Wedding Blog
I’ve squared away my dress, my Mom’s, and all my bridesmaids. The only thing looming ahead is the menswear. As the clock is ticking away, we want to get that squared away as soon as possible (we have three months…how has time slipped away??). Last week we did a preliminary search at the Beverly Center to get ideas. Basically we looked at really fancy suits, so Mr. Pep could decide what looks he liked. After that, we went to After Hours, Men’s Wearhouse and Friar Tux. While we didn’t find a winner, we’re a lot closer. Mr. Peppermint seemed to like Friar Tux best, but we have one major quandary: what color suit?
The people who assisted us at Friar Tux suggested grey–when I told them that the bridesmaids were in a soft pink, they pointed out how nice pink and grey look together. However, when I mentioned that my dress was ivory they insisted that whatever suit we pick, it must have an ivory shirt. To get an idea of how it would look with the grey, we paired an ivory vest with it. They didn’t look great. I don’t think my pictures capture it, but since the grey is a cool color and the ivory is very warm, it didn’t look right. Do you think the men need to wear ivory shirts to match my dress??
Here is the grey suit with a white shirt (and soft pink tie):
Here it is with an ivory vest (remember they didn’t switch out shirts, but the shirt would be ivory):
And yet another option is a brown tux (with ivory shirt):
Of course there’s always basic black, too.
I want to leave the decision up to Mr. Peppermint (and ultimately will), but I want to make sure he chooses soon… Since Mr. Pep also wants to select the ties (all the groomsmen wear the same one and he will have a different one), I want to make sure he has enough time.
How involved are you in picking your groom (and groomsmen)’s look? I wanted to let them do it on their own, but as December nears, I thought I’d lend them a hand (and by hand I mean to say, get them squared away before the week of the wedding!).
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they definitely don’t need to wear ivory shirts to match your dress. a lot of people have said that ivory shirts look dirty in pictures since you can only see part of them and that white looks sharper. i’m not sure if that’s true or not, but white will not look like it clashes with your dress. we decided to go with white shirts for the guys and my dress is ivory.
i went along with FI to scope out their garb, but I let him really do the picking in the end. And he picked what I wanted anyways, so no complaints 
We were looking at ivory shirts, but the one they showed us at mens warehouse, looked like an old crusty “used to be white but now yellowy dirty” color, and FI said no way! (we didn’t get anything there).
My dress is “pearl” color, and we stuck with white shirts, because we were afraid of that yellowy ivory!
good luck!
I’m going to say yes they do indeed need to wear either ivory or another color - but they shouldn’t wear white shirts.
My gown has been ordered in a diamond white and as it was explained to me, since my gown is not a true white if the groom where’s a true white shirt then it will make my dress appear dirty.
I don’t know if the same applies to ivory but I’d think so.
I really like the brown suit btw 
We’re no where near a point where we have to worry about what the guys are going to wear but I will probably be there to help since both my fiance and the groomsmen hate clothes shopping.
I’ve seen weddings where the dress has been ivory and the groom’s shirt was white and it looked fine. I agree with the pp that an ivory dress shirt will look dirty in the pictures, but an ivory dress will not look dingy if the rest of the guys are white.
I’m always a fan of the classic black and white tux. It’s classic for a reason.
There is no need to have ivory shirts for the guys even if your dress is ivory. White shirts will look sharper and your dress will not look dirty. I wouldn’t worry about it unless YOU really want ivory shirts for the guys. Don’t let the salespeople talk you into it.
I think grey suits with white shirts will look great. (So would black) The brown suit would not look good with the pink BM dresses if the girls are wearing a black ribbon with their dresses, and personally I’m not a fan of brown suits unless they’re really part of the colour scheme.
In my case, my groom is not really big on very many aspects of the wedding planning, but picking the suits is one thing he really wants to do! So I’m letting him do that without my help. He always dresses really sharply for formal events so I have absolute faith that he will pick out something fabulous.
for the record, i like option 1. looks pretty sharp and snazzy to me!
It’s funny that the “dirty” argument is being portrayed in both directions here.
What is more likely — REALISTICALLY — to seem like it might appear dirty:
a) a rented shirt that has been worn by an unnumerable number of men for very sweaty (nervous, dancing) occasions (the prom, weddings, etc.)
b) the sacrosanct new bridal gown that no one is allowed to touch or breathe on
My favorite out of those three is the first. I really love the soft pink tie and I think it’s important that they groomsmen match the bridesmaids. The gray tie really brings the suit together. I’d go with option 1!
To me, it looks like the first suit has a light grey vest and a white shirt - and then it switches to both an ivory shirt and vest. I wonder what it would look like with the Ivory shirt and a GREY vest.
That way, the shirt looks more neutral and the real color focus is on the jacket, vest and tie combo.
i will definately be at the tux rental store with my fiance and groomsmen. I just feel like in order for something to get done a woman has to take charge. BTW, i think you are ok with the white shirt. I love the grey and pink though. very cute!!
I know this is just reiterating what everyone else has said, but a white shirt on the men is truly the most appropriate color for formal wear. It will certainly not make an ivory dress look dirty! Think about it - the dress is a much larger visual - it will only look dirty if it has visible stains. The reason that ivory shirts on the men are sometimes thought to look “dirty” is that most people expect them to be white.
Finally, there is no reason that ivory and white cannot be mixed to begin with. My bridesmaids are going to be in navy/white, but my dress is various shades of ivory. Personally, I think it adds a little depth and avoids looking “matchy-matchy.” IMO
Good luck choosing! And for the record, I think I like the brown tux the best (but with a white shirt).
i’ll come along for emotional support but i trust the bf’s fashion sense…he has better taste than i do. lol. if i didn’t have my mom, sister and best friend shopping with me for the dress i’d honestly bring him along.
I think I will let him choose what he wants to wear- but anticipate that I could end up in similar place that you are in. I should be the one to talk- I haven’t even thought about dress shopping yet!
Anyhow, love the brown suit! The grey is nice too, but I love the warmth of the brown as opposed to the cool grey color. All depends on his (and your) taste. Either will look good with the pink maids/ivory dress.
I like option #2 if you’re going for a more formal look. Although, I am really partial to option #3. Then again, my husband wore a brown suit to our wedding last month.
I loved the gray suit/gray vest pic! Brown and pink are becoming “overdone” (sorry if this is anyone else’s scheme- jmo!) and the gray will be unexpected yet traditional. I agree that unless you are doing a pink and brown wedding, you shouldn’t go there. I also agree with all the postings about using a white shirt. I’ve been to a few weddings with the ivory dress/white shirt combo, and I never thought to myself “well that really doesn’t match!”
Honestly I think either of the gray/ivory/white combinations do the pink tie any justice. Your FI would probably kill you…but have you thought about maybe doing a light pink shirt with something like a gray and white patterned tie (i.e. diagonal stripes)? I’m not sure what your wedding scheme is, so it’s kind of hard for me to say here.
ooops…meant to say that *neither * combo does any justice
i’m not a bride, but i do work at a bridal shoppe that rents tuxes and i stare at many a tux/vest/tie/shirt combination a day…not to mention i’m addicted to all things weddings
so here’s my opinion…
ivory shirts for the guys is not a necessity because of your ivory dress. (those sales people are ludicrous btw!)
while i believe every bride and groom should do what they want (regardless of outside opinion) i have also noticed in my experience that it doesn’t necessarily matter how well the groomsmen match the bride, it’s more about the bridesmaids and the groomsmen coordinating well with each other (since they’re closer to each other more for pics, dancing etc.) and tying the main wedding colors together. (this ultimately includes the bride’s dress, but, my point being the bride and groom should coordinate to each other and the attendents to each other respectively without being too gaudy or too matchy-matchy)
since the groom’s vest and tie typically matches the bride’s dress i think it would look just fine to have all the guys in white shirts even if mr. peppermint chose to wear an ivory vest and tie to match you.
the grey suits could look very sharp and unique. since the maids are wearing a bit of black, maybe you could do grey suits with white shirts, black or grey vests & ties, or even pair a black shirt with pink or grey vests and ties, leaving ivory out of the guy’s apparel altogether.
i agree with you miss peppermint about the ivory with the grey not looking quite right and would steer away from using those together…but if you really aren’t a fan of the ivory with the grey suit, keep in mind how the grey suit will look next to your ivory dress.
of course basic black suits and tuxes are always classic and sometimes more cost effective. and while brown is really popular right now and i personally love it, it may not be the best option with the pink and black (unless you have alot of other browns in the wedding…there are striking ways to accent black and brown together)
phew…confused yet? i guess i’m trying to say, if you are adamant about including ivory somehow, then grey tuxes probably aren’t your best bet, and ivory shirts definitely are not a must for the groomsmen!
good luck with the big decision!
Just throwing my two cents in that I’m also not a fan of ivory shirts. FI was in a wedding last year and wore an ivory shirt — it looked dingy and sort of cheap. I don’t think there needs to be an ivory/ivory match — white shirts on guys are classic and will look great with everything.
My dress is ivory and we’ll be doing black suits with an ivory tie/vest for FI and navy blue (our BM dress color) tie/vest for the GMs.
Have you thought about incorporating the ivory with just his tie/vest? I’m also a big fan of classic black over gray and definitely not brown.
I’ll be going with FI to help pick out the tuxes. I’ll let him pick the black tux and we’ll pick out the tie/vests together.
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Miss Peppermint, LA/Palm Springs
Age and Occupation: 23, Actress
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Web Producer
Engagement Date: October 21, 2006
Wedding Date: December 2007
Blogging Since: July 2, 2007
Venue: historic estate overlooking the heart of Palm Springs
About Me: I am a Southern California native who enjoys cooking, writing, travel and all things in the arts. Mr. Peppermint and I met in college and he proposed on our four year anniversary in one of our most special places, Joshua Tree National Park. We're having a destination wedding in Palms Springs that will incorporate tradition as well as reflect our personalities!
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