What shirt to wear with a black suit?

TheRealist

Hi all,

I'm going to a wedding at the weekend, it will be a fairly informal one. I'm thinking I might not bother with a tie, but am not sure what colour/type of shirt to get. Opinions?

Thanks

OldGoat

Black is a nutral colour so basically you can wear any colour you want to. Try co-ordinating your choice of colour with your partners attire. Match, contrast of complement her dress with the shirt.

If thats not an option then I would suggest that you avoid any more nutral colours - so rule out white, black or greys. I know thay can look great but without the tie for accent you'll just dissapear.

Blues suggest Business, cool and efficent so I'd avoid those for a wedding. Try something warmer, something that has a little gold/cream through it. Don't go too conservative or you'll risk looking like a waiter. Be bold and brash to counter the sobrity of the black suit.

Tie or no tie you really should wear a dress-shirt - collar & cuffs rather then a t-shirt or a polo.

IMO

dingbat

TheRealist wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm going to a wedding at the weekend, it will be a fairly informal one. I'm thinking I might not bother with a tie, but am not sure what colour/type of shirt to get. Opinions?

Thanks

I would preface this by stating that, when attending a wedding, one cannot go wrong by wearing a tie. However, one can certainly go badly, badly wrong by not wearing one. Make very sure (i.e. ask one of the wedding party in advance) that you would not be making a mistake.

In terms of shirt, I would echo the comment that it should definitely be a dress shirt and not polo or tee. I would add to that by recommending strongly that it should have double cuffs and should under no circumstances be able to be mistaken for a "work shirt". Going tieless, you'll want a collar of substance that will withstand the rigours of the day and not flop around limply like a wet fish after a few drinks and dances. You would also be well advised to concentrate on getting it as fitted as possible around the waist (if you didn't find the perfect fit a quick visit to a tailor would see you right) as you would not have the tie to visually divide the torso.

Finally, if you are absolutely adamant that you want to go tieless, I would definitely, definitely suggest donning a pocket square in order to avoid the "stumbled out of a nightclub" look, which unfortunately can afflict the wearer of black suit and shirt sans tie.

Hope this is of some use.

TheRealist

Thanks for the replies, very good advice.

enda1

Ireland is so stuck up its arse!

A Summer informal wedding and people wanna wear suits and ties!! At most I'd wear nice shirt and trousers, not a suit jacket though. Its not an interview!

Aidric

Just go for the wifebeater.

dingbat

enda1 wrote: »

Ireland is so stuck up its arse!

A Summer informal wedding and people wanna wear suits and ties!! At most I'd wear nice shirt and trousers, not a suit jacket though. Its not an interview!

It's a wedding, and "informal" in wedding terms is still a lot more formal than you might like to think. The thing is that it's simply not like a big night out or even a birthday; the pictures taken on a wedding day and the associated memories last for the rest of the happy couple's lives. It's their day, not yours, and the effort is always, always appreciated.

biezo57

yellow should do the job