What to Wear to a Spring or Summer Wedding – Dressed Up (2021)

What are you going to wear? Sometimes it’s good to look at a few suggestions then add your own tweaks and ideas. That’s what these are for. Dressing for warmer weather weddings can be tough. Today’s scenario is for the most common, and most dressed up of weddings. The Groom and Groomsmen will be in black (rented) tuxedoes. One of them might pass out from heat stroke. Here’s one way to look your best while avoiding what most other men will wear, namely, a dark, heat absorbing suit + stuffy starched shirt and shiny tie combo. 

The Suit: Suitsupply Tropical Wool Light Grey Lazio Suit – $359. Perfect for a warm or hot day. Tropical wool is lightweight and breathes great. A mid gray suit would work great here as well. But charcoal (or navy) would absorb a lot of the suns rays, and you’d risk being super overheated and uncomfortable. Stick with a mid or light gray. If you’re buying a new suit, get it early, and get it to the tailor. They’re gonna be busy this year. A reminder that Suitsupply insists on using functioning sleeve cuff buttons. Which is a cool detail, but a pain to tailor. At least they ship and return for free in case the sleeves don’t hit you right.

The Shirt: Spier & Mackay Sky Blue Fine Twill Dress Shirt – $58. Or whatever your favorite light blue dress shirt happens to be. Nordy, Charles Tyrwhitt, Ledbury, whatever. It’s time to get dressed up. Wear your good stuff.

The Tie: TheTieBar Walnut Street Floral Navy Tie – $22. It’s a wedding. Not a job interview. Have a little fun with it! If the contrast is a bit too bold for your personal tastes, try this more muted option.

The Sunglasses: Ray-Ban 54mm Polarized Wayfarer Sunglasses – $79.97 ($179). They look great, feel great, and go with everything. For real. Everything from a suit and tie as shown here, to a t-shirt and shorts. Made in Italy. On sale via Nordstrom Rack.

The Watch: Q Timex 1978 – $169. Classy as all heck. Leave the clunky sports watches at home for a dressed up occasion like this. Doesn’t have the loud Timex “tick” other, cheaper Timex watches seem to be saddled with. Full review here. “But the black leather band doesn’t match the brown suede shoes.” First, no one is gonna notice. Second, the suede of the shoes gives you more leeway. If it’s really gonna bug you, swap out the black band for a dark brown one.

The Belt: Marino Ratchet Belt in Amber – $18.99. Weddings can be super fun. They can also be super uncomfortable! Because… drama. This is about as comfortable as a belt gets. Ratchet system leads to super precise, easy to adjust fit. And it looks like a regular belt.

The Socks: Allen Edmonds Over-the-Calf Merino Cool Dress Socks in Navy – $22.50. “But your socks should match your trousers.” Eh. Whatever. Going for contrast here. Again, it’s a wedding. Over the calf means you won’t have to be constantly bending down and pulling up your slouching socks all evening.

The Shoes: Spier & Mackay Cap Toe Balmoral in Mocca Suede -$248. Again, it’s a wedding and not a job interview. But smooth brown shoes (dark, medium maybe even walnut) would do just fine here too. Maybe you got something at the just-concluded Allen Edmonds Anniversary Sale? Make sure whatever you’re wearing is broken in though. Could be a long day/evening.

The Tip: Drink water. Lots of water. Whether it’s stashing a Nalgene at your table or in your car or whatever, just freaking drink water. Being the sweaty drunk at the reception and the hungover guest the morning after just isn’t worth it. Stay hydrated, and ease off or skip the booze. It just causes way too much trouble at weddings. And if you do have to stand for any long periods of time during the ceremony, don’t lock your knees. Unless you REALLY don’t want to be there and a concussion/trip to the hospital/causing a huge scene is worth a hasty exit.

The obligatory we’re not done with the pandemic yet reminder: This mess isn’t over. If you’re inside, wear a mask (fingers crossed no one is having a wedding inside and inviting a bunch of elderly high-risk people). And remember that wearing a mask is hardly a 100% preventative measure. Masks knock down any coughing/sneezing/guffawing. They’re like the parachutes behind a drag racer. They help a lot, but they’re not foolproof. If you’re all up in somebody’s business shouting over the DJ, or doing a freaking conga line, and you’re inside a poorly ventilated church reception hall, a mask ain’t gonna be worth a damn if someone is shedding virus. Get out of each other’s jet wash. Outside > Inside. Mask + Social distancing > Just masked.