Men

That grabbed your attention, right? Sorry...nothing juicy in this post, just a bit of a rant and maybe some advice to any brides and grooms to be out there.

Tuxes. No, you don't need them. They are not necessary. Miss Manners is not going to appear and banish you to wedding etiquette hell. Slowly but surely tuxes are fading out and I, for one, could not be happier with that.

Most men aren't accustomed to wearing a tux on a regular basis. Therefore, it's not comfortable. It doesn't fit right. It's not "fitted" to you; don't even let the tux shop say that it is. It's made of material that typically doesn't breathe very well, especially in summer heat.

I love the options of wearing a nice suit. A suit you've invested in, had tailored, and looks sharp!

I love the option of those outdoor, backyard, or casual weddings with a nice pair of pants and a nice button-up shirt with tie.

I love the option of a short-sleeved shirt paired with pants for a beach wedding.

But most of all I love the fact that there are all these options!

Take a suit for example. You can still formalize it if need be with a pocket square and a nice shirt with cuff links and a silk tie. The male attendants can also be in nice suits with coordinating colors. And when a bridal party has their groomsmen in black suits....guess what? You can usually let them wear their own black suit or choose one of their own to purchase.

I love that a suit means being able to bring color in with the shirt or tie. I love that it means being able to do a possible stripe or checked pattern on the shirt, bringing some texture and additional style elements to the wedding party.

Now, I understand that there are going to be weddings out there that are just too formal for any of these options or couples that have envisioned tuxes and aren't going to budge on it. That's fine! My only point is to let everyone know that you don't need to do tuxes just because that's what has always been done.

Give your men a break. Show him some options. I guarantee he'll be eternally grateful to know there's more than just the black tux out there for him on his special day.