7 Essential Tips For Wearing Grey Suits To Weddings

Wearing a grey suit to a wedding can be a great option if done properly. But how exactly should you wear a grey suit to a wedding?

When wearing a grey suit to a wedding, you should make sure that the wedding has either a formal or semi-formal dress code. It is best to wear a grey suit together with a colored tie, light-colored shirt, and silver metal accessories. 

That’s the answer in brief.

Let’s go through some tips on how to wear a grey suit to a wedding in more detail, so you can be sure to look your best.

7 Tips For Wearing A Grey Suit To A Wedding

A grey suit is a great base for any outfit given its neutral palette.

Let’s go through the most important tips on how to make the most of your grey suit when attending a wedding.

1. Check The Dress Code

Checking the dress code before putting together your outfit as a wedding guest is important even if you’re not planning on wearing a grey suit.

Weddings can have dress codes that range from casual all the way up to black-tie attire, and you need to know what’s expected for you before you assemble your outfit.

When it comes to wearing a grey suit, the wedding dress code becomes all the more important.

This is because grey suits are usually associated with semi-formal wedding dress codes and sometimes formal weddings.

If the wedding you are attending is more formal than this, such as a black-tie wedding, then a grey suit is unlikely to be appropriate. For black-tie weddings, black tuxedos will be expected.

As a general rule, for semi-formal weddings, where a full suit is expected but traditional colors aren’t, wearing a light grey suit can be appropriate.

Think day time, summer weddings that may be held in an outdoor venue such as a garden or beach, but not quite so casual as a wedding where sports coats and chinos are acceptable.

For weddings with a formal dress code, where a full suit in more traditional dark colors is expected, wearing a dark grey suit, for example in charcoal grey, would be appropriate.

At formal weddings such as this, most men will be in dark-colored suits, for example, black, navy, or dark grey suits.

As you can see, grey suits are not suitable for every wedding, and some care needs to be taken in checking whether wearing a grey suit is suitable for the wedding that you are attending beforehand.

2. Wear A Light Colored Shirt

When wearing a grey suit to a wedding, it is better to opt for a light-colored shirt instead of a darker one.

The reason for this is that light-colored shirt, for example in white, light pink, grey or blue, do not contrast too harshly with the softness of the light grey suit, and also pair well with a darker grey suit.

Dark shirts, in black or navy, do not fit the aesthetic of a light grey suit which is more suited to soft tones and pastels and also blend in too much when worn together with a dark grey suit.

Overall, then, it is safest to choose a light-colored or white dress shirt to wear with your grey suit.

This gives the added benefit of providing a light unobtrusive base upon which you can style a tie and other accessories.

3. Choose A Slim-Fitting Suit

Grey suits, particularly light grey suits, look better if they are structured and fit snugly.

It is less obvious with darker colored suits if the tailoring isn’t quite to your size specifications or if the suit is slightly baggy in certain places.

Unfortunately, light-colored suits are less forgiving.

For this reason, it is better to choose a slim-fitting suit if you decide to go grey, and if you can, get a suit that has been tailor-made to your measurements.

Although the expense may be slightly more upfront, you will feel much more confident in yourself and therefore comfortable wearing a suit that fits correctly.

4. Consider Wearing A Colorful Tie

As I’ve alluded to earlier, wearing a grey suit is a great opportunity to play around with the colors of your accessories, as it acts as the perfect neutral base.

When it comes to tie choice, don’t be afraid to wear a colorful tie with your grey suit, as this can finish off your outfit nicely.

Which color you choose depends on what shade of grey your suit is in and also what time of year it is.

Light grey suits tend to be more summery, so you can pair a light grey suit with a light blue or pink tie, or even a butter yellow for spring/summer weddings.

Medium grey suits look good with ties in coral and yellow-orange tones, particularly if worn in the late summer or fall.

Dark grey suits look better with ties in darker hues, which will be more appropriate if worn to a formal wedding. Opt for jewel tones such as teal, forest green and dark purples, and choose monochromatic ties with no patterning.

If you end up wearing a darker grey charcoal suit to a summer wedding that is less formal, you can choose a light pink or light blue tie, which is also a fantastic combination.

Avoid black ties with a grey suit – as well as making your overall outfit very monochromatic, it can risk looking a little too much like office wear instead of wedding guest attire.

5. Choose Silver Colored Metal Accessories

When wearing a suit, adding a few metal accessories in the form of cufflinks, tie clips and even lapel pins can add a bit of character and style to your outfit.

With a grey suit, cooler-toned metal accessories in a silver color tend to work better than warmer gold plated accessories.

Silver blends in well with the neutral base of a grey suit which allows your accessories to be the main pop of color in your outfit. 

If you really want to wear gold, opt for white gold accessories, which although slightly warmer toned than silver are still neutral enough to co-exist nicely with a grey suit.

The secondary benefit of silver accessories is that they also tend to be much more affordable than gold.

6. Choose Your Shoe Color Carefully

Choosing the right shoe color is pretty important when it comes to wearing a grey suit.

You have more options when it comes to which shoe color to choose than you would if you were simply wearing a black suit, however you still need to consider the overall color palette of your outfit.

For darker grey suits, you can’t go too wrong if you opt for black shoes. This is because the more formal appearance of a dark grey suit goes well with a darker shoe color.

Opting for black shoes means you also don’t need to worry so much about any potential clash between your shoe color and the color of your shirt and tie, as black is also a very neutral color that can pair well with many different hues.

For lighter grey suits, you need to be a bit more careful about your shoe choice and make sure you consider whether the color of your shoe goes well with the color of your accessories and shirt and tie.

Tan shoes can look great with light grey suits and will pair well with ties in most colors, such as blues, pastel pinks, darker reds and purples, and greens. 

Black shoes can sometimes look a little too harsh if worn with a very light grey suit, so it’s best to avoid these if you are wearing a grey suit towards the lighter end of the spectrum.

If you want something a little more eye-catching, you could choose a shoe in a burgundy color. Burgundy shoes are a little more tricky to style due to their bold color.

They look best when paired with darker-hued accessories, such as burgundy, dark blue, and dark green. Avoid light pastel-colored ties with burgundy shoes, as these tend to clash.

As well as looking good when worn with a light grey suit, burgundy shoes can also look great paired with medium-to-dark grey suits. 

7. Avoid A Striped Tie

Wearing a diagonally striped tie together with a grey suit and white or light blue dress shirt is very reminiscent of office attire.

Although this can be a smart look for work, it doesn’t scream wedding.

When choosing a tie to wear with your grey suit then, it’s best to avoid a striped tie. If you do wish to wear something patterned, choose a subtle pattern, but it’s recommended to choose a monochromatic tie when wearing a grey suit.

Wearing a colored tie and a grey suit is enough of a style statement itself that doesn’t require more bells and whistles.

Dark navy or black suits often require a patterned tie to add some interest to the outfit, however, this isn’t really necessary when wearing a grey suit. 

Conclusion

Grey suits are a great option for wearing to a wedding and can look really dapper if styled well and worn with the right accessories.

I hope I’ve given you some insight on how to make your grey suit ensemble stand out so that you can be sure to look your best at that wedding.