fashion advice needed (grown-man-style related)

finelikewine

At the end of the month my brother will have his church wedding and I'll be his groomsman. The bridal couple insists on a "casual" dress code for all invited guests, i.e. no suits allowed. I would have my suit style on lock, but I'm rather clueless how to dress appropriately for this occasion. Any suggestions with pictures would be highly appreciated. Shoping spree, here I come!

Thanks in advance.

mrmatthew

My advice would be to ask the couple to send you (and the others in the wedding party) a picture of what they consider "casual" and then replicate that picture.
You don't want your interpretation of "casual" give the bride or groom any potential problems on thier big day.

Controller_7

Good advice. They may not want to restrict people to a certain look, but it's better to be safe than have some people feel uncomfortable because they show up dressed inappropriately. That would take the fun right out of the night if you're feeling awkward.

My guess would be something like linen pants and button up for dudes and summer dresses/blouses for the ladies. No non-iron type work shirts.

finelikewine

Controller_7 said:

My guess would be something like linen pants and button up for dudes and summer dresses/blouses for the ladies. No non-iron type work shirts.

That's what I tend to as well. Maybe combined with a not too formal men's jacket? Any recommendations for a good looking one?

finelikewine

mrmatthew said:

My advice would be to ask the couple to send you (and the others in the wedding party) a picture of what they consider "casual" and then replicate that picture.
You don't want your interpretation of "casual" give the bride or groom any potential problems on thier big day.

Thanks for you tip. I already asked and they just answered I should wear whatever feels comfortable to me.

Jimster

Nice shirt with no tie, decent jeans and clean shoes.

parallax

...but ditch the hat, have a better contrast between vest and jeans, roll the sleeves up a bit higher, and do up a couple more buttons on the shirt. You're guaranteed to be one of the sharper 'casually dressed' dudes.

finelikewine

parallax said:

...but ditch the hat, have a better contrast between vest and jeans, roll the sleeves up a bit higher, and do up a couple more buttons on the shirt. You're guaranteed to be one of the sharper 'casually dressed' dudes.

Looking good! Keep em coming!

parallax

For shoes...



or



or

finelikewine

parallax said:

For shoes...



or



or

I like the second pair.

This style could also work, I guess:

parallax

Mos def!

But go with a pocket square that has more 'pop' and perhaps opt for a more boldly printed shirt w/ oxford collar. A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring. Ditto for an interesting pocket square.

The slacks are tite, but the colour is a tad boring and has a bit of 'office work' vibe to it. Maybe a different colour, like plum, olive, pale blue...? Just some thoughts, but obviously go with your comfort zone.

finelikewine

Can this style also be rocked with a shirt not tucked in the trousers? I would feel a lot more comfortable that way.
Maybe with a shorter shirt? Or is this a no go?

Delay

Only wear a printed shirt with a jacket. If you're going without a jacket... Which I recommend for casual, go with a solid 50% linen.

Honestly Jcrew's summer line is kind of killing. There are a pair of navy searsucker chinos that I've been rocking too much. Can't really go wrong with shirts at uniqlo 30-50$.

For shoes? Go sperry or vans. Some shit you'd wear later

vintageinfants

vintageinfants

suspenders replace tie in a formal setting, where formal dress has been removed.

finelikewine

I guess I don't have the guts rock short pants with a jacket :zooted:

finelikewine

I guess I don't have the guts rock short pants with a jacket :zooted:

vintageinfants

vintageinfants said:

suspenders replace tie in a formal setting, where formal dress has been removed.

that's 'braces' for the UK heads.... when i was in scotland i went into a menswear spot asking bout 'suspenders' and just about got laughed out of the building.

vintageinfants

finelikewine said:

I guess I don't have the guts rock short pants with a jacket :zooted:

mint/yellow/powder blue chinos are the business for summer weddings this year.

think any Rolex/Breitling magazine advertisement from the 90s, that's the ticket.

vintageinfants

teh_gaffleur would have been perfect on this one.

parallax

finelikewine said:

Can this style also be rocked with a shirt not tucked in the trousers? I would feel a lot more comfortable that way.
Maybe with a shorter shirt? Or is this a no go?

I'd say no go. It will look sloppy.

finelikewine

parallax said:

...A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring.

could you give an example for an appropriate shirt with a bolder print, please?

vintageinfants

finelikewine said:

parallax said:

...A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring.

could you give an example for an appropriate shirt with a bolder print, please?

finelikewine

vintageinfants said:

finelikewine said:

parallax said:

...A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring.

could you give an example for an appropriate shirt with a bolder print, please?

damn, this looks fly!

vintageinfants

if you're one of the groomsmen/ushers, please try to establish at least a small theme with the others, even if your brother balks at the idea. you don't all have to wear the same thing, but at least a similar color palette in different styles so it doesn't look like he grabbed 4 dudes out of the parking lot.

finelikewine

vintageinfants said:

if you're one of the groomsmen/ushers, please try to establish at least a small theme with the others, even if your brother balks at the idea. you don't all have to wear the same thing, but at least a similar color palette in different styles so it doesn't look like he grabbed 4 dudes out of the parking lot.

good idea!

Horseleech

finelikewine said:

I guess I don't have the guts rock short pants with a jacket :zooted:

Good for you because it's one of the worst looks in the history of mankind.

parallax

finelikewine said:

vintageinfants said:

finelikewine said:

parallax said:

...A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring.

could you give an example for an appropriate shirt with a bolder print, please?

damn, this looks fly!

The shirt works.

But needless to say (I hope), red pants are almost impossible to pull off, unless you're a street magician, or hold a 10th dan blackbelt in the sartorial arts. IRL terms, avoid red pants. I'm sure you would anyway, but I say this to all other Strutters (except Herm who probably owns a pair and rocks them well).

I'm with Horseleech on blazer/shorts combos looking goofy, especially shorter shorts. It kind of works in a British boarding-school kind of way...but only on children imo.

Duderonomy

vintageinfants said:

vintageinfants said:

suspenders replace tie in a formal setting, where formal dress has been removed.

that's 'braces' for the UK heads.... when i was in scotland i went into a menswear spot asking bout 'suspenders' and just about got laughed out of the building.

Dude, you obviously don't have the pins for 'em.

Horseleech

parallax said:

I'm with Horseleech on blazer/shorts combos looking goofy, especially shorter shorts. It kind of works in a British boarding-school kind of way...but only on children imo.

If the wedding is going to be on a boat or the beach I'd give it a pass, but around town? Hell no.

Unless you're this guy:

vintageinfants

finelikewine said:

parallax said:

...A bolder print is more casual and will offset any 'formal' vibes that a jacket might bring.

could you give an example for an appropriate shirt with a bolder print, please?