groom, best man and other male attendants usually wear a small flower on their left lapel. These should be positioned upright through the button hole and fixed in place with a pin through the back of the lapel.
nofreetime tips
- If you’re going to wear a cravat – make sure you know how to do this and have practised before the big day.
- When the suits are collected, the outfits should be checked to make sure they are the correct size and are complete before being taken home. Don’t leave it until the morning of the wedding to check – it could well be too late!