5 Grooms On How They Found Their Wedding Suits
JESSICA WILLIAMS PHOTOGRAPHY
Stuart Nightingale
London, April 2022
I always wanted a black velvet, made-to-measure tux. I’ve worked in tailoring for a while, so Gieves & Hawkes was a pretty easy choice. There really is nowhere like it – it’s steeped in history and military influence, and it doesn’t get more classic. I needed the fabric to stand out along with the details, so I chose a black velvet from Scabal (a cloth merchant on Savile Row) along with a double-faced silk for my lapels – nothing compares to true silk. All the finishing on the inners of the jacket were velvet piped and I went for a working cuff – great for men who wear a watch. I then found my shirt at Eton, shoes at Gaziano & Girling and my silk bow tie and cummerbund came from Canali. There were no hiccups – I’d planned so far ahead – but there certainly could have been. Naturally, when you have anything made from scratch, it takes time. It’s also important to maintain your weight otherwise you can cause your tailor a headache. Fortunately, my now wife kept me on a strict diet!
Casey McDevitt
Mallorca, August 2021
We decided to make the dress code for the wedding party black tie, and while I wanted a traditional look, I also wanted it to be original – which is what lead me to opt for a navy tuxedo over black. I started the search online to get an idea of what I wanted and narrowed the list down to a few tuxes from Tom Ford, Ralph Lauren and Hackett. It’s hard to gauge colour and material online, so I went to see them all at various shops in London. I ended up choosing the Ralph Lauren one – it was the exact navy I was looking for, and the jacket felt like the lightest material. We were getting married in Spain in August, so a lightweight feel was essential. I had planned to get our wedding date sewn into the collar on my jacket, however, as the pandemic forced us to reschedule our date more than once, I decided not to jinx it by putting anything in thread. I also had alterations done prior to our originally scheduled date without anticipating the lockdown weight gain. Fast forward to 18 months of home confinement and the discovery of Buns from Home, and I had to shed a few emergency kgs to fit into the tux again!
DAVID SCHOLES/CHRISTA ZILLWOOD-HUNT
RAHUL DE CUHNA
Joel Machado
Goa, India, December 2019
I’m extremely particular about details, and always wear tailored clothes. Day to day I wear Rubinacci head-to-toe, so it had to be just as good for my wedding day. From day one, I wanted a Burberry tux. I had a very clear idea of my whole outfit, actually. I purchased the suit on MATCHESFASHION and all the alterations were done at the brand’s store in Regent Street. After two appointments, I had the perfect length trousers and jacket. Burberry made the whole experience really special and kept the champagne following at all times. I bought some black patent leather shoes from Dolce & Gabbana in Bicester Village, and for the final touches I added Burberry cufflinks, Burberry socks and a black Tom Ford bow tie. We got married in India, and the suit made it cross-continent without any issues. On arrival, however, I left it in the taxi. Lucky the next passenger in the taxi was kind enough to notice and got it back to us in time for the wedding.
Scott Oliver
Malta, September 2021
I was after something clean, tailored and sophisticated. I always knew I wanted black tie, so I started looking through vintage black-tie ball photos online – but when it came down to it, there was only one person for the job. Joseph Darcy is a good friend of mine – he’s one of the best in the business and honed his skills on Savile Row. The suit was completely bespoke, which meant we could work from start to finish on it together – from initial measurements to final tweaks. I found my shirt at Thom Sweeney, and silk bow tie at Gucci, and then wore made-to-order George Cleverley velvet loafers. In terms of hiccups, Covid-19 was a major concern – it delayed the suit’s final delivery. Because we had to push the entire wedding back, the suit did actually arrive on time.
FRANK FARRUGIA
PAULO SANTOS PHOTOGRAPHY
Adam Scriven
London, May 2022
Buying my wedding suit was more daunting than I imagined. First, because I promised to look with my future father-in-law (I'm not sure which of us was there to chaperone the other); and second because whatever I had pictured, I couldn’t actually find. I had to push through these anxieties, and the surliness of certain shop assistants – surely with four weeks to go until the wedding it wasn’t “too late” (as many claimed) to find something?
I gave up on the ‘one suit fits all’ approach offered by places like Selfridges or Suit Supply, and took a different path. The suits I most admired most came from Dior, so I braved a trip to their boutique. The staff there seemed genuinely interested in helping me find the perfect outfit. I have something of a reputation for going a bit 'jazzy', so I focused on finding something more classic for my wedding suit. I tried on a dark navy, double breasted suit, and much like my wife-to-be, I instantly knew it was ‘the one’. I loved the way it felt and couldn’t imagine finding anything more luxurious or classic.
I celebrated with a glass or two of champagne, but I knew I had to complete the rest of the outfit. If finding the suit was hard, the footwear was even harder. My instinct for a May wedding was brown loafers, and I even had permission to show some serious ankle. Nothing felt right though. I waited it out another week before trying again, but it was the same result, and I was out of ideas. Thankfully, the assistant at Dior had me covered. When I returned to try the suit on again after some tailoring, he suggested I go with a black leather derby shoe. I was surprised at how well the polished black worked with the navy, and how luxurious and comfortable they felt. I was nearly there.
I knew I wanted a shirt that complemented the outfit and had a bit of 'wow' factor, so I consulted a fashion editor friend of mine. I was pointed in the direction of Turnbull & Asser, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. An easy selling point was ‘James Bond designed shirts’ and I bought two different styles – one for the ceremony and another for after dancing. I wasn’t convinced by a bow-tie or pocket square until I tried a few different options, and looking back I’m so glad I trusted the advice given to me – they really elevated the overall look.
PAOLO SANTOS PHOTOGRAPHY
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