Tuxedo Tidings

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As the groom, you may be nervous, excited, and even a bit overwhelmed by all of this wedding planning business. 

But one interesting thing about wedding planning culture in our society is that it has shifted a lot over the past 20-ish years. 

It used to be that the bride, her sisters, her friends, her mother, and even her future mother-in-law (along with the other women of the family) did the majority of the wedding planning. 

However, this trend has definitely changed over the last couple of decades. 

Nowadays, grooms are taking a more active role in the planning process—and we couldn’t be more thrilled about this. 

Grooms bring a lot to the table and have a lot to offer in the wedding planning process. 

And in this post, we’re going to go over a basic checklist of things that you can do to help your bride-to-be plan the perfect wedding that you can both feel amazing about as your special day approaches.

Let’s dive into it.

1. Get Involved In The Planning Process

As a man, you may be thinking to yourself:

“Does my soon-to-be bride really even want me involved in planning the wedding?”

And the answer to this question is a resounding yes.

So the first item on the checklist is to throw yourself into the process with as much enthusiasm and optimism as you can muster. 

  • Make yourself available for important planning occasions. 
  • Show up to important planning appointments and functions. 
  • Show her that you’re committed to making this day the best it can be.

She’ll appreciate the support, and she’ll appreciate your input—probably a lot more than you realize.  

2. Run Those Errands

As the wedding day approaches, a lot of stuff is going to need to get done. 

And some of these things are just going to straight up take a lot of time. 

You may need to run errands, pick things up, drop things off, help solve last minute problems, and see to last-minute details. 

Some of these things will require the bride’s immediate attention—but some of them will fall perfectly within the scope of your ability as the groom. 

So make yourself available (especially as you get closer to the wedding day) to perform some of this legwork. 

Trust us. Your bride-to-be will be eternally grateful for the assistance.

3. Be A Line Of Communication To Your Side Of The Family

Communicating with the family can be tricky. 

This is especially true if your bride-to-be isn’t super connected to them on a regular basis.

Taking up the role of communicating important wedding information to your side of the family will likely be a great help and asset to your bride as she works to plan the perfect day. 

Think of yourself as a sort of ambassador or emissary. 

Hey—it’s an important job! 

4. Be Proactive About Your Wardrobe Ensemble

As a groom, it’s in your best interest to take an active role in selecting the perfect tuxedo.

This includes to-do list items like:

  • Choosing accent colors 
  • Choosing the style
  • Choosing whether you’ll wear a bow tie or a necktie
  • Selecting the shoe style
  • Choosing accessories

Sure, your bride can offer her input on these things. 

However, it’s always a great idea to make sure that you are spearheading this part of the planning process. 

Why? 

Well first of all, because you’re the one who’s going to be wearing the tux. 

Secondly, trust us… 

Once again, your soon-to-be wife will be thankful for the extra help. 

This is a big process. 

She’s probably already pushed to the max with decision fatigue. 

Taking this item off of her plate will be a massive help. 

5. Take Full Responsibility For The Groomsmen

Communicating with your groomsmen is an important part of the wedding process as well. 

These are the men who’ll stand alongside you at the altar as you exchange vows. 

With that being said, they’ll also need to be organized for the occasion—and sometimes this can be a little bit like herding cats. 

Your bride certainly isn’t going to have the time, energy, or bandwidth for such a task.

Therefore, as the groom, it’s going to be your responsibility to make sure that this important task is seen to.

Conclusion

There you have it. 

Our top 5 tips for putting together a basic groom checklist. 

If you utilize all of these tips to help your bride-to-be in planning your big day, you’ll be certain to earn some pretty major points. 

But even more importantly, you’ll be supporting her in the wedding planning process in a proactive and meaningful way. 

So men—get out there and make it happen. 

You’ve got this.

And don’t forget to stop by to get yourself measured and outfitted for the perfect tux for your big day.
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With the 4th of July (Independence Day) right around the corner, you (a very excited groom-to-be) may be putting some serious thought into whether or not to weave the patriotic colors (red, white, and blue) into your wedding decoration themes. 

You may also be wondering how to do this without making it tacky!

These are very reasonable questions—but rest assured that there are plenty of ways to utilize this color scheme in your wedding in a manner that won’t feel ‘over the top’ or ‘out of place.’ 

If the armed forces are a part of your family’s lineage (or that of your bride-to-be’s), and/or if you come from a long line of police officer service members—then this may be especially pertinent.  

But even beyond these things—if patriotism and paying homage to our great nation are important to you, and if you really want to make this a part of your July wedding celebration—then we’ve got you covered. 

Here are some of the top tips to keep in mind as you break out the wedding planner book and prepare for a patriotic-themed wedding day. 

1. Go Easy on the ‘Red’ and ‘Blue’ Colors

Holding a wedding celebration that’s decorated with reds, whites, and blues doesn’t have to mean ‘super’ red, white, and blue! 

It could, for example, mean going mostly white with subtle red and blue accents as supporting colors. 

This is a lot different from making all three colors ‘equal’ as you decorate. This, by contrast, could very well lead to a color palette that’s just too much on the eyes—that goes in too many distracting directions at once. 

2. ‘Patriotic’ Can Be a Secondary Theme

One of the primary fears about using red, white, and blue to decorate for the wedding is that this color scheme will appear ‘political,’ and look more like a presidential campaign rally than a romantic wedding. 

For this reason, you may want to use the ‘patriotic’ theme as a secondary—and choose ‘traditional,’ ‘elegant,’ or ‘luxurious’ as a primary descriptor for how you want your wedding to look. 

By this logic, you can pretty much do all of your shopping for white decorations that fit under one of those labels. Then, you can add your favorite accent pieces to complete the look and bring all the patriotic colors together. 

3. Need Some Inspiration? Consult Pinterest

You really can’t go wrong by looking to Pinterest for some inspiration. 

Just visit the site, type in your search query (for example, ‘patriotic wedding theme’), and see what comes up. 

You might be surprised by the wealth of different ideas you can find. 

Pinterest is an excellent community for helping people to find inspiration and creative ideas for weddings. 

4. Reflect Your Patriotic Theme Subtly in Your Tuxedo  

You don’t need to go all-out and dress like Uncle Sam for your wedding! 

You can still stick with an ‘elegant’ wedding theme while paying homage to the patriotic color scheme. 

For example, you can wear a traditional black tuxedo—but choose a red or blue bow tie.

This subtle color scheme change can really make the look ‘pop’ without going to tacky extremes. 

You could even take this to a more ‘conservative’ level by choosing a dark red or dark blue tie. 

This will blend in and look a lot more elegant than a brightly colored red or blue option. 

You can also incorporate your boutonniere into the color scheme as well. 

With a white shirt, a dark blue bow tie, and a red boutonniere—you’ll represent all of the colors, but you’ll be doing so in a manner that isn’t ‘over the top.’ 

Conclusion

Of course, you can always feel free to crank up the ‘patriotism’ meter a little bit more, to suit your taste. 

But as a general rule, these are some of our favorite tips for weaving red, white, and blue into the color scheme for any wedding. 

Need a bit of extra help?

Consider stopping in for a brainstorming session. 

We’d love to help you make your special day a perfect blend of ‘patriotic’ and ‘romantic.’ 

Plus, your bride-to-be will thank you for taking such a keen interest in the decoration choices. 

You’re off to a great start. 

You’ve got this!
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When it comes to formal wear, there is to be a lot of discussion about when it’s proper to wear a tuxedo, and when it’s proper to wear a suit. 

And to be fair, this is an important conversation to have—because you always want to be dressed appropriately for the occasion. 

But here’s another crucial question that sometimes throws people for a loop:

Technically, what is the difference between a tuxedo and a suit?

Nowadays, suits and tuxedos can sometimes look quite similar. 

So understanding the basics of how to tell them apart is actually important. 

And in this post, that’s exactly what you’re going to learn. 

Let’s dive in and talk about it. 

4 Telltale Differences between Tuxedos and Suits

1. Satin Details

The most reliable method for telling a tuxedo apart from a suit is the fact that tuxedos are decorated with satin details, while suits all consist of the same material. 

On most tuxedos, you’ll find satin-faced lapels, satin buttons, and even a satin side-stripe down the pant leg. 

Even on more ‘modern’ tuxedos that don’t necessarily contain all of these details, you’ll at least see satin trim on the lapels, and a thin stripe running down the pant leg. 

Suits, on the other hand, won’t contain these hints of satin in the trim. 

A suit will usually also alternatively be equipped with fabric-covered, plastic, or even bone buttons. 

This is the best and easiest way to tell a tuxedo apart from a suit. 

2. The Range of Accessories

When you rent a tuxedo, you’ll notice that it comes with a range of important accessories. Depending on style, you may also receive:

  • A cummerbund
  • A waistcoat
  • Suspenders
  • A bowtie

While suits, on the other hand, do not require all of these pieces in order to be deemed ‘acceptable’ or to look great. 

For example, you can wear a suit coat without a vest. But you would likely never do this with a tuxedo coat. 

The range of accessories can give you another important ‘clue’ as to whether you’re looking at a suit or a tuxedo. 

3. The Shirt Style

The vast majority of tuxedos are black. 

While tuxedos can sometimes come in a range of colors, the shirts don’t really tend to vary much. 

Tuxedos are generally worn with white shirts that either have a turndown collar or wing collar. 

Suits, on the other hand, can be and will be worn with shirts in a wide variety of different colors and/or styles. 

Looking at what shirt a person is wearing under the jacket can definitely give you a clue as to how the entire ensemble would officially be categorized. 

4. The Shoes

And finally, you can usually tell a lot about the outfit by taking a good look at the shoes. 

Tuxedos are almost always worn with black patent shoes. 

Suits, on the other hand, can be worn with oxfords, slip-ons, or even something more casual (think sneakers or tennis shoes, cowboy boots, etc.). 

You would never wear these types of shoes with a tuxedo—which tells you that shoe choice is not only important, but that it can also be used as a clue to help you figure out whether or not a particular outfit would fall into the ‘tux’ or ‘suit’ category. 

Renting a Tuxedo vs. Buying a Tuxedo

Another difference between tuxedos and suits is that more people tend to purchase their own suits. 

Why?

Well, since tuxedos are really only designed to be worn for black-tie and formal occasions, there usually just aren’t going to be as many occasions where you’ll be required to wear one. 

You can find a wide range of tuxedos available on our website. 

You’ll also find that ordering/renting tuxedos is usually easier and more efficient—especially if you rarely attend formal events more than a couple of times per year. 

Conclusion

There you have it! 

Now you know the key differences between a tuxedo and a suit. 

If you’re looking for a tuxedo for your next formal event, please don’t hesitate to give us a call or stop by. 

We’d love to get you fitted and find you the perfect option. 

We know a thing or two about tuxedos, and would love to give you hand.

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