Fashion Monday with JJ Lee

SIMPLE ANSWER: No. THE MORE NUANCED, LESS DOCTRINAIRE ANSWER: Still, no. If we were to take Prince William as an example, and after their royal to-do, who could deny the awe-inspiring elegance of the day (Pippa, call me), unbuttoning your coat is not consider correct etiquette. In the case of Will and Kate, for the evening the newly-wed prince wore a double-breasted jacket for the evening to do, which one never leaves open as David Letterman eventually learned after years of complaint from men's fashion magazines. What is correct for the double-breasted is correct for the single-breasted dinner jacket. Tuxedos look GOOD buttoned up. Why settle for less. My rule is always this: if the jacket is too hot, get a lighter jacket. Now, it's going to happen. When the cameras were gone and Camilla and Charles had left the young ones to rage on at Buckingham Palace, I'll assume they got down and dirty because, heck they're royals, what do you expect? And I'm ...

JJ in the Vancouver Sun : VANCOUVER — To rent or to buy is not the question. What really matters when it comes to wearing black tie is looking like you belong in a tuxedo. Admittedly, all men can't be James Bond or Barack Obama, but it is possible to achieve some true panache, thereby avoiding any associations with Batman's flightless adversary, the Penguin (who technically wore a tailcoat and therefore was dressed in white tie), or high school graduation. Guy Voglino, New York-based divisional merchandise manager for Brooks Brothers, offered the following advice.... (read the rest in the Vancouver Sun)

UPDATE - I despair. I just did some additional research on rental tuxedos. Leading Man - who carries a single-button, peak lapel - only offer the classic style with a pinstripe or with a strip of satin on the lapel only, both are the antithesis of classic! Hi JJ, Can you please suggest some Vancouver business to rent a wedding suit? I saw your blog on dinner jacket faux-pas and rules to follow. Thanks in advance, Dave Hi Dave. Thanks for writing. I love answering questions so keep them coming. I have to admit, I've rented only once in Bethesda, Maryland, an awful white double-breasted, dinner jacket with a ruby cummerbund. Ugh. Since then, I don't rent. Instead, I've had my dinner jackets custom-made and later, I bought, an Austrian number in mohair which, because I'm a duffer/tailor, I altered myself. I turned pleated pants into plain fronts. Not easy. For those, who've never apprenticed, there are good looks to be found in rentals. Outfits such as Tip Top (Freeman...