Bow Ties for Weddings - mainstream Vs alternative

Hi All,

Today we are talking about bow ties for weddings. Why? ... Well there is definitive trend towards wearing Day Bows for weddings. I know that this trend is certainly not new and if you are a reader of any of the major wedding blogs or alternative wedding blogs you will be wondering why I am bringing this up now! But as alternative trends sometimes do, they eventually become mainstream. And this is certainly the case for Bow Ties for weddings.

Before getting into this subject too deeply I have a confession to make and that is; I have never been a fan of wearing bow ties for weddings.

If you are an observer of the Jack Bunney designs you will notice that I have never used a bow tie with one of my designs (other than with an Evening Suit). This is not because I dis-like how they look, I actually think they look cool and own a few myself. It is also not because I believe in some kind of rigid etiquette or mode of dress for weddings. I have never been a fan of using them within my designs because I believe that wearing a bow-tie (a day-bow tie not a Tux) for a wedding is a quirky, eccentric alternative to the mainstream. Which is fantastic! But this is not what our designs represent. Our designs represent a Jack Bunney interpretation of the classically English Tailored Morning Suit. Our final representations are sometimes a million miles away from that starting point but the starting point for the design remains the same.

Having said all that, I have recently met some wonderful Grooms-to-be who have a preference for a bow-tie. And I have to admit that although I was sceptical and cynical at first the customer is indeed always right and if the whole ensemble is correctly assembled the wearing of a day-bow is acceptable. I would say that I have also met quite a few couples who like the idea of wearing a bow-tie because it is alternative and quirky but the wedding they are planning and the suit (outfit) they are putting the bow-tie with is not in anyway quirky or alternative. It is this type of; alternative for the sake of it, that is becoming the norm. Because alternative is becoming the mainstream the two are being blended together in not always the best combinations (in my opinion).

For me alternative is as much about the couple, as it is the wedding they are planning. An alternative wedding is about the couples beliefs, their lifestyle and their attitude. A beautiful alternative wedding can be held in an empty field in Norfolk or a London Cathedral, it is not the venue, or any other 'booked and paid for' service which will dictate how alternative a wedding will be, it is the couples own individual style and their creativity which is the determining factor.

So my point is fairly simple. Please do not try to be alternative for the sake of it. If you are not alternative, if your are main stream, that is fine, in fact whatever you and your partner are (or are not) is fine. Your wedding is about being honest with the world, telling the world just how much you love each other. So be honest, be true to yourselves and show-off who you really are. Not who you would like to be.

And if you do decide to wear a bow-tie please learn to tie it yourself! A bow tie is a personal and tactile thing, each knot should be unique to each person, a clip-on is just not the same.

*update 20/12/12 - A new Blog Post with lots of lovely images of our suits with bow ties can be found here: http://jackbunney.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/wedding-suits-with-bow-ties.html