Debs Suits & Tux
Whether it's their own Debs or they have been invited to a girl's Deb, the Debs night is a special night for the boys too.
While many will still opt for wearing a tuxedo (black tie), there has also been a growing trend to wearing blue or navy suits or fashionable jackets and trousers. If your son has been invited to a girl's Debs, it's important that he check with her what the expected dress code for the evening is as he doesn't want to wear a tuxedo if everyone else is in suits and vice versa.
Many boys will opt to hire a tuxedo/dress suit for the evening. However, if they are in 6th year and likely to be going on to college, it is worth considering buying a dress suit as there are likely to be repeated occasions (college balls or other Debs) where they might need a dress suit and it might be more cost effective to buy one early on. There are often good value dress suits to be bought in places like Marks & Spencers or Moss brothers.
A black suit, rather than a dress suit can also be a good buy and useful for repeated wears.
If opting, or required to wear Black Tie, there is still plenty of opportunity to personalise or have fun with the suit. You can bring some personality to the outfit with a colourful waistcoat, bow tie or pocket square.
Whether you are hiring or buying, it's good to be familiar with some of the terminology when heading out to the shops
- Three Piece Suit: Like the name suggests, this is a suit made up of three pieces, the jacket, the waistcoat, and the pants.
- Double Breasted: This refers to the cut of the jacket, a double breasted jacket will have a wide overlapping front flap. Usually with 6 buttons, 3 on each side.
- Cuffs: These are the buttons the jacket’s sleeve. Traditionally 4 buttons.
- Gorges: The gorge is the two V-shaped indents on the lapel of your jacket.
- Break: Where your pants meets your shoe is known as the break. The general rule of thumb is that your pants should break below your ankle
Most Common Collar Types
The most formal collar option, the wingtip collar is made primarily to be worn with a bowtie and tuxedo. It got its name from the fold-out collar points, which look like wings.
Club Collar
The rounded club collar became popular after The Eton School in England instituted it in their wardrobe in the 19th century. The collar points are always rounded and it can come in either spread or point collar styles. It has a distinctly vintage feel
The Spread Collar
The most common dress shirt collar. It’s a timeless option that features collar points that end between 4″-6″ apart from one another. This collar style accommodates both small and large tie knots
The Button-Down Collar
Invented by Brooks Brothers in 1896, the button-down collar features buttons that fasten the collar points of the shirt. It was originally used on sport shirts rather than dress shirts. While button-down collars are occasionally dressed up with suit and tie looks, it still remains a more casual option than spread or point collar shirts.