How to Dress for a Winter Wedding

‘Tis the season for celebrations, which means your social calendar is likely jam-packed with parties and events in the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve – the most wonderful time of the year! And those weekends are probably filling up even faster as many couples are now using this festive time of year to say I do. And why not? Most venues are decked out in holiday décor—making wedding photographs truly stunning—and a Christmas wedding or New Year’s Eve reception is the perfect way to get family and friends together during this meaningful time.

With any special occasion, you want to look and feel your absolute best—whether you’re getting married, in the wedding party, or are attending as a guest. Luckily, Menguin has everything you need to put together a holiday ensemble that is sure to turn heads, both in-person and in photos.

Winter Wedding Attire Inspiration

When it comes to dressing for a holiday wedding, you’ll want to step up your fashion game. Check out some of these latest trends in men’s winter wedding guest attire to inspire your look.

Go beyond traditional colors.

While the holidays are synonymous with certain colors—red and green for Christmas, blue for Hannukah, brown and orange for Thanksgiving, etc. —you don’t want your accessories to make you look like you’ve been invited to a holiday office party. Instead, explore other color options such as navy blue, burgundy, and even emerald green. Winter formal tuxedos or suits in rich dark colors stand out against the weather.

Think about winter white.

This is a big fashion trend for weddings in general but gives a nod to the holiday season without going overboard. It also coordinates with so many other colors and is easy to dress up or down, depending on your mood or wedding.

Dress for the season.

During the winter months you’ll be moving from the cold outside to the heat indoors, so you need to keep that in mind when choosing your attire. All of Menguin’s winter wedding guest attire like our suits and tuxedos are made with Super 130’s and 140’s Merino Wool, keeping you comfortable throughout the entire event.

Consider a change.

Many brides are changing outfits between the ceremony and reception—why shouldn’t the guys get to do the same? For example, wear a traditional black or navy tuxedo for the ceremony, and then switch into a colorful suit for the reception.

Add some texture.

Winter is a great time to play with different fabrics, including velvet. You can easily incorporate this into your ensemble via your accessories, such as a tie or pocket square.

Christmas WeddingTuxedo or Suit?

Choosing your ensemble for a holiday wedding will depend on the dress code of the event. Since it is such a festive time of year, many couples opt for black tie or formal affairs, especially if the wedding is being held on or near New Year’s Eve. If that’s the chosen dress code, the choice is pretty simple: You’ll be expected to show up in a tuxedo.

For inspiration, you can start with figuring out the kind of lapel you want to wear to easily narrow down your choices. There are three options to choose from:

· A shawl lapel is a formal lapel style with a continuous round edge. Menguin offers the Black Shawl Lapel Tuxedo and our White Dinner Jacket.

· A peak lapel features a collar where the tip of the lapel points upwards, creating a “peak”. Our two tuxes with this style are the Black Peak Lapel Tuxedo and the Navy Peak Lapel Tuxedo.

· A notch lapel is a classic style with a v shaped indentation in the lapel, and is an excellent choice when you are unsure which one to choose for your event. All of our other tuxedos—including gray and blue options— feature this lapel.

With other popular dress codes, including semi-formal, cocktail, and festive, you can opt for a suit, which Menguin also has in black, gray, and blue.

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Men’s Winter Wedding Attire 101

Pull together your whole tuxedo or suit look by choosing the right color, choosing a tie to match, and pairing it with a boutonniere and pocket square.

Find your perfect color

If you’re not sure of what qualifies as men’s wedding guest attire, you simply cannot go wrong with a black tuxedo or suit. Black Notch Lapel Tuxedo, Black Peak Lapel Tuxedo, and Black Shawl Lapel Tuxedo will all help you bring out your inner James Bond, mixing a modern aesthetic with timeless elegance. Our Classic Black Suit is the perfect look with any evening affair.

The great thing about a black tux or suit is that you can go the traditional route by pairing it with black or white accessories, or you can step out of the box with some bolder colors or pair it to match with your Christmas wedding’s overall theme and color scheme. The choice is up to you.

If you want to incorporate some color into your overall suit or Christmas tuxedo, Menguin has you covered. Our color options include:

Like black, gray can be paired with an array of colors, but it is seen as a more creative neutral choice when it comes to special events. Our Charcoal Gray Notch Lapel Tuxedo, which would be perfect for an evening event. For a daytime holiday or Christmas wedding, we have our Light Gray Tuxedo.

As for suits, Menguin has five stunners to choose from: the Steel Gray Suit, Charcoal Suit, and Gray Suit are all great options for an evening event, while the Gray Plaid Suit and Light Gray Suit are better suited (no pun intended) for daytime vows.

No matter which gray tux or suit you choose, you can pair them with a mix of metallics or jewel tones to take your holiday wedding look to the next level.

Ready to take your color game up a notch? Don’t shy away from donning a blue tuxedo or suit for holiday weddings. Our Navy Peak Lapel Tuxedo is a stunning midnight blue with black lapels, a perfect look for when you want to look traditional with a twist. Or if you want to break with tradition completely, consider the Blue Edge Notch Lapel Tuxedo—it is sure to turn heads.

We also have several blue suit options, including the Navy, Pacific Blue, and Deep Blue for the evening, as well as Cobalt Blue and Light Blue for the day.

Not sure what holiday colors pair perfectly with blue? Think ruby red, burgundy, emerald green, silver, white, and gold.

And of course, if you’re the groom getting married at a Christmas wedding, you might want to stand out from the pack entirely. With that in mind, our White Dinner Jacket could be the perfect choice, paired with black flat front pants.

Choosing a tie

All of the above looks call for a tie, but whether you opt for a bowtie or necktie is up to you. This is the perfect way to incorporate some color into your ensemble, whether it’s the wedding colors or just to show off your own personal style. Don’t be afraid to get a bit adventurous by choosing a bold color or even a fun print, including striped, zig zag, paisley or plaid.

If you’re not sure which color will work best—or you need to match your accessory colors with bridesmaids’ dresses—simply request some of our free color swatches, which will be delivered right to your home.

Selecting a boutonniere

If you’re in the wedding party, you will most likely be wearing a boutonniere. If you have any say in the type of flower chosen, make sure that it is hearty enough to handle the cold weather. Some good options include ranunculus, roses, anemones, calla lilies, and gardenias.

Picking out a pocket square

You can also customize your look with a pocket square. Just be sure not to match your tie and pocket square. Instead, the pocket square should complement your overall look. And you absolutely can wear a pocket square with a boutonnière. Just make sure your pocket square isn’t too high out of your pocket and your boutonnière is high enough so that it has its own space.

Other customization options

If you’re not into a boutonniere, you might consider a lapel pin, which we have in a variety of colors. Menguin also carries socks in an array of colors and patterns that can really help you show off your personality.

And while cufflinks are usually worn for formal events, rules are more flexible with semi formal attire, so do whatever makes you comfortable. We offer both gold and silver designs.

Shoes can make or break an outfit. Unless the couple specifically requests otherwise, you should wear a nice pair of dress shoes to a holiday wedding. Don’t have your own pair? No problem—you can rent them with Menguin!

Once you’re ready to start shopping for your winter winter wedding, or wedding guest attire, browse through our selection of stylish suits, shirts, ties and other accessories for an ensemble that will have you looking and feeling your best.