Are you planning a wedding in 2020? It’s January, the temps are still low, and we’re all recovering from the holidays, but if you’re considering a custom wedding suit for later this year, I encourage you to start the process early. Although the production timeline for a suit is a mere 3-5 weeks, the ideal timeframe for ordering is at least 10 weeks before the wedding. Here’s why:
- Custom-printed lining is an option for jackets, but choosing this personalized option adds two weeks to the production timeline. You can either provide a small image to repeat in a grid pattern on your lining, or you can identify one large image to stretch across the entire inside of your jacket. For a wedding suit, the options are seemingly endless for adding a sentimental touch with your custom lining. But it does add on some time.
- With or without a custom-printed lining, allowing extra time means that when your suit first arrives, you have more discretion for making last-minute changes. For example, last year, one couple loved the idea of adding silver satin trim to the lapels of the groom’s dark gray suit. But when the suit arrived, they decided the trim looked almost reflective in its high contrast with the suit fabric. Because they had started the process three or four months before the wedding, we were able to return the jacket to have the trim replaced with a medium gray satin that fit better with their original vision. If the wedding had been just around the corner, sending the jacket back to the tailoring facility would have been either stressful or out of the question.
- Allowing at least a couple weeks of extra time is great for minor post-delivery alterations. Occasionally, a groom decides to make his suit pants a bit slimmer, shorter, or longer after the suit arrives. The expense is covered by our Fit Guarantee, and changes like this are addressed easily through local alterations. But most alterations shops require at least a week to get the work done.
- One other recent situation involved a groom deciding after the suit delivery that he’d like to add a vest to his suit. Because time was on our side, it was no problem to take the two extra vest measurements and place the order. The vest arrived a few weeks later, in plenty of time for the wedding, and the couple was thrilled with the way the vest pulled his look together.
So please don’t procrastinate, and…don’t tell yourself you need to lose 20 pounds before you get measured. Although this is a common and understandable instinct, suits can always be tailored down a bit if necessary. Avoid last-minute stress – and maximize the joy of a great wedding suit – by starting the process early! Schedule your consultation today.
(featured photo by Kate Merrill Photography)