Gentlemen!! I need shopping advice!!!

[mountainmare]

Wives are welcome to chime in. This uncoming cruise will be our 8th, and we intend to continue cruiseing. I'm thinking of buying DH his own real live tux for Christmas, we live a rural lifestyle and he enjoys putting on the dog when we cruise. Is the choice of tux generally a personal thing, like picking out a dress? I hate to just get a gift cert. because I want him to open a tux on Christmas morning and not spend a gift cert on something practical like socks. Are there really big differences in tuxs? We live in an area where my chioce of stores is not that great but I can't see or feel much difference between these tuxs and the ones on the ship. Are there tux pitfalls to avoid (other than the pink ruffled shirts?) I know I'm rambling but I'm excited!!!!

His very own tux to go with my very own dresses!! If you all can give me advice I'd be greatful.

[ekerr19]

You can't go wrong with a traditional black tux, imo. Also, if you explain what you are trying to do - I'm sure the store would be willing to oblige on an exchange for proper fit and do alterations after the fact.

 

I bought my son a new black dinner jacket at Men's Warehouse for his Homecoming and they were great. They told me if it didn't fit I could exchange it or return it - thankfully he can wear a jacket pretty much off the rack and it looked fabulous.

 

Good Luck! A tux is a wonderful investment for most men, also for teenage young men who aren't growing as quickly. My DH has gotten quite a bit of mileage out of his, it turned out to be a very good investment. :)

[LAFFNVEGAS]

A Traditional Black Tux with 2 or 3 or I even think 4 button jacket (can'trmember for sure) But let me tell you a secret shhh!! DH ownes 2 tuxes one that is 2 sizes larger than he is now because he lost weight this past year also. But the secret is this, we bought both of them for $99.00 including the alterations at JC Penney when they had one of their numerous sales.(which is almost every other week) This is a Stafford Brand Tux and it has 3 or 4 buttons. We compared it to one in Nordstoms and could find absolutely nothing different (except the fact that tux was almost $1000.00) The lining and stitching on these are really nice. He has since picked up several shirts, cumberbuns, vests etc.

[allen.crawford]

I agree with the other posters on here. A traditional 3 button tux never goes out of style. Too many years ago when I was in High School / University, I sold men's suits to a wide range of people for a wide range of purposes. Men's clothing styles vary to a much lesser degree than women's styles. The one big difference is that there is always a traditional cut or style to suits / tuxes which can be worn despite the year.

 

Here is a BIG hint to save money and still get great quality - find a tuxedo rental shop that will sell you a tux. Yes, it will have been previously worn, but won't be noticeable by anyone! For the number of occasions your husband will be using the tux, I suspect the tux will outlast him. Rental shops recognize that the best value is a high quality tux. Lower quality garments will quickly lose their look or will wear out forcing the shop to buy more and leave customers dis-satisfied with the look.

 

No doubt your husband will be thrilled at your thoughtful gift!

[judyzoo]

A couple of years ago I bought a tux as a surprise for my DH. He’s very hard to fit, so I just put a photo of a standard tux in a wrapped box -- but the OP’s idea of getting something close and being able to exchange it might work for you. He’ll almost certainly have to have a fitting anyway. Get it in a fabric that won’t wrinkle much, so you won’t be spending half a day of your cruise in the laundry room ironing out wrinkles (or sending it out and worrying that it won’t get back in time.). The gift has worked out really well for my DH, especially because he never could have found his size in a rental -- and he was pleasantly surprised to get it as a gift It’s nice for him to have his own tux, not worn by someone else, and you don’t have to worry about renting every time you cruise. It also provides an opportunity for later gift-giving -- new cummerbund, new bowtie. And don’t forget a nice pair of cufflinks.

[Krazy Kruizers]

DH's Tuxedo is all wool. It has to stay packed for 3 - 4 days till we get on the ship. Then he just hangs it up - all the wrinkles fall out in a few hours.

Besides the plain white shirts, he has a ruffled shirt (edging is done in black) which can be worn with the tuxedo pants and white dinner jacket.

He has several colors of bow ties and cummerbunds - solid black; black and gold; red (for Christmas and Valentines) and different shades of blue to go with a couple of my outfits.

[ColoradoJuli]

My DH has owned his tux for about 15 years. It is still in style. We just buy new shirts as the style dictates and buy cumberbands etc to fit the latest style. I think that it is a great investment.

 

Sorry for the earlier post. Something weird happened.

[Randyk47]

Speaking as a tux owner and a past mens' clothing store owner I'd recommend a standard 2 or 3 button tux. Within reason they're all pretty much the same look in the coat and pants. I personally prefer my wool one but it's light weight and very comfortable.....I don't like polys or blends but that's just me. As somebody mentioned above then you can buy vests, bowties, etc., in different colors and/or patterns and really make the tux look quite different from night to night.

[Charlie2na]

AAAHHH..... Been there , done that !!!!! Last year , our first cruise , called a tux rental outfit , bought a cruise special... $89.00 for the works. Got there , got measured , picked out the style and went to pay and realized we had a problem. We were leaving a week early to get some precruise R&R and were going to be gone for a total of two weeks.NO DEAL!!!!!!!!! THE PRICE JUST DOUBLED ! As I was headed for the door , she says "I could sell you last years model for $100.00 . Well , thats a "no brainer". I now own my very own, sexy ,slightly used, mint condition, black tux, albeit a 2003 model , but whose to know except a few hundred of my cruise critic pals!!!! Just dug it out of the archives for our spin next month on Maasdam 01/16/05

[kruzkeen]

I bought a tux at a tux rental store. It was very reasonable, much cheaper than than buying at a store.

The one I bought has adjustable buckles at the side of the waist band. My wife said it is the same principle as maternity slacks. I can adjust the waist from 34" to 38". As the waist expants the pleats on the front widen. This, to me, is a great advantage.

 

I agree with what has been stated above. Light weight wool and a classic style is best.

[Mr. Boston]

I would go with 100% lightweight wool. It breathes much better than the tuxes that you get from the rental store that are usually a poly blend. If you go with a classic black tux it will never go out of style and you could add a white dinner jacket in the future.

 

I wouldn't purchase one of those trendy types of tuxes that you see on the various entertainment award shows as it would be out of fashion in a couple of seasons.

 

Don't skimp if you don't have to. The saying "All over him like a cheap suit" also applies to a tuxedo as it is essentially a black suit.

 

You wouldn't wear a gown from WalMart would you?:eek:

[Bill S]

I bought my tux at a local shop-a used tux but cannot tell it at all. The jacket is very traditional and while I initially purchased a couple of bow tie/cummerbund sets, I have now switched over to a vest-much more comfortable than an cummerbund,IMHO. The pants have the adjustable waist thingy, as well. :cool:

[Mrs B]

We just bought a tux for our son who is in All State Choir and just about every other choir imaginable. I ordered it from Buy4lesstuxedo.com. Absolutely beautiful 100's wool. As soon as I placed the order they called to confirm. We received it within a few days. Great prices too! They have a lot of helpful information on their website for choosing the style etc.

Good luck!

[bepsf]

I bought my tux online too - from a discount-outlet website for @ $200. Had to have the pants altered, but that was cheap and easy to have done in a local tailor shop.

 

It's a 100% wool suit - i'd never get anything other than wool for its comfort and feel. Although it is fairly easy to tell the differences in wool cloths when comparing to more expensive suits when one is up close, most observers will rarely if ever notice.

 

You'll have to choose between a notched lapel or shawl-collar - go for the notch if he's a traditional guy. If he's more adventurous, get the shawl-collar

 

Don't ever skimp on shirts - cheaper shirts won't launder well, thin fabric will show his t-shirt through and fused collars/cuffs pucker. Lands End has probably the most reasonably-priced quality tux shirts at @ $59. Get two.

 

Bowties and Cummerbunds are easy to find - one can get a basic black set for as little as $35. Only buy Silk - it wears better. Jos A. Bank often has sales on their website for things like ties, cummerbunds, vests, suspenders, cufflink/stud sets, etc. They also have wonderful long 100% silk socks for $12.

 

He can get by with a highly-polished pair of fairly simple new-ish black dress loafers (not penny loafers) - otherwise, shoes can get spend-y. I'm making that that the last thing to upgrade.

 

Hope this helps!

[ColoradoJuli]

Great site. I think I might get DH a white dinner jacket for Christmas.

[obriendan]

I finally bought my first tux after renting one for $80 for our cruise in 2001. Some have said that this was too little, too late since we have five married daughter's and two married sons.

 

I bought my tux online, shirt and shoes for about $!60 at cheaptux.com and have been completely satisfied. On their site, they state that "Most fine tailors wish you to believe that a tux is something very special, but really is is just a black suit"!The cost has been well amortized on several additional cruises and from the same source I've added other items such as a burgundy cumberbun, additional formal shirts and a vest to my formal wardrobe.

[wallie5446]

My Wife did this same thing about 10 years ago !

 

Now to how to do it. Go the Gift Cert. route as you will want him to have it fit just right. Find pic's of tux's in magazines and cut them out to line the box with.

 

Or you can go ahead and buy it with a note in the box that he can have it altered to his taste.

 

OUTSTANDING !

[gagirl789]

DH has used both Barry's Menswear and S&K Menswear. Prices were reasonable for both suits and his new tux for our next cruise.

[mountainmare]

Thanks for all the advice. I didn't even think of a rental place. Considering that his dressage coat (its an uptight horse sport) was over $400 and the white breeches were$250 and don't even ask about the boots, I was assuming that a wool tux would be thousands of $$$$. I'm going looking today to find the best quality tux at a good price. The tux place said that they have new last years models for sail. This is almost as exciting as the DOC DANCE!!!

[CDRMark]

If you have time, check out JoS. Banks. Excellent quality and frequent sales online. Fast shipping, too. Usual Internet shopping rules apply (Know thy sizes, etc).

Cheers

MarkB

[wallie5446]

We got mine at K&G mens wear for $129. +tax, inc shirt & alt'er. And it was NEW !

[Freedom55]

Dont Go For The Powder Blue! Lol

[Pilot70D]

I bought my first tux several years ago at a tux rental store. This purchase worked out well and that tux stood me in good stead for several years. I was going to rent a tux because I was going to be a supernumerary on MS Sagafjord for two weeks and following that for two more weeks on MS Vistafjord. A two week rental would have cost more than the purchase price for one of their used outfits.

 

I have since replaced that tux with two newer ones. Both are made from lightweight wool and travel much better than my original one. They also fit somewhat better from having been tailored. We currently are packing for our Dec 6 cruise on the Volendam. All I had to do was hang both tuxes in the bathroom and turn the hotwater on in the shower for 2-3 minutes and presto digitalis all closet wrinkles disappeared.

 

The bottom line is that I would recommend purchasing a tux for your hubby. It's a gift that will last for many years and will be a lot more convenient for those occasions that require formal attire. The basic black tux goes everywhere and does everything.

 

One word of warning though - SALT AIR SHRINKS ALL FABRIC.

 

Have a great day.

 

Pilot70D

[RuthC]

mountainmare, I just want to tell you that I think both you and your DH are so very fortunate. Him, because you are picking out such a lovely present. You, because he is so agreeable about dressing up in truly formal attire.

I'm sure you both will make a beautiful sight for all to see on your cruise. A formal portrait will become a treasured rememberance.