Dress Blues

[hoover5000]

"I've not done it myself because I've not seen it in practice although I understand that it is common in Europe and in diplomatic circles."

 

Gosh, Hoover - if you've been awarded the medals, then you really should wear them in a formal situation.

The military guidelines state that its appropriate to do so, and specify how to do it. I can dig up the official requirements and post them if you'd like.

Do it. I'd love to connect with a fellow veteran on a cruise, and I can't think of a better way to do it!

Semper fi!

 

Terry

 

I'd love to read them if you can locate them.

 

Thanks

[PolandPeggy]

Absolutely he should wear them. Nothing would be more appropriate.

[Steamboatin]

Am retired military field grade officer and on one cruise this junior officer wore his formal uniform on two formal nights. Both times I observed him wearing it incorrectly. A civilian who never served in the military would not have noticed it. And probably like me if he was from a different branch of the service than I served in I would probably not have noticed it either as I would not have been familiar with the proper way to wear his branch's formal uniform.

 

So if you are going to wear it make durn sure you are wearing it correctly.

 

Unfortunately the officer was from the same branch of the service that I had retired from so I was very familiar with how the formal uniform was to be worn. As I personally do not know the finer details for the other services formal uniforms.

 

On the last formal night I was able to speak with him. I mentioned that he was missing a piece of the uniform and as such should not have worn the uniform if he was not going to wear it correctly. Before he could say anything his wife said to his displeasure "I told him the same thing before we left the cabin for the first formal night." Embarrased he simply said that both his wife and I were correct.

 

Unfortunately he packed the individual components to his uniform as separate individual items and forgot one of the items at home. He also unfortunately forgot to get a decent polish onto his shoes prior to leaving home and his shoes also did not meet standards.

 

So please put your uniform totally together ready to wear as a single unit of clothing in your luggage prior to leaving home so you know you have every part of it on the cruise and that the uniform is correctly detailed.

 

On longer cruises also be aware that as the days go by your hair grows and you just may need another haircut prior to the last formal night dinner to really look sharp.

 

By all means wear your formal uniform to the formal dinner, but by all means wear it correctly.

[tawcat]

Terry

 

I'd love to read them if you can locate them.

 

Thanks

although this is from the army reg 670-1 i am sure it applies to all services.

 

30–6. Wear of medals on civilian clothes

Retired personnel and former members of the Army (as described above) may wear all categories of medals described

in this regulation on appropriate civilian clothing. This includes clothes designed for veteran and patriotic organizations

on Veteran’s Day, Memorial Day, and Armed Forces Day, as well as at formal occasions of ceremony and social

functions of a military nature. Personnel may wear either full-size or miniature medals. Personnel who wear medals on

civilian clothes should place the medals on the clothing in approximately the same location and in the same manner as

for the Army uniform, so they look similar to medals worn on the Army uniform.

[Gimpster]

Hoover, it looks like Tawcat has captured the essence of it.

You might go to www.marlowwhite.com for more information, and to purchase mini-medals if you don't already have them. I was "issued" full sized medals but not mini-medals.