Cruise formal attire

[frijoli]

I'll be cruising in Dec. I have never done the formal night dinners. This year I want to Dress in style, but I want the Vintage fashion.

Formal nights, I believe, allow Black suits, white shirt and Black tie, or above. I don't have nor do I really want a tux. I also don't own a high hat(top hat?).

So, what would you all recommend as to an ensemble?

Thanks,

Clay

 

[Miss 1929]

But a tux is so useful!

Your suit and tie will definitely be formal enough, in today's non-formal society you will probably be amongst the best-dressed there. You don't have to only do black ties with a suit, anything not too loud and garish will still work. Little things like cuff links will help to make it a bit more dressy too.

But really, a tux is a wonderful thing to have! And if you had both the black and the white dinner jackets, you have both winter/summer, northern/southern looks for it. If you have one, other events in your life will pop up where you can wear it - New Year's Eve, weddings, opera/sympny/ballet performances... etc.
The high hat is completely unnecessary unless you are going the whole hog and getting white tie and tails, top hats are not worn with tuxedos, dinner jackets etc.

There is an entire thread on the pros and cons of tuxes:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=22879

And here's t he Formal Wear Primer thread:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=7058

I hope you have a great time on the cruise!

 

[CharlestonBows]

Ditto to ^ -- most folks, if dressed, will either be wearing 1) suit and tie or 2) a formal set rented onboard.

For formal nights aboard, I pack my own tux, basic, no frills black tie. If there are two formal nights, I'll toss my white dinner jacket in the trunk to mix it up. But that's about all you'll really need if you want to do it up right. And lets face it, you wouldn't be here if you didnt!

Just don't forget the pocket square!

 

[Topper]

Cream rather than white dinner jacket. White is normally for waiters.

Also would depend on climate, cream dinner jackets usually reserved for temperate climates. Otherwise Black is fine.

 

[dhermann1]

Dude, brace yourself for an avalanche of people telling you to get a tux! lol
But, seriously, if you do break down and get one, I'll bet you'll be glad. A vintage one can be had much cheaper than a new one, and much better quality, IF you can find one the fits. Otherwise a dark suit and nice silk tie is fine. Have a couple of ties. If you're not a regular tie wearer, you may not have many. But it would be nice to rotate ties for your evening events.
Check among the suit threads for advice on the subject. There are some real experts on the subject here, and a lot of them with very strong opinions.
Just have a god time. What the hey, it's all about having a fabulous time, right?

 

[CharlestonBows]

Cream rather than white dinner jacket. White is normally for waiters.

Also would depend on climate, cream dinner jackets usually reserved for temperate climates. Otherwise Black is fine.

White would be a general reference to a non-black dinner jacket, no?

Obviously, in warmer climates, one would be more able to wear the non-black dinner jacket more often. However, I don't know that climate alone is dispositive; the summer months is the time to wear one's non-black dinner jacket.

Of course, this is my own crude & rudimentary understanding of the topic.

 

[Kodiak]

Like Charleston, I have a rudimentary understanding of formal wear. However...

Buy a tux.

Color depends on where you're traveling. If it's going to be warm, trust me, you'll want a lighter-colored jacket. Cream sounds cool, I'd probably go with that if I were you. On the other hand, a plain, standard-issue black tux would look good. More an opinion than anything else, especially if you're in a moderate clime.

Be sure you get cool cufflinks. The cheap ones really don't work. Get something really slick and they can make the look. I have a pair with shamrocks that really add to the suave appeal

If you do choose to wear a suit, go dark, but not neccessarily black. A good navy blue might be an option. I'd try a good silk tie, probably contrasting nicely with the suit.

Even though this is probably blasphemous to some of you, I avoid patent leather shoes like the plague. I hate that shiny, almost plastic look. I'd buy a good pair of black shoes and spend a lot of time polishing them, whether I wore a suit or tie.

Of course, keep in mind that my style isn't strictly vintage. Some modern styles are good-looking too. If I were going on the cruise, I'd watch the new Bond movie about ten times before I left and try to emulate Craig's style.

[Quantum of Solace (BOND 22) opens in November]

 

[Josephine]

We're going on a 7 night Disney cruise in Oct (knock wood), and they have a formal night and an informal night. I got The Husband a shawl lapel tux with a vest for the formal night, and a cream jacket with a cummerbund for the informal night.

Disney's formal night is a tux or a suit, informal is a suit or a jacket. @@

 

[Kodiak]

IMHO, ditch the vest with the shawl collar.

As said in other threads, a shawl collar is considered less formal than peaked lapels (which, as a side note, are incredibly hard to find these days :rage: ). A waistcoat is considered, at least by my understanding, to be more formal than a shawl collared jacket requires.

But once again, that's just my opinion.

 

[Josephine]

IMHO, ditch the vest with the shawl collar.

As said in other threads, a shawl collar is considered less formal than peaked lapels (which, as a side note, are incredibly hard to find these days :rage: ). A waistcoat is considered, at least by my understanding, to be more formal than a shawl collared jacket requires.

But once again, that's just my opinion.

I've been putting this together since at least the beginning of the year and nowhere has anyone said it's verboten to have a waistcoat with a shawl lapel, unlike, IIRC, a waistcoat with a double breasted coat or a white dinner jacket. I would be willing to swear that Midnight Blue's site didn't have cummerbund is best paired with shawl collar and waistcoat is best paired with peaked-lapel jacket a few weeks ago, what with the number of times I've combed through the Classic Black Tie section. In addition, with The Husband's waistcoat, the bottom of the lapels and the waistcoat are rounded instead of pointed, which I think will soften the look of them together.

 

[anon`]

There's nothing wrong with pairing a waistcoat with with shawl collar jacket, though some would argue that that a cummerbund is, perhaps, a better fit, if you will. I don't think I'd like the look of a more angular waistcoat with a shawl collar jacket personally, but nothing seems amiss here...

 

[MK]

.

I'll be cruising in Dec. I have never done the formal night dinners. This year I want to Dress in style, but I want the Vintage fashion.

Formal nights, I believe, allow Black suits, white shirt and Black tie, or above. I don't have nor do I really want a tux. I also don't own a high hat(top hat?).

So, what would you all recommend as to an ensemble?

Thanks,

Clay

Hi Clay. Which ship are you sailing? Which waters will be crossing? The area of the world will help when asking advice. For example, December in Australia is Summer.

One piece of advice I can give already. Get a real bow tie that you tie yourself. If you don't know how, you have plenty of time to practice before you sail. Clip-on bow ties are for waiters and exotic dancers. That alone will set you apart as a man who knows the better things in life.

 

[chuckknight]

When I went to sea, I took mostly blazers for "every night" dining. For the formal night, I knew it wouldn't be excessively formal, so I took my cream dinner jacket and a pair of beautiful black slacks. French cuffs were a must, but unfortunately my selection of cuff links was somewhat limited, back then. Oh, and finish off the outfit with impeccably polished black shoes from Church's, too. I'm not fond of patent leather, either...patent leather is a bit of a cheat, in my opinion. Every man should know how to polish a shoe, to a high shine, properly.

Anyway, as a young lad of around 25, the slightly less formal approach to formal worked well for me. I'm a little older, now. Too many men do the "tuxedo uniform" and end up looking like overaged prom guests.

Depending on your heritage, you could also go whole hog...or even something a bit different, like highland dress...someone did mention Bond, but I'm thinking George Lazenby!

Remember, there are many ways to dress formally, and for many different functions. The point of formal night, on this cruise, is to enjoy yourself -- and if your cruise is anything like the one I took, you will.

-- Chuck Knight

 

[Kodiak]

I've been putting this together since at least the beginning of the year and nowhere has anyone said it's verboten to have a waistcoat with a shawl lapel, unlike, IIRC, a waistcoat with a double breasted coat or a white dinner jacket. I would be willing to swear that Midnight Blue's site didn't have cummerbund is best paired with shawl collar and waistcoat is best paired with peaked-lapel jacket a few weeks ago, what with the number of times I've combed through the Classic Black Tie section. In addition, with The Husband's waistcoat, the bottom of the lapels and the waistcoat are rounded instead of pointed, which I think will soften the look of them together.

Ok. Whatever works for you. I just meant that I wouldn't do it.

As corny as this sounds, I think everyone that wants to look classy needs to remember that style starts from within. Some bum off the street could be dressed up in a hand-tailored Brioni tux and still have the style of a bum. You gotta be comfortable with yourself to look good in what you're wearing. Do what works for you, and you'll look like a million bucks, period.

 

[Josephine]

Kodiak, I think I am also in the mindset of "He's gonna wear a vest gorram it, 'cause I like men in in vests and he'll look HOT!!" lol

 

[Tomasso]

style starts from within. Some bum off the street could be dressed up in a hand-tailored Brioni tux and still have the style of a bum.

Sometime after Trading Places was released, either Esquire or GQ printed a pictorial where they gave head-to-toe makeovers to a a few homeless men. Hair cuts, shaves, facials, Oxxford/Brioni/Kiton, etc..... These guys all looked like Fortune 50 CEO's in the after shot. [huh] Clothes do go a long way towards making the man, at least visually.

 

[Kodiak]

Sometime after Trading Places was released, either Esquire or GQ printed a pictorial where they gave head-to-toe makeovers to a a few homeless men. Hair cuts, shaves, facials, Oxxford/Brioni/Kiton, etc..... These guys all looked like Fortune 50 CEO's in the after shot. [huh] Clothes do go a long way towards making the man, at least visually.

Oh yeah, sorry if it came across as if that I don't agree with that statement to at least some extent.

The clothes really can help to make the man, but only if the man himself has the ability to wear the clothes with the confidence they require. This might not be making too much sense, but I think that while clothes can make you appear visually magnificent, the real magnificence starts within.

An analogy of sorts:

A homeless man is plucked from the street and completely re-done. Shave, shower, haircut, facial, finely tailored wardrobe, the works. He looks like a real hot-shot businessman. You talk to him on the street, and chances are he's going to mumble and stare at his feet the whole time, because he doesn't know how to react to that kind of attention. The clothes make him look classy, but he doesn't have the inner class to back it up (not that he couldn't have that class, don't get me wrong, he's just never had the chance to learn it. I'm not trying to put down homeless people here).

On the other hand, you meet a guy in the woods that looks like he's been camping with Bear Grylls or an SAS team, or perhaps like he's been living in the bush for years. He's got a four-day beard, his clothes are torn and filthy, his nails are broken and grubby. You talk to him, and he conducts himself very well. You later find out that he's one of those Fortune 50 CEOs.

Moral of the Story: the clothes don't make the man, the man makes the clothes. But classy clothes sure don't hurt.

 

[CharlestonBows]

On the current digression: It's sad but true, your image is your currency in today's world, to a large extent, and people do judge a product by it's package. It may not be determinative in the end, but it gets you in the door a whole heck of a lot easier. Clothing doesn't necessarily make the man, so much as it makes the man better. Of course, I might be a little bias! lol

 

[MB5]

This may help with what to wear, A digital copy of the 1922 Emily Post, Chapter on Traveling at Home and Abroad. Line 34 begins the section on "Dress on the Steamer."

http://www.bartleby.com/95/37.html

 

[frijoli]

Hi Clay. Which ship are you sailing? Which waters will be crossing? The area of the world will help when asking advice. For example, December in Australia is Summer.

One piece of advice I can give already. Get a real bow tie that you tie yourself. If you don't know how, you have plenty of time to practice before you sail. Clip-on bow ties are for waiters and exotic dancers. That alone will set you apart as a man who knows the better things in life.

Sorry I lost track of this thread!

Going to Cayman, Cozumel, and Bahamas! It will be WARM.

Clay