Helpful Tips: Slim Fit Pants

Hearing the words "slim fit pants," can be rather intimidating for our customers who may have never worn a tuxedo before or do not like the restriction. On the flip side, we have people who want everything slim fit and when they get the pants they either feel like they are too slim or not slim enough. So what is the deal? How are they supposed to fit?

1. They Are NOT Skinny Jeans.

Slim fit pants are definitely more fitted than a traditional pant, but that does not mean that they are skinny jeans. They are not supposed to be skin tight to your legs as if you are in a pair of tights. If that is the look your going for, the pants will not look like that. The only way we could get closer to that type of look is if we go down a size in the waist which will make it smaller everywhere else as well. Also, we cannot take in the legs of the pants to make it smaller. We are not professional tailors and it would ruin the pants for future use.

2. They Are SUPPOSED To Be A Little Shorter.

As shown above in the picture, the pants are not supposed to be as long as a pant of a looser fit would be. Traditional, tuxedo pants should fall down to the heel of your foot, but because it is so much smaller in the legs they will bunch if they come down too far. The picture shows exactly where they should fall and exactly how they should lay.

3. The Fit Might Not Be As Daunting As You Think.

Slim fit pants take out the room in the legs, it has nothing to do with the waist of the pants. Some guys prefer this look, but keep in mind that they are tighter in the hips and in the thighs, so if this is a concern of yours I would suggest trying on a pair before making a decision. It is all about your comfort; we can always go up a size in the pants in the slim fit. If you don't like it at all, we can always put you in a modern or classic fit pant which would give you more room.

It's all about your comfort! So if you have questions about the fit just remember we can always have you try on some first!

Helpful Tips: Woman Wear Tuxedos Too!

In the past couple years, we have actually had more and more ladies rock a tuxedo, not just men. It has not been for only wedding either! We have had ladies wear tuxedos for their own events, prom, homecoming, etc, and we love it! So if you are a lady who wants to rent a tuxedo from us, here are a couple things for you to know:

1. Yes, We Will Fit Women for Tuxedos.

I know it must seem obvious, but we get asked quite a lot if will fit women for tuxedos and we certainly will. Just keep in mind, our tuxedos are still made for men, we don't carry women's tuxedos specifically. What this means is that it is not made to hug your curves like normal women's clothing would. This brings me to my next point.

2. We Are NOT A Tailor.

Usually, a woman wants her tuxedo to fit like her clothing would. Since we do not carry actual women's tuxedos it is important that we have you try on everything to see if you are comfortable with the fit. We certainly would never have you leave with you tuxedo in a disarray, but we CANNOT take in the garments. We can only do minor alterations, meaning sleeve and pant lengths. We cannot take the pants or coat in to be more form fitting. If this is going to be a big concern of yours, perhaps consider buying a good pair of pants that fit you how you want (and that you can use again) and getting the rest from us. Overall, be vocal about how comfortable you are. We do not want you to be in uncomfortable with the fit of your tuxedo. 

3. Bring Your Shoes!

For men, the pants length is supposed to go down to their heels and break once in the front. For women, we have the ability to wear them in a couple different ways depending on the type of shoes. If you are wearing heels, the pants can be shorter, if you are wearing flats, they can be a little longer. We won't know unless you bring the shoes with you so we can have the length exactly where you would like them, so don't forget to bring your shoes!

Just make sure you tell us what you like and do not like during your fitting so we can see if we can make the tuxedo more comfortable for you. We want you to look and feel your very best for the occasion!

Helpful Tips: Why the Final Fitting is 3 Days Before the Wedding

A lot of our customers tend to get really concerned when we tell them the final fitting for the guys is (usually) 3 days before their wedding day. So for example, if the wedding is on a Saturday, then the tuxedos will be available on Wednesday for the guys to try them on. Don't start panicking yet though, there is a reason we have the fitting set up this way and there is more than enough time to take care of any fitting issues.

1. Most of our Tuxedos Come from a Wholesaler.

So a lot of people who may have never rented before seem to be under the impression that we have all of our tuxedo styles in the store so that they are available to be tried on. That is simply not the case, we have displays in house and have to order in the actual sizes for orders. This is also because we simply do not have the room! If any of you have seen our store, it is relatively small and there is no way we can house hundreds of tuxedos at once. What this also means is that we have a specific time frame in which the tuxedos get delivered to us, which brings me to the next point.

2. We Can Only have the Tuxedos Out for a Certain Amount of Time.

The tuxedos need to be going out every week for different weddings. As soon as they arrive at our wholesaler's warehouse, they are cleaned,pressed, and sent out again for other people who need to rent them. If we had our weddings picking up several weeks before their wedding, that means that every garment and every size that they have cannot be rented out to other people in between that time. Another reason is a lot of our weddings have out of town people who could not pick up that early to begin with. The last reason is that we are charged for late garments just as our customers would be, so if we had their tuxedos out for several weeks and then someone chooses not to return their garments, we are getting charged for them and would have to charge the customer.

3. Earlier Pick Ups Could Throw Off Our Checks.

We go over everything for each wedding to make sure that their styles are correct, that everyone is measured, that the measurements look correct, and so on. We usually do these checks a couple weeks before the wedding. Having an earlier pick up could create MORE problems as it would shorten up the amount of time you have to make changes or get people measured. Since a wedding has so many different parts to it, you definitely want as much time as you can get.

4. We Have Enough Time to Do Alterations 3 Days Before.

We have been doing pick ups this way for years, so trust me when I say we have enough time to get replacements garments in and do alterations if necessary. Alterations take 10 minutes and we try to check over measurements so you do not have to come in to pick up replacement items. If you do have to do this though, you will have the replacements before the wedding. If we notice that someone has not been in for the fitting and it is getting close to the wedding, we will call them ASAP. If they are unable to come in until the day of or day before, we will look over their measurements and see if we need to order in extras for them so we can switch out garments on the spot when they come in. 

We have the fittings the way that we do for a reason and even though it seems too close for comfort, we have enough time to get the guys looking good for the big day. In certain cases we will adjust the pick up date (if you are going out of town, etc.) so that you have a little more time but it does not always happen. If you ever have questions or concerns about the fitting, let us know! We have dealt with about every situation you could think of: guys out of country, the wedding is out of town, everyone is out of town, destination weddings, and so on. We want to make sure that everyone looks good and is comfortable for your wedding day!

Free Consultations

The months are going by quickly and before you know it, it will be time for your wedding. We're sure that you have lots of questions of what you need to do for your wedding. We are aware some of our customers do not know what styles to do. That is not a problem. We have been offering free consultations. 

1. You are not required to have an appointment to come in. 

We would only prefer if you made an appointment if you're bringing the whole wedding party with you. We want to be properly staffed to help everyone. Other than that you do not have to make one unless you want to. You can come in at anytime that works with you. We would suggest that both the bride and groom come so you both can agree on styles.

2.  If you are unaware of what styles you want that is no problem! 

We will go over the different fits of the tuxedos, different styles, and different color options. We do want you to bring a swatch of the bridesmaid dresses so we can perfectly match the color! If you do not have it that day you can bring it at a later date. If you still aren't sure after we go over everything, we do write what you were interested in for when you come back at a later date.

3. We will go over your deadlines.

We want you to be aware of when people need to be measured and when styles need to be picked out and finalized. We need time to order the tuxedos and the accessories along with it.  We need to get things ordered ahead of time to get the tuxedo rented in your name. The deadlines will vary depending on when you come in. If you want to have more time to make decisions, come in about 4 months before your wedding.

At Gerard Tuxedo we want you to be sure of what styles you picked out and that you're happy! We want the guys to look great at your wedding.

September Wedding Promotion

2 Free Tux Rentals!!! When you have 13 or more in your wedding party! -Classic Styles on special for $99.99* -Modern styles on special for $120.00* -Slim-Fit &Allure on special for $140.00* Rentals include coat, pant, shirt, vest & tie, studs & cuff links.* Must register by September 30th 2016* ------------------------------------------------------- Need Groomsmen's gifts? Order through us and get 20% off your whole order, with FREE personalization!

Helpful Tips: Out of Town Weddings

A lot of the weddings we have been working with lately are actually getting married out of town. We only have one location, so a lot of our weddings have questions about how their fitting will work. Usually what happens is the bride and groom live near us and the wedding is in the area where the rest of the wedding party lives, or an area closer to them. So what do you happens if no one is coming in to try on their garments? Well it's simple!

1. Let Us Know The Wedding Is Not in Town.

When we are setting up your pick up date, this is when we would need to know if the wedding is out of town or not. This will affect when we need to get the tuxedos into our store, and we cannot know to look over the measurements more closely if we are not aware that people are not trying on their garments. Even if some people can come in to pick up their own garments, we need to make sure that those people have time to get replacements if needed. If you were leaving several days before your wedding, we would want to know this so we can push your pick up date back so you have enough time to get replacements.

2. Everyone Needs to Get Measured.

This should be obvious, but everyone needs to get measured. They can go on tuxedofit.com to find somewhere in their area where they can be measured. We do not expect them to come all the way to our store to get measured if they live no where near us. They just need to get the proper measurements, which will be on the website for them, and they need to be measured at least 2 months before the wedding which is our normal deadline for measurements. After that, if we have questions we can call them directly and we can also take payment over the phone.

2. We Check Over the Measurements.

Not every garment fits the same, and some times people do get bad measurements that do not make a whole lot of sense. This is why we take time to check over them. If we notice they are in between sizes or that they might be uncomfortable in a size, we will order in extra garments for you to take. This way, they will not need to come all the way to us for a different size.

We want your wedding day to be perfect and we everyone to be comfortable and look good. So we will take the time to make sure everyone looks good, just make sure you let us know ahead of time so that we can get everything all set for your wedding day.