Catering to the Men

I have this audacious idea that C and his groomsmen should enjoy this wedding experience as much as possible. I'm getting to have the time of my life planning this thing, so I think they should have a little fun, too. So, in an effort to please my man and his 'men, We're going a little non-traditional with their attire.

First, our guys will all be in navy suits, rather than tuxedos. We did this for a couple of reasons. First, we like the look better. With my girls in navy and white dresses, it just makes more sense to put the boys in navy suits. Second, it's more cost-effective. We'll be keeping an ear to the ground for suit sales and two-for-one deals in and around Knoxville for the guys to purchase their suits. They'll be able to buy (and thus keep forever) for around the same price it will be to rent. Plus, here in Knoxville we're close to a veritable mecca of outlet shopping, Pigeon Forge! I'm sure we'll be able to find some great deals. Third, they'd just rather wear suits than tuxes. Go figure. Here's a gorgeous suit from Jos. A. Bank:






















Next, rather than having traditional flower boutonnieres, our guys will all be sporting embroidered silk handkerchiefs. We'll get white silk handkerchiefs and embroider them with sage thread. They'll look something like this from eBay seller PTS Formal Accessories, but with a more modern font.



































The final non-traditional thing we're doing for the men? It has to do with their shoes. Here's the inspiration shot for our shoe choice, shot by our phenomenal photographer Mark Boxley. (This picture is actually a big part of the reason we wanted to hire Mark! More on him later!)
















You should know this about C: He hates to wear "real" shoes. The first year he was in college, C wore his Chaco flip-flops ALL WINTER LONG! (Needless to say, his feet were a little nasty by the end of the season!) He lives in sandals or flip-flops unless it is absolutely necessary to wear close-toed shoes (that means either I've threatened his life if he doesn't, or his toes are in real danger in the flops!) So, C and his men will be wearing some form of Chaco sandal. He hasn't decided which model yet, but they'll be navy, and they'll be Chaco.

Are you making any special plans to make sure your groom and his groomsmen are comfortable? Is any part of their (0r your 'maids') attire non-traditional? Do share!

-Amoré