Men, Here's What to Wear to a Wedding as a Guest
In this episode of Style Tips for the Everyday Guy, we tell you what to wear to a wedding of all dress codes; whether it's a fall, winter, spring or summer wedding, we've got you covered.
Here's an overview of wedding guest attire for men.
Put on an attitude of honor, respect and serving
It's better to be overdressed than underdressed
Wear lighter colors and fabrics for spring, summer and day weddings.
Wear darker colors and heavier fabrics for fall, winter and evening weddings.
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Transcript:
Chris: What's the Most Important Thing to Wear to a Wedding?
Eric: You might be surprised.
Eric: Hey guys, welcome back to Style Tips for the Everyday Guy by Cladwell where you can get your personal road map to dress better. I'm Eric.
Chris: I'm Chris.
Eric: Today, we're talking about what to wear to a wedding.
Chris: Yes.
Eric: Very cool topic.
Chris: Yep.
Put on an attitude of honor and servanthood
Eric: Before we get into the clothing, I want to say one thing about may be the most important part of actually what you're putting on, which might even lead in to what you wear.
Chris: Yeah.
Eric: The clothes you wear, and that is this. There's a story that's been kind told out there that weddings, maybe told by Hollywood or TV or whatever, weddings are about you and it's going to be a big night and it's all about you. Don't worry about the bride and groom because it's for you to have fun, to partake, to consume, and-
Chris: Yeah, maybe you're hoping the night ends well or something. You're thinking about the people you're going to meet there, the other single people.
Eric: We just don't think that's right.
Chris: Yeah. No.
Eric: What we want to say is this. When you're going to a wedding, probably the most important thing you can put on is an attitude of honor, respect, and being able to serve the family and the bride and groom who are there. That's your job as an attendant to the wedding. That's probably the most important you can do if you go in with that attitude. You're there for a couple of reasons, to serve, to show honor, respect, to be a witness to the vows that are actually being made in a covenant relationship that's coming together.
Lastly, you are there to celebrate and have fun and rejoice because it should be a celebration. We're talking about two people coming together in one marriage. It's an awesome thing, so have fun. I think that's going to lead into a little bit the clothes we actually wear.
Chris: Yeah.
What clothes should I wear to a wedding?
Eric: Now, Chris, as we transition here, talk to me about the actual clothes we're going to be wearing. What are some of the guidelines I should be thinking about when I'm dressing up to go to a wedding?
Chris: Yeah. The best rule is wear a suit. I hate to tell you some guys out there, but it really is the best thing you can do at a wedding, wear a suit.
Eric: That's great. A well-fitted suit, you're going to look great.
Chris: Yeah. Wear something that fits you well. If you don't have a suit, that's okay. Don't sweat it. If you have some dress pants or even cotton pants or chinos, wear them with a blazer and a dress shirt and tie. It's always better to be a little overdressed, especially at occasions like this, then underdressed. The real benefit to that is if you get there and nobody else is wearing a tie, nobody else is wearing a blazer, guess what? You just take it off, leave it in the car, set it on the chair, and you're comfortable and you're with everybody else.
Eric: Better to be over prepared, overdressed, and-
Chris: Yeah, because you can ditch that stuff.
Eric: Scale it back if you need to.
Chris: Yeah.
Eric: Okay.
Chris: Yeah, definitely.
Eric: Great.
Have fun with what you wear
Chris: That's the best way to think about it. Also, like Eric said, have some fun. It's a fun celebratory formal occasion and there aren't many things like that.
Eric: Yes.
Chris: We're not talking about wearing a suit to work. We're talking about wearing a suit to a party.
Eric: Yes.
Chris: That's pretty fun, so you can express yourself a little bit more.
Eric: That's great.
Chris: Yeah.
Eric: You can experiment. You can do maybe some colors, different things that you might not normally do, suspenders, bow tie, something like that.
Chris: Yeah, all of that fun stuff.
Eric: Yeah.
Chris: Totally.
What about seasonal or day/night weddings?
Eric: The next question I have, weddings are all different times of the year, all different places. Walk me through for seasonal, maybe a spring/summer wedding versus a fall/winter and then you also have indoor versus outdoor. You also have day versus night weddings.
Chris: Yes.
Eric: There's a lot to consider there, but answer it all.
Chris: Yeah. There's a lot wrapped up in that question but that's all right. There's a pretty simple way to think about this stuff. Two things you need to remember. Think about the colors that you're wearing and think about the fabric that you're wearing. Colors first, spring, summer, and daytime all have a similar theme and that's lighter colors. Depending on your color palette and you can go to Cladwell and we'll tell you what colors are best for you. Generally, tans, light grays, pastel, or bright colors even, greens, blues, reds, all that stuff is great for spring, summer, daytime. Fall, winter, and nighttime are similar too, so I think dark colors, more heavily saturated, there's navy, black, dark gray, that sort of thing.
Eric: Yes.
Chris: Those are all great. Secondly, fabrics. If it's hot out, spring, summer, or winter if you're in Miami, look for cotton/linen blend blazers.
Eric: Lifesaver.
Chris: Yeah. It really is a lifesaver. We've all been there. Don't ditch the blazer. Wear the blazer, you just got to find the right fabric.
Eric: Right. Nothing worse than wearing a heavy, a polyester tuxedo or something. You're standing in the sun, sweats just rolling down the small of your back. It's the worst. Wear the right fabric.
Chris: Exactly.
Eric: Match the fabric to the temperature.
Chris: Yep.
How should I coordinate?
Eric: Okay. Last question I have here is, thinking about coordinating.
Chris: Yeah.
Eric: Part A, part B. One, how do I need to think about coordinating with maybe a plus one who's coming with me, girlfriend, friend, or wife. The second would be do I need to coordinate with the actual wedding colors themselves? Do I need to think through that as a guy?
Chris: Yeah. A couple of good questions. With your plus one, maybe you just want to coordinate the formality, so if you are wearing a suit, make sure she knows that so she can dress accordingly. I wouldn't worry about colors with her. It could look like a prom if you're wearing-
Eric: If you're overmatching.
Chris: Yeah. You have a bright red tie, she has a bright red dress. You don't have to do that. It's just not necessary. When you're thinking about the wedding party, it is a good idea to consider what colors they're going to have at the wedding. Look for the invitation, look at the wedding website to get some clues to that. Generally, you want to not wear the colors of the wedding party.
Eric: Yes. Again, you're looking to have fun to experiment but you're not trying to get all eyes on you.
Chris: Yeah, exactly.
Eric: The focus really should be on the bride and the groom and the party themselves.
Chris: Precisely. Yeah.
Please Thumbs up, Comment and Subscribe!
Eric: Okay. Guys, hopefully this was helpful for you. If it was, give it a thumbs up. If you have any other comments or questions, be sure to leave them below. Check out cladwell.com to get your best colors and suits recommended for you, personal recommendations. It's great. Thanks so much for watching.
Chris: We'll see you next time.