Groomsmen and Military Uniforms

annecreynolds

I am getting married next summer and the groom/ groomsmen are wearing tan suits. My fiance has 7 groomsmen and of those 7, 2 are officers in the military (one is a Marine and one is in the Navy). My fiance wants them to wear their formal uniform instead of wearing the tan suits like the rest of the groomsmen. I feel like wearing their dress uniform is something they should do at their own wedding, not necessarily ours. What should we do? Any advice/opinions would be appreciated!!

opalsky007

Let them make a decision. If they do decide to wear their uniforms, consider it an honor: these uniforms are only worn on very special occasions, and that means that your wedding is special to them. It's not an attempt to call attention to themselves.

jagore08

It would be an honor for them to wear their uniforms to your ceremony but let that be their decision.  My BIL is an officer in the Marine Corps and I let him make the decision.  He ended up wearing a suit because the wedding was outdoors in May in FL.  

TheCranberry

While it is an honor for them to want to wear their uniforms to the wedding, in the end you and your FI must be comfortable with it.  If it's really going to be an issue for either of you, just graciously thank them for the gesture and say you prefer that they wear what the other guys are wearing.

waltzingmatilda13

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_attire-accessories_groomsmen-military-uniforms?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:15Discussion:a3883861-b281-4654-9493-0124a3d9e4e5Post:5d586d62-e5a9-41a7-b56f-b55f6b5125f8">Re: Groomsmen and Military Uniforms</a>:
[QUOTE]While it is an honor for them to want to wear their uniforms to the wedding, in the end you and your FI must be comfortable with it.  If it's really going to be an issue for either of you, just graciously thank them for the gesture and say you prefer that they wear what the other guys are wearing.
Posted by TheCranberry[/QUOTE]

This whole train of thought is way off. They can wear what they want. Why should they pay for a suit when they already have something super nice to wear to mark a special occassion? Like pp said, it's an honor to have them wear their dress unifrom to your wedding.

TheCranberry

I don't see why it's a big deal to ask the groomsmen to rent tuxes just because these guys happen to have a military uniform that they want to wear.  The other non-military men may own a suit/tux they'd rather wear.

I look at it the same as asking the other groomsmen to rent a tux or a suit.  Most guys already own a suit, but couples ask them to rent one so they can look uniform.  Most women already own a suitable dress to wear to a wedding, but couples ask them to buy a dress so they will look uniform.  I don't think there's any problem with asking the WP to have a certain look within reason.  If the couple is okay with the military uniform then that's fine.  But if they prefer that all of the groomsmen wear the same color suit or tux (whether it's their own or rented), that's fine too.

JeFlanigan

Wearing dress blues/whites is done with pride and only for the most special of occasions.  I wouldn't dare ask them to not wear them... however *long deep sigh*  I know exactly where you're coming from.
MY brother is USMC (deployed yesterday). My fear is while I want my wedding pictures to be balanced and ascetically even if my brother comes in dress blues he'll throw off the picture and draw attention away from my FI and me.  Which I have considered putting him across from MOH (who will be in different colored dress than BM's.. MOH is our sister, best man is Fi's best friend)
For the rest of the wedding (ceremony/reception) I do not think the dress uniforms are at all out of place or ostentatious.

swim1011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_attire-accessories_groomsmen-military-uniforms?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:15Discussion:a3883861-b281-4654-9493-0124a3d9e4e5Post:684a2af5-dd4e-49d5-a499-befa6a1a4816">Re: Groomsmen and Military Uniforms</a>:
[QUOTE]Wearing dress blues/whites is done with pride and only for the most special of occasions.  I wouldn't dare ask them to not wear them... however *long deep sigh*  I know exactly where you're coming from. MY brother is USMC (deployed yesterday). My fear is while <strong>I want my wedding pictures to be balanced and ascetically even if my brother comes in dress blues he'll throw off the picture and draw attention away from my FI and me.</strong>  Which I have considered putting him across from MOH (who will be in different colored dress than BM's.. MOH is our sister, best man is Fi's best friend) For the rest of the wedding (ceremony/reception) I do not think the dress uniforms are at all out of place or ostentatious.
Posted by JeFlanigan[/QUOTE]

This made me stop and stare for a moment.  I mean, really?   Is your wedding about having pretty pictures, or having your closest friends and family celebrating with you?  Trust me, no one is going to "draw attention away" from you and your FI, no matter what color they are wearing. 

Our best man wanted us to pick whether he wore his dress blues or not, but we told him to pick, and he prefered wearing the tux like the rest of the guys.  I'm guessing the GM will pick the tux, given the choice.  If he doesn't, that is okay, too.  There are so many other important things to worry about with a wedding, this is not something that is a big deal.

JeFlanigan

I have OCD, what can I say...  it may not be 'right' to fear things looking unbalanced, but I do.  But it's my problem, and if by brother comes in blues I'll work through and around it.

And my wedding is about my Fi and I finally completing and perfecting our family.  But I am about detail obsession, so I work to balance both.

abbiewebster

i know what you mean but i think its great when guys where there uniforms to weddings,people wont be thinking that they dont look the same they will be respecting them for the job they do and what they have done for their country. i want 2(out of 3) of our groomsmen to wear theirs (army) but it will be very hot so i dont think they will be comfortable in it,we'll see what happens.