Tuxedo

Men's Tuxedos

A tuxedo is a formal evening suit, set apart from an ordinary suit by its satin details: satin-faced lapels, satin-covered buttons and a jacket built to be worn after dark. British invitations often use the older name for the same garment, so a tuxedo and a dinner suit are two words for one thing.

Our range is cut slim and runs from a 36 to a 50 chest. It covers the strict evening classics in black wool blend, single-breasted and double-breasted, two-piece and three-piece, alongside velvet jackets for the occasions where a dress code loosens its grip a little.

What is the difference between a tuxedo and a suit?

A tuxedo is built for evening formality and a suit is built for everything else. The differences sit in the details: a tuxedo carries satin on the lapels and buttons, is worn with a bow tie and a dress shirt, and sticks to black, midnight blue or a deep jewel shade. A business suit does none of this.

Get the satin right and everything else follows. It is the one element that tells a room, at a glance, that you have dressed for the evening rather than for the office.

Choosing your tuxedo

Peak lapels or a shawl collar?

Both are correct. A peak lapel is the sharper of the two, sweeping upwards towards the shoulder and giving the chest more presence. A shawl collar is one smooth, unbroken curve, which reads slightly softer and a little more relaxed. Most of our tuxedos use satin peak lapels, with satin shawl collars on a smaller group of styles.

If you are broad through the shoulders, a shawl collar tends to calm the silhouette down. If you are slim or tall, a peak lapel gives you width where you want it.

Single-breasted or double-breasted?

A single-breasted jacket with one button is the traditional choice and the easier one to wear. A double-breasted jacket is worn buttoned, holds a stronger line across the chest and needs no waistcoat or cummerbund, because the front already covers the waist. Both belong at a black tie event.

Double-breasted styles make up a substantial part of our range, most of them with a six-button front and wide peak lapels. One habit worth keeping: stay buttoned while you are standing. A double-breasted jacket left open loses its whole shape. If you like the cut beyond eveningwear, the same construction runs through our double breasted suits.

Two-piece or three-piece?

Traditional evening dress asks for the waist to be covered, either by a cummerbund or by a low-cut waistcoat. A three-piece tuxedo handles that with a matching waistcoat, which is one reason it photographs so well at weddings. A two-piece is lighter and simpler, and entirely correct under a double-breasted jacket.

Our three-piece tuxedos come with a matching waistcoat with satin detailing and an adjustable back strap, so you can take in the fit yourself rather than sending it to a tailor.

Wool blend or velvet?

Wool blend is the everyday answer. It drapes cleanly, holds its shape through a long evening and works in any season. Velvet is for occasions with a bit of theatre about them: Christmas parties, New Year, a black tie optional invitation. Our velvet tuxedos pair a velvet jacket with black trousers, which is the traditional way to wear it.

Black leads the collection, as it should, and a black tuxedo is the safest thing you can own if you only buy one. The rest of the range covers white, navy and velvet in deep blue, emerald green and burgundy, plus black jackets finished with gold buttons for anyone who wants a little more on show. If black is where you are heading, our black tuxedos sit in their own collection.

A word on white. The traditional white dinner jacket is worn with black trousers and belongs to warm weather and hot climates. A full white tuxedo is a more modern, fashion-led choice, and it works best at summer weddings and destination celebrations rather than at a strict black tie dinner.

How to wear a tuxedo

Keep it simple. A white dress shirt, a black bow tie, polished black shoes, and nothing that competes with the jacket. The tuxedo is doing the work, so the accessories should stay quiet. When an invitation says black tie optional, you have more freedom with colour and texture, and that is where velvet earns its place.

The shirt. White, with a turndown collar and double cuffs worn with cufflinks. A marcella (piqué) or pleated bib front is the traditional finish, and either will take shirt studs in place of buttons. Wing collars belong with white tie, although you will see plenty of them at black tie. Skip button-down collars and business stripes.

The bow tie. Black tie takes a black bow tie, in silk, satin or grosgrain, ideally picking up the same finish as your lapels. A self-tied one always looks better than a pre-tied one, however uneven the first attempt is; the slight asymmetry is the point. Where an invitation reads black tie optional, or an evening wedding sets a softer tone, a deep-coloured silk blend tie is an accepted alternative and a common one at British weddings.

The waist. Cover it. A three-piece tuxedo solves this with its waistcoat; otherwise a cummerbund does the same job, worn with the pleats facing upwards. Tuxedo trousers are traditionally worn without a belt, so braces are the tidy answer if you need something holding them up.

Shoes and socks. Patent leather Oxfords are the traditional black tie shoe, with velvet slippers a long-standing alternative at a party rather than a formal dinner. A plain black Oxford, properly polished, passes almost everywhere. Wear fine black socks, silk or a thin wool, long enough that no ankle shows when you sit down. Brogues, casual loafers and rubber soles do not belong here.

The pocket square. White is never wrong. If you want a little colour, keep it restrained and let it echo something else you are wearing rather than match it exactly; our silk blend pocket squares are cut for that.

When do you wear a tuxedo?

Black tie events, evening weddings, awards dinners, galas, formal Christmas parties and cruise formal nights. If an invitation specifies black tie, a tuxedo is expected rather than suggested. For a daytime wedding or a daytime formal occasion, a lounge suit is the better call.

Weddings are where most men wear their first tuxedo, usually as a groom at an evening ceremony or a reception that runs late. If you are dressing a whole party rather than yourself, our wedding suits collection covers the daytime and less formal end of the same job, and a mixed party is easier to coordinate from there. A buttonhole is usually the only addition a groom needs on the lapel.

Black tie, black tie optional and white tie

Black tie means a tuxedo, and the invitation is telling you rather than asking. Black tie optional leaves the choice between a tuxedo and a dark suit, and it is where velvet, colour and a tie instead of a bow tie are all fair game. White tie is a different order entirely: a tailcoat, a white marcella waistcoat and a white bow tie, and no tuxedo will stand in for it.

Fit and sizing

Our tuxedos are cut slim and run from a 36 to a 50 chest in UK and US sizing. Buy for the shoulders and the chest, because those are the hardest parts of a jacket to change. Sleeve length, trouser length and a small nip at the waist are quick jobs for any local tailor.

Two checks before you commit. The jacket shoulder should end where your own shoulder ends, not past it. And a centimetre or so of shirt cuff should show below the sleeve; if none does, the sleeves are long. If you are between sizes, our men's suit size charts will settle it.

Frequently asked questions

What is a tuxedo?

A tuxedo is a formal evening suit worn for black tie occasions. It is recognised by its satin details, most obviously on the lapels and the buttons, and is traditionally worn with a white dress shirt and a black bow tie. Black is the classic choice, with velvet accepted where the dress code is less strict.

What is the difference between a tuxedo and a suit?

The satin. A tuxedo has satin facings on the lapels and satin-covered buttons, and is designed for the evening and for a bow tie. A business suit is plain cloth throughout and is worn with a tie. The cut can look similar from a distance; the details and the occasion are not.

What do the British call a tuxedo?

A dinner suit. The jacket on its own is a dinner jacket, often shortened to DJ. Tuxedo is the American term, and it is now the word most people search for and use, so the two are treated as interchangeable in British menswear.

Should I choose a single-breasted or double-breasted tuxedo?

Choose single-breasted for the traditional, more forgiving option, particularly if you want a waistcoat or a cummerbund with it. Choose double-breasted for a stronger silhouette and no waistcoat, since the buttoned front already covers the waist. Both are correct for black tie, so it comes down to build and preference.

What shirt and shoes should you wear with a tuxedo?

A white dress shirt with a turndown collar and double cuffs, worn with cufflinks, and polished black leather Oxfords. Patent leather is the traditional black tie shoe, although a well-polished plain Oxford passes almost everywhere. Avoid brogues, casual loafers and heavy soles, and keep jewellery to a minimum.

Do you have to wear a bow tie with a tuxedo?

For black tie, yes. A black bow tie in silk, satin or grosgrain is part of the dress code, and a self-tied one looks better than a pre-tied one. For black tie optional, or an evening wedding with a softer code, a slim tie in a deep colour is accepted and increasingly common.