Groom's guide about renting or buying a Tuxedo for his Wedding - Part II (the Tuxedo accessories)

Groom's guide about renting or buying a Tuxedo for his Wedding-
Part II (Tuxedo accessories)

The main accessories of a Tuxedo include:
Shoes
Socks
Tie
Cufflinks

Tuxedo Shoes

Tuxedo shoes are basically black, shiny and plain, without any designs as those you would find on wingtip dress shoes. Tux shoes are usually made of plain patent leather. You may need to rent tux shoes. Most tux shops or formalwear shops should be able to help you out on renting tux shoes as part of the tux rental package. Remember it is better to try on the rental shoes in the afternoon when you feet are relaxed, as they will be on the day of the wedding. (Bring your dress socks that you will wear with the shoes for the wedding for the best fit)

Dress Socks

Picking out dress socks to go with your tux is easy. You will wear black over-the-calf dress socks. They do not need to be fancy, but be sure and take them to the tux shop or men’s formalwear store when you go for the fitting so you find rental shoes that fit and are comfortable (remember you will be standing in the rental shoes for 4- 8 hours on the Wedding Day). A word to the wise – I recommend men’s black dress socks which are support hose type is best, as they will stay up and provide support.

Tie

Bow ties are traditional, but the entire wedding party, Groom, FOB, FOG, and Groomsmen must all be wearing the same style of tie –either a straight tie or a bow tie! Bow ties can be rented, or purchased, from the tux shop.

If the bridal couple would like to coordinate the ties colors to match the bridal colors, then Groom, FOB and FOG, and the groomsmen should all wear the same matching ties. Or, be safe by choosing traditional Basic Black.

If you don’t know how to tie a bow tie -you could learn how to do it or watch our video on www.WeddingLDS.com (under the Grooms section), or get a clip-on variety of bow tie.

Cufflinks

The classic tuxedo shirt will have French cuffs and will therefore require a pair of cuff links. A tux shop or formalwear stores will usually have some cuff links you can rent as part of the tux rental package, or you may have to buy cuff links.
Word to the Wise: Don’t buy expensive cuff links as they are easy to lose. From experience, you usually only lose one, making the one you still have totally useless.

IDEA: If it is within the Groom’s budget to afford modest priced matching cuff links for all the men in the wedding party, doing so is nice and classy touch. This idea of the Groom, FOB, FOG, and groomsmen all with the same cuff links brings a sense of unity to the men in the wedding party. And the cufflinks make a nice gift for the FOB, FOG, and groomsmen.

FYI –An alternative to cuff links is buying matching ties (coordinated with the bride’s colors) for the Groom, FOB, FOG, and the groomsmen which will be much more visible in the wedding photos and will add a fun splash of color for the men.
Remember, to avoid last minute stress, decide on and try on and order tuxes and accessories well in advance of the wedding day!

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