Miss Bicycle, Tallahassee, FL/Savannah, GAAge and Occupation: 30, Staff Director for Florida LegislatureFiance's Age and Occupation: 46, Government AffairsEngagement Date: August 16, 2012Wedding Date: October 2013Venue: Trinity United Methodist Church/GaribaldiAbout Me: I'm a Northerner by birth and a Southerner at heart, rooting for the New York Yankees all summer and the New Orleans Saints in the fall. Mr. Bicycle is a born-and-raised Floridian who lives for Gator football. We are political junkies and triathletes who love to travel and enjoy good food and wine. We have 16 years between us, and I am excited about becoming a step-mom to two great children. Our fleur de lis-filled wedding will be held one magical October evening in Savannah, Georgia, and we cannot wait!
I am fortunate to be marrying one of the most stylish men I know. In fact, he could be more stylish than I am. Probably not, but he is a close second. Mr. B knows more about cuffs and collars and tie knots than I do about shoes. Seriously! Anyway, I knew it was going to be interesting when he had to decide what he wanted his handsome groomsmen to wear, but I wanted to give him (almost) complete control. I think the current options are all very good and do-able, and also hopefully re-wearable.
Shoes
Mr. B wants everyone in brown shoes, preferably ones that tie. He does not plan on asking everyone to buy the same shoe, he just wants them to look like this:
OK, Mr. B has no opinion here, but I think this could be an interesting way to add some character. He wants tan socks to match the slacks. I want…argyle? Fleurs de lis? Something—anything—other than tan?
Miss Camera, Charlotte, NC/Charleston, SCAge and Occupation: 27 & Emergency Room Physician Assistant
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31 & Newspaper Editor/Designer
Engagement Date: October 7, 2012Wedding Date: September 2013Venue: The Island House, Charleston, SCAbout Me: I'm a north-to-south transplant, currently living in Charlotte, North Carolina, but still representing all things Pittsburgh, PA. One month after I moved to NC, I went on a date with a guy I met on Match.com, and now we're getting married! I work in a busy Emergency Room as a Physician Assistant and while the hours are sometimes difficult, I can't see myself doing anything else. I live with my fiance in uptown Charlotte. We have an opinionated 5 year old tabby cat named Milo and a sweet, but rambunctious 8 month old mutt named Charlie (short for Charlotte - she's a girl!). I've embraced Southern culture, and our wedding is no exception---what better location than Charleston, SC? I watch too much TV and know every word to every episode of Friends (I've watched The One With Monica and Chandler's Wedding at least a hundred times...hope I have enough money for Wedding Scenario A!). I love baking cupcakes, cheering for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Penn State Nittany Lions and am openly addicted to celebrity gossip and pop culture.
In case you are an avid fan of both (ahem, me), check out this Buzzfeed post on their similarities.
OK, back to wedding items.
In my last post, I mentioned the things we were crossing off the list ahead of time because we’re going to be awfully busy in the coming months. One of those things was shopping for the guys!
This was an item I left entirely up to Cam. OK, entirely is being too generous—I told him I wanted light gray suits, but he got to pick them out and handle it all, so that’s the same, right? He was totally on board with the light gray, and started doing some research. All on his own, he decided to purchase a suit instead of rent one.
Doesn’t it stink that guys spend $200 and up on a tux/suit rental that they can’t even keep? Even the ugliest bridesmaids’ dress we buy is still our property to burn, trash, or “shorten it and wear again!”
Miss Jackrabbit, Brighton, UKAge and Occupation: 26, Office ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, SongwriterEngagement Date: October 5, 2012Wedding Date: September 2013Venue: Fabrica Gallery, BrightonAbout Me: I honestly thought I'd go all Monica Geller when I started planning our wedding, but in truth, things couldn't have gone much differently. I am working my way through this venture, figuring things out as I go, and adopting a 'Que Sera, Sera,' approach to making decisions. When I'm not organising the biggest day of my life, I can usually be found drinking a glass of wine, crafting up one thing or another, or stopping my cat from head-butting me in the face.
As Jack takes his time sorting out his bespoke suit, someone has already got theirs!
In all honesty, I’m not bothered if the men in the family all have matching suits. As long as they’re either blue or grey, and they fit, I’m happy.
So one evening I got a phone call from my mum saying my brother, Q, got his suit. Apparently there had been a sale on at Burton so he was just going to pick one up from there, but when they got there all the suits were ill fitting.
So my mum took him to an actual suit shop, rather than a men’s high-street store, and found him a “proper” suit to wear. When they arrived at Moss Bros, there was a sale on! And hidden amongst all the crappy suits that no one wanted to buy (shiny brown suit, anyone?) was a grey French Connection suit in his size! Winner!
My brother likes new clothes, and when he got home he proceeded to do a “fashion show” (which I thought was a female thing, but obviously not) with his suit and all his different shirts. Which prompted my mum to send me this video. I actually lolled.
He’s thrilled with his new purchase, and with a few other weddings coming up this year, he was happy he’d have something to wear to them. “You might want to check that you’re allowed to wear it before Miss Jackrabbit’s!” my mum told him.
Miss Blue Whale, College Park, MDAge and Occupation: 27, Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: March 10, 2012Wedding Date: May 2013Venue: Southern Tree Plantation in Blairsville, GAAbout Me: I love bright colors, glitter, sugar, cheese, tiny animals, talking in silly accents, dancing, and all things music. I love to plan things, but when it comes time to execute the plans, I tend to panic. My friends tell me that I remind them of a mix between a cartoon character and a Disney Princess. Mr. Blue Whale and I are Southerners at heart, but we’ve been transplanted to the East Coast for school. We both love barbecues, star-gazing, bonfires, music, making up nonsense words, and generally being silly. Our wedding will be a fun-filled destination wedding in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It will most certainly feature bright colors, '80s music, and glitter.
Okay, actually it’s the story of buying Mr. Whale’s wedding attire. But somehow we ended up acting silly in the store and discussing how hilariously awesome it would be if our first dance was to “Suddenly Seymour” (Mr. Whale loves Little Shop of Horrors. I mean, really, who doesn’t?)
But I digress. With our wedding less than two months away, we decided that maybe it was time to pick out a suit for Mr. Whale. You may recall that he originally had this great idea to wear a white suit…I’m happy to report that that phase didn’t last long. I really didn’t bring it up again, but I did show him some pictures of some nice gray suits, and I guess he forgot about the white one.
Mrs. Armadillo, Houston, TexasAge and Occupation: 23, Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Armed Security OfficerEngagement Date: September 28, 2011Wedding Date: March 2013Venue: First Presbyterian Church/Bay City Civic CenterAbout Me: I’m an oldies-loving, board game-playing, coffee addicted fine arts junkie from Southeast Texas in pursuit of her master’s degree in communication studies who met the goofy, strong, artistic, and unexpected love of her life in the beautiful piney woods of East Texas. Serendipity threw us together again and again (and again) on our college campus before we eventually stuck, but when we finally did submit to destiny, we hit the ground running and never looked back! We’re planning a religious, small town, budget-friendly, DIY-infused “winter becomes springtime” ceremony and reception to celebrate the beginning of our lives together with the people we love the most, and are pouring our hearts and souls into making sure our wedding represents us as a couple down to the nitty gritty details and balances tradition with the quirky individuality that is uniquely and unequivocally “us”!
Yes, we’re covering two topics in one post. I’m a multi-tasker that way.
Before I get to either of these topics, however, I gotta backtrack a little bit and tell you how we got to making decisions on what Mr. A will be wearing and where we’ll be spending our wedding night…because we’re getting both for a STEAL.
At the beginning of February, Mr. A and I (along with my parents) attended our city’s annual charity ball, held every year in our reception venue. Proof of our attendance, you ask? Sure, no prob:
BM Mascara, Mama Dillo, and me all gussied up! The theme was “The Black and White Ball.”
Miss Jackrabbit, Brighton, UKAge and Occupation: 26, Office ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, SongwriterEngagement Date: October 5, 2012Wedding Date: September 2013Venue: Fabrica Gallery, BrightonAbout Me: I honestly thought I'd go all Monica Geller when I started planning our wedding, but in truth, things couldn't have gone much differently. I am working my way through this venture, figuring things out as I go, and adopting a 'Que Sera, Sera,' approach to making decisions. When I'm not organising the biggest day of my life, I can usually be found drinking a glass of wine, crafting up one thing or another, or stopping my cat from head-butting me in the face.
I have briefly touched upon my groom and his tininess. A petite little fellow, my man is five foot four and very slim indeed! He very much lives up to his Italian heritage and is actually the tallest in his family!
But the downside is that we live in England, not Italy, and dress sizes here are not favourable to men of his stature.
We went off to look at suits for him the other day at a very very beautiful shop in Brighton called Gresham Blake—a place which has created suits for various celebrities, such as Eddie Izzard, Ray Winstone, Matt Lucas, Plan B, Christian Slater, Richard E Grant, and Tom Felton, to name but a few!
An expensive shop, but we had to go here for a specific reason—Jack has to have a bespoke suit. We tried on the off-the-peg suits, but none of them fit. Even if he had the sleeves shortened to fit, it would still be too long, and he couldn’t be wearing clothes that didn’t fit him on his wedding day.
Years ago we used to laugh that his suit would cost more than my dress, and the reality is looking very close. Bespoke suits are rare outside Savile Row, and Gresham Blake was the only place in our area that we knew would make a fully custom suite from scratch.
The store is just wonderful. Situated on a corner in Brighton’s North Laine district, it is the display window that catches most eyes.
Miss Mongoose, New Haven, CTAge and Occupation: 28, Digital AdvertisingFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Business DevelopmentEngagement Date: November 19th, 2011Wedding Date: May 2013Venue: Hotel Nelligan in Montreal, CAAbout Me:
I was born and raised in Queens, NY (though you would never know due to my lack of a "real" New York accent) but currently live in Connecticut with my fiance. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a crazy obsession for planning and organizing things, so it comes as no surprise that I'm currently obsessed with planning our wedding. I love dancing, music, traveling, reading fiction novels, cooking, the color blue, cupcakes, all things space science-related and TV shows created by Joss Whedon and J.J. Abrams. My fiance and I have been together for seven years and are so excited to finally get married next year. We are planning a peacock-themed destination wedding in Montreal, one of our favorite cities in the world, with 100 or so of our closest family and friends. While we may look very different on the outside, we have eerily similar personalities (probably due to the fact that we share the exact same birthday) and share very similar passions. But above all else, we love each other and love to have FUN!!!
My email inbox was flooded the past few weeks with emails from The Knot, Martha Stewart Weddings, AND Brides.com reminding me that 1) I’ve got about five months to go until the big day and 2) It’s time to pick out the men’s formal wear. Now being the obsessive planner that I am, I had already started discussing formal wear with FH over a month ago. When I first brought it up, though, I was very surprised by FH’s response. I had naturally assumed that I’d have a hand in picking what he and the groomsmen would wear. In another wedding-related move that had caught me off guard, not only does FH want to buy his suit and get it custom made, but he also didn’t want me tagging along to the tailor to pick out his suit materials and get fitted. He’s like, “If I can’t see what you’re wearing until the wedding day, then you shouldn’t be able to see what I’m wearing either!” And you know what? I really respect that he’s so keen on doing this himself. I had once again (incorrectly) assumed that this was a detail where he wouldn’t take the initiative.
Five-month reminder email from TheKnot / Image via TheKnot.com
FH has a pretty decent sense of style, and even more so when it comes to formal wear, so I wasn’t too freaked out by this. I did, however, share with him some images I pinned on the Pinterest board I created dedicated to all things groom. (I obviously created this well before I was told to butt out.) He checked out some of the styles I found as a reference point, but ultimately he is making his own decisions. Because our wedding is formal and the bridesmaids will be in gowns, the only criteria I asked him to stick to was that his tux and the guys’ tuxes be formal and that the guys integrate teal somehow within their outfits to match the bridesmaids’ dresses (whether that be teal ties and/or teal pocket squares). Here are some of the suits I sent him for inspiration.
Mrs. Sword, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 28, Nanny/ActressFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Software EngineerEngagement Date: February 19, 2012Wedding Date: March 2013Venue: Embassy Suites Bloomington West in Bloomington, MNAbout Me: I am a true girly-girl originally from the great state of Minnesota and my fiancé hails from the beautiful country of Scotland. We met and fell in love in our favorite city, Chicago, and are having a blast blending our cultures for "A Highland Fairy Tale" wedding! We are truly a case of opposites attract in that he’s a world traveling introvert and I’m a social butterfly who is never too far from home. We both love hanging out with family and friends, fine dining, and laughing at ourselves. He drinks a lot of beer and I talk too much. We wouldn’t have it any other way!
I found my wedding crush!! You know what I’m talking about right? That wedding that seems to match something of your theme/style/decor and gets you inspired for your own Big Day?
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to view the entire gallery of this wedding but the photos I discovered are truly awesome and affirming. And hopefully our wedding will look pretty similar to this except for 50 degrees colder.
Here’s what I found:
MEN IN KILTS THAT DON’T MATCH
It’s no secret I’ve been slightly concerned (but mostly just curious) about how our photos will look with each of the groomsmen and Mr. Sword sporting different tartan patterns. Furthermore, they’ll all be wearing different jackets with all the groomsmen in the more formal Prince Charlie style and Mr. Sword showcasing the more semi-formal Argyll jacket. After seeing this photo, I’m happy to report I’m digging the mismatched guys look and I’m SO excited to see how our bridal party pulls it off as well!
Note the different sporrans and how beautiful they all look together!
SHE HAS FOUR BRIDESMAIDS AND THEY ARE IN DARK COLORED DRESSES
My four bridesmaids will be in long dark eggplant dresses and my honor attendants will be wearing short black dresses. I love the look of these dark dresses next to the bride’s light gown.
Mrs. Gray Wolf, Washington DCAge and Occupation: 26, Business Development ExecutiveFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Research ScientistEngagement Date: November 11, 2011Wedding Date: February 2013Venue: Whittemore HouseAbout Me: I'm an ultra-organized, pun-loving, list-making, cheese-enthusiast bride-to-be. Although my day job is in cubicle land, I'm happiest in the modern art wing of a museum, having recently earned my Masters in Museum Studies. Shortly after a chance meeting five years ago, I moved in with Wolfman and haven't looked back since. We love music, movies, TV, and all things pop culture; we have an unspoken competition to be the first to share the latest YouTube sensation or indie song. Together, we've filled quite a few pages in our passports, but also love quiet nights in with a Game of Thrones marathon and our French Bulldog, Tonks (Harry Potter, anyone?). I'm planning a small, cozy winter wedding---think mercury glass and candle light---in the heart of DC. Our venue is a historic home with a lot of political charm, but needs a bit of work to be wedding-ready.
After not choosing the awesome (but pricey) Barney’s suit…Wolfman and I were walking around the fancy mall after buying our wedding bands (more on that later!) and wandered into Hugo Boss “just to see”…well, of course they had an amazing tux:
Mrs. Gray Wolf, Washington DCAge and Occupation: 26, Business Development ExecutiveFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Research ScientistEngagement Date: November 11, 2011Wedding Date: February 2013Venue: Whittemore HouseAbout Me: I'm an ultra-organized, pun-loving, list-making, cheese-enthusiast bride-to-be. Although my day job is in cubicle land, I'm happiest in the modern art wing of a museum, having recently earned my Masters in Museum Studies. Shortly after a chance meeting five years ago, I moved in with Wolfman and haven't looked back since. We love music, movies, TV, and all things pop culture; we have an unspoken competition to be the first to share the latest YouTube sensation or indie song. Together, we've filled quite a few pages in our passports, but also love quiet nights in with a Game of Thrones marathon and our French Bulldog, Tonks (Harry Potter, anyone?). I'm planning a small, cozy winter wedding---think mercury glass and candle light---in the heart of DC. Our venue is a historic home with a lot of political charm, but needs a bit of work to be wedding-ready.
Miss Blue Whale, College Park, MDAge and Occupation: 27, Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: March 10, 2012Wedding Date: May 2013Venue: Southern Tree Plantation in Blairsville, GAAbout Me: I love bright colors, glitter, sugar, cheese, tiny animals, talking in silly accents, dancing, and all things music. I love to plan things, but when it comes time to execute the plans, I tend to panic. My friends tell me that I remind them of a mix between a cartoon character and a Disney Princess. Mr. Blue Whale and I are Southerners at heart, but we’ve been transplanted to the East Coast for school. We both love barbecues, star-gazing, bonfires, music, making up nonsense words, and generally being silly. Our wedding will be a fun-filled destination wedding in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It will most certainly feature bright colors, '80s music, and glitter.
There are so many things you discover about yourself and your significant other when you’re planning a wedding. Like, it turns out Mr. Whale is a bit of a fashionista (fashionisto?).
At some point early on in wedding planning, I showed him a picture that I really liked (I want some gigantic swirly lollipops).
Mr. Whale just loved what the groom is wearing. I thought, “Sure, that guy looks pretty dapper. And I love his tie. My groom is going to look great.” Fast forward to now. We recently discussed what he was going to wear. And he told me he wants a white suit.
Mrs. Wallaby, Houston
Age and Occupation: 24, Environmental EngineerEngagement Date: January 1, 2012Wedding Date: November 2012Venue: Oak Tree ManorAbout Me: I'm a free-spirited, adventurous girl who loves anything active, reading, traveling, cooking up new dishes for my fiancé, and working on my budding garden. My fiancé is an athletic, intellectual, animal-loving guy with an obsession with basketball and who treats me with the deepest compassion and respect. We are both engineers, and we met at our workplace. Together we complement one another and make a great team, and we are excitedly counting down the days until our outdoor wedding in Houston in November. We're planning a green wedding with lots of Persian cultural touches, and I can't wait to share all of the before-and-after details of our special day
Dreamy groom’s attire. Photo via Etsy seller HandmadeByEmy.
Mr. Wallaby doesn’t get too many opportunities to dress up. He and I both work at petrochemical refineries, and we wears fire-resistant clothing (FRCs) to work every day. Here’s Mr. W in his work get-up:
Mrs. Otter, Indianapolis, INAge and Occupation: 22, Freelance Social Media ConsultantFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, CVS Shift SupervisorEngagement Date: November 11, 2011Wedding Date: April 2013Venue: Mustard Seed GardensAbout Me: I'm a born and raised Hoosier girl, but a diehard Michigan Wolverines fan. I have a tendency to take too many photos and spend full days having TV marathons. Mr. Otter and I met in high school, started dating a couple years later, and moved in after a month of being official. He is easygoing and makes plans on a whim, while I'm color coordinating my planner and organizing everything in sight. He hates glitter, but it's my favorite thing. I have tattoos and he still won't get one, despite my attempts to convince him. We're planning a small, rustic, and (hopefully!) peony-filled wedding to get our married life started. (And yes, there will be glitter involved!)
Today I’m talking about THE MEN (I want to make them feel important, hence the all caps. Ha!) and their attire.
So we definitely have a plan: dark gray and light gray. Gray is Mr. Otter’s favorite color, so we already decided that he would be wearing gray at the wedding. I want to differentiate the fathers from the groom + his guys, so we decided the light and dark would be the best way to go.
We’re thinking something like this for the groom + guys.
Miss Panda, Boston, MAAge and Occupation: 26, Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: June 27, 2011Wedding Date: June 2013About Me: I love window shopping, cute animals, crafting, baking, and most forms of procrastination. I tend to be overly meticulous with choices to a point of complete and total indecision. Mr. PBear and I met and live in the amazing city of Boston. We are big nerds who love trying new foods, playing video games, and cuddling with our adorable hamster. After 5 years together, we are planning an intimate, DIY-heavy, vintage garden themed, nonreligious wedding in the city where we fell in love.
PBear and I went to Men’s Wearhouse the other day to look for his attire. Coming into this meeting, I didn’t know what I really wanted PBear to wear. I had a vague idea that I wanted dark gray suits, not tuxedos, but didn’t really have much of a reason for it, other than wanting PBear to own a suit.
Mrs. Beanstalk, Boston/Delray BeachAge and Occupation: 27 Retail Manager & Freelance Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 30 & UI DeveloperEngagement Date: July 4, 2011Wedding Date: October 2012Venue: Sundy House in Delray Beach, FloridaAbout Me: I’m a Miami girl living up in New England. I went to art school. I’m addicted to coffee (especially of the Cuban variety). I’m engaged to the most amazing guy who always knows what to say or do to make me laugh! I love to bake cupcakes and cookies. I work in the fashion industry. I have a huge sweet tooth. Green is my favorite color (but pink is a close second). I am a huge music lover and usually have a different favorite song each week. Photography is one of my true passions. I love fairy tales and pumpkins. I like all things pretty and ruffly. I love to read (oh, and I love to write). My fiancé and I are planning an October destination wedding in Delray Beach, Florida that is going to be filled with tons of DIY details and, of course, pumpkins!
As I mentioned in my last post, we recently went and had Mr. Beanstalk’s suit altered. He also got his wedding shoes on that trip. It was a one-stop shop for us that day and Nordstrom was our store of choice! Even though he purchased his suit from Macy’s we opted to get it altered at Nordstrom. I should point out, Macy’s does do alterations, but we decided not to go there for his suit because neither of us had ever used their tailoring services before, and truth be told we just really love Nordstrom and knew they would do a great job!
As soon as we arrived at the store, we headed straight to the men’s shoes department. We were on a mission, a mission to find wedding shoes! Mr. B actually already knew what shoes he wanted. Back when we went shopping for engagement-photo ensembles, Mr. B bought some new shoes (at Nordstrom, of course). As he was deciding what to get, the salesman who was helping us brought out some very nice Italian leather dress shoes for him to try. Mr. B fell in love! He didn’t buy said shoes that day because back then the wedding was months away and, well, there was plenty of time! Fast forward to three weeks before the wedding, and he was still shoeless!
Thankfully, the man who helped us wrote down the name, style, and Mr. B’s size in the shoe so when he did return to buy them, we would know exactly what to get! Our most recent visit to the men’s shoe department was a brief one, thanks to that little card with all of the shoe information written on it. We told our salesperson what shoe we were looking for and what size, and he promptly brought it to Mr. B. As soon as Mr. B put it on, he knew…that was his shoe! So what did he get?
Ha!) and their attire.
