In order for the groom to look great on the wedding day it’s important that his wedding suit fits properly. Here is how to ensure the right fit for the different elements of your wedding outfit.
Suit Jacket Shoulder and Chest Fit
Ideally your suit jacket will look fairly fitted without feeling tight. I have designed our clothing to be slightly wider on the shoulder, and have trimmed the waist on most styles to assist this look and give our formal wear a more up to date feel and fit.
Ideal Suit Jacket Sleeve Length
At least half an inch of shirt should show when your arms are by your side. Ignoring that for a minute, the suit jacket sleeve should fit approximately one inch above the bend of the wrist. This may expose a shirt that is too long.
Trouser Fit
Most men wear their trousers incorrectly i.e. too small. It is not simply the waist you need to consider. You also need to consider comfort round the seat (bum), room for ‘ball’ room dancing and leg length.
Trouser waistbands are often worn too tight to resemble a belt pushing the trouser onto the hips. This is ok for jeans but it’s not good for formal wear, especially if you are wearing a waistcoat. A waistcoat can seem too short if you wear your trousers too low, and also your leg length can appear too long. My solution is simple — wear adjustable braces.
Shirt Sleeves
Ideally you should be wearing a double cuff shirt that allows the cuff link to pull the cuff tighter, in turn resting your shirt actually on the bend of the wrist. Again you should test this when you are standing straight, with your arms by your side and with your jacket on. If the sleeves of your shirt are too long your jacket sleeves will also look wrong. The answer is normally to wear armbands for the shirt, and no, I don’t mean bright orange inflatable ones.
Shirt Collar
Once you have your shirt on and done up, you must be able to fit two fingers between your neck and the shirt collar. If not, even if you feel comfortable to start with, you won’t for long.
Waistcoat
Your waistcoat should be on the tighter side, without being corset like. Watch out for jacket length — see the trouser fit section for more info.
Guest post by Stephen Bishop
Image from Tegyn Friedman Photography
