The Penguin Suit

So, being that the wedding is only 84 days away, the time has come for the guys to get in gear, literally.
Here's what wikipedia tells us:

In the spring of 1886, the Prince invited James Potter, a rich New Yorker and his wife, Cora Potter, to Sandringham House, his Norfolk hunting estate. When Potter asked the Prince's dinner dress recommendation, he sent Potter to Henry Poole & Co., in London. On returning to New York in 1886, Potter's dinner suit proved popular at the Tuxedo Park Club; the club men copied him, soon making it their informal dining uniform. The evening dress for men now popularly known as a tuxedo takes its name from Tuxedo Park, where it was said to have been worn for the first time in the United States, by Griswald Lorillard at the annual Autumn Ball of the Tuxedo Club founded by Pierre Lorillard IV, and thereafter became popular for formal dress in America. Legend dictates that it became known as the tuxedo when a fellow asked another at the Autumn Ball, "Why does that man's jacket not have coattails on it?" The other answered, "He is from Tuxedo Park." The first gentleman misinterpreted and told all of his friends that he saw a man wearing a jacket without coattails called a tuxedo, not from Tuxedo.[2]


But wow, are tuxedos ever confusing!

In brief, the traditional components are:

A jacket with silk facings (usually grosgrain or satin), called the dinner jacket
Trousers with silk braids matching the lapels
A black cummerbund or low-cut waistcoat
A white dress shirt with either a marcella (piqué cotton), stiff, or pleated front
A black silk bow tie
Black dress socks, usually silk
Black shoes in patent or highly polished leather, or patent leather court shoes

Jackets can be single or double breasted, pants can't have belt loops (what do you use? rainbow suspenders?), if there's no cumberbund there must be a vest, which can have a back, or not (!), shoes can be patent leather or velvet and are referred to as opera pumps ... the list goes on ...there are as many exceptions as there are rules.

Maybe suits will be easier ...

Pretty and personal

The guys' ties are in! They arrived yesterday and they are gorgeous!
I'm so glad we followed through on these.
Not one of these young men are tie wearing types, possibly with the exception of Jon, our MC, so it seemed like a good idea to make the tie wearing experience as personal and light-hearted as possible.

Entourage

I was thinking of what to give my lovely bridesmaids as thank you gifts for all their participation and support leading up to the wedding when I stumbled across these.



These aren't quite right for my girls, as cute as they are, I don't think they'd get much use out of them but I love the playful spin on the classic gift of flasks for groomsmen.

This got me thinking about wedding parties and what they mean to us. For Rob and I, choosing who would stand up with us was a no brainer. Some people will tell you there's a formula for how big you wedding party should be based on the number of guests you are inviting. And while I will agree that 9 bridesmaids at a wedding of 50 guests would look odd, I also think that these "rules" are antiquated notions, and that you should do whatever the heck you feel like! If you can't pick and choose and you really want to include all your sisters, a cousin or two, some friends and your new sisters in law, well, gee whiz, just do it! Just remember that more 'maids means more money (more bouquets, more thank you gifts, more dresses, hair and makeup)
We each chose 4 people to be in the wedding party, and I am so happy to say that they were the right people. I absolutely know that there will be no drama, no issues and all the love and support we could want or need. These are our best friends and we are so honoured they said yes.

Nowadays the wedding party is just a bonus, an extra, and although traditional, not necessary, but historically the wedding party served a very different purpose than it does today. While in our era the wedding party is a way to honour your friends and family by having them stand up beside you when you make the commitment of a lifetime, in the past things were a bit different.

In many parts of the world it was once believed that evil spirits would try to hurt the bride or interrupt the proceedings, so the tradition evolved that her closest friends and sisters would dress alike to her, thus becoming decoys to confuse the spirits. Presumably, this is why, still to this day, bridesmaids typically all dress the same.

Likewise, groomsmen developed to aid the groom before and at the wedding. In times when marriages were more politics than romance, the groomsmen were employed to be at the ready in case the bride needed to be kidnapped in order to have the marriage happen. They also acted as security guards at the ceremony, should anyone try to derail the proceedings. This is also why, typically, when you are looking at a (Western) wedding ceremony,the bride is on the left and the groom on the right: this allowed for the groom to have faster, clearer access to his sword (or other weapon) in case there was any funny business.

Stylish Fellows

The guys in the wedding party, including Rob, will be wearing ever so stylish ties by Cyberoptix Tie Lab, my new favourite Etsy shop
We chose a pattern for each guy that represents one of his hobbies, interests or personality and coordinated them with the colour scheme we are working with (black & white, crimson & charcoal)