So you all convinced me that suspenders on the men would look great, and you were right! They looked downright dapper:
But you should know that the route from point A [deciding] and point B [wearing] was not exactly straight. In fact, it was quite squiggly. What follows is a word of caution about using Etsy’s Alchemy process.
Mr. Husky had his mind made up about the suspenders way before I came on board with the idea. He had evolved the vision from all the men in suspenders to having the groomsmen in suspenders, and Husky would wear a vest made from matching fabric. He wanted ties to match as well. After posting a request through Alchemy, he had a few responses but none could suggest a fabric that he liked. Eventually, he accepted a bid where he would select and buy the fabric, ship it to the seamstress, and she would make the items for him.
During the negotiating process, he made a few points very clear:
- He wanted a vest with the same fabric on the front and back (in other words, he didn’t want a vest with the color/texture on the front, and the basic black satin back, like a lot of tuxedo vests).
- He wanted the vest to have a usable hidden front pocket—not a faux-pocket.
- The groomsmen that would wear the ties and suspenders all come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
He sent along his measurements, spent hours upon hours searching for the perfect fabric, sent it to the seamstress, and waited. Some time passed, and he finally heard from her. She told him she was having trouble with the pocket on the vest—she couldn’t find a way to make it work. So it was decided that the pocket would be exposed on the outside of the vest. Not ideal, but not a disaster.
The vest was the first to arrive. He tried it on, and it was HUGE. Despite the measurements he had provided, this thing barely clung to his shoulders. Thankfully, he had an appointment with a local tailor to have his suit altered, so he just added the vest to the order. In the end, it turned out great, albeit a bit more costly than our original expectation.
Then the ties arrived. Mr. Husky tried one on to find the tie was very, very long. As in, 4-5″ longer than the longest tie in his closet. Hmmm. Double-windsors it was.
And then there was more waiting. A lot more waiting. Finally, Husky emailed the seamstress to find out about the status of his suspenders, and was shocked to find out the woman had experienced some health issues, but would be finishing them soon and mailing them off. We received them about 3 weeks before the wedding. And when we opened the package, we discovered the seamstress had not included adjustment buckles. They were all one size, and that one size barely fit Mr. Husky. Our hopes for them fitting the rest of the groomsmen were quite low. In a panic, he sent her a message, and she offered to make two additional pairs. She made them and shipped them quickly, and we received them the week before the wedding. And these suspenders? They had adjustment buckles.
This turned out to be a good thing, as they were needed for two of our groomsmen. It did take away a little bit from the uniformity, but the mis-matched bridesmaids already had that covered. In the end, we received all of the items we ordered, and managed to make them work despite their minor issues. And everything was fine.
(Mark Hayes Photography – for the record, I have no clue what’s happening here.)
But here are my words of caution for those of you considering custom items:
- If you need something to be flawless, this may not be your best option. When we first received the suspenders, we were afraid they would be completely unusable. Even if some of the groomsmen could wear them, it seemed ridiculous to have two guys with, and the rest without. But even if the guys had to go without suspenders, neither of us would have considered it a disaster.
- Time was really winding down by the time we received all components of the order. To be clear, I do not blame the seller for the health issues. But I would suggest anyone considering Alchemy to be sure and request your items with enough time.
In the end, we had all our groomsmen wearing what we had wanted. But there were many hurdles along the way. I also want to point out that sometimes Alchemy requests can work out perfectly. Case in point:
My beautiful necklace was a completely custom alchemy request from the wonderful Jelena of Change of hART. Not only did she do an amazing job that far surpassed my expectations, but she was prompt and pleasant to work with.
*Side note: Etsy’s Alchemy no longer exists, and it is now recommended you request custom items directly from an Etsy seller. Regardless, I believe these tips can still apply to custom requests—through Etsy or elsewhere.*
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