Keeping traditions - Men's Full evening dress code

In the last blog I made a hint to traditions, which gives me the perfect opportunity to touch on the ultimate formal men's dress code for formal events/occasions from a Western man's perspective and secondly an opportunity to respond to a reader regarding his comment on Mr. President Obama's choice of white tie for inauguration in January 2013. I am at no means a subject matter expert on the named issue(s), but a quick research shows that men's formal dress code clothing has being in one way or another regulated and has strict rules. So when breaking the rules of formal dress codes at least make an effort to know the rules.

There are are Four (five) formal dress codes for a Western gent. At the top which I will name number One is the White tie event, full evening dress. Two - is the dinner suit, Three is the morning coat, Four is the Stresseman and lastly Five the suit which most men own and know what it is. So to keep if formally I will say five. For today I will focus on the White tie - full evening dress attire rules/codes.

1. White tie event (full dress, evening dress or full evening dress) is worn to ceremonial occasions such as state dinners (in some countries), very formal balls (for example Viennese balls)and evening weddings.
As evening dress, white tie is traditionally considered correct only after 6:00 p.m.
Formal full evening dress is strictly regulated (not legally but by tradition not changed since 1870's) and strictly consists of the following:

• Black (traditionalist preference) or midnight blue dress coat( evening tailcoat) with silk grosgrain or satin facings, horizontally cut-away at the front
• Trousers of matching fabric with one wide or two narrow strips of braid down the side seams. Trousers are worn with braces and no belts.
• White plain stiff-fronted cotton shirt, which is closed with studs
• White stiff wing collar, detachable or stand up collar
• White bow tie (not pre tied) made of cotton marcella
• White low cut waistcoat (vest) made of cotton marcella, covering the trouser waist line
• Black silk socks or stockings
• Black court pumps with black silk bows or highly polished black Oxfords with least ornamentation (brogueing) or paten black shoes.

Accessories to the attire:

- Cufflinks for the shirt, if not using studs

- Pocket square- (white linen) and or boutonniere

- Pocket watch - strictly no wrist watches

- Black silk Top hat 

- White gloves

- White sil scarf

- If and when it is a cold evening, the overcoat must be a Chesterfield coat, Inverness cloak or Opera cloak.

Full evening dress as renditioned by Knize of Vienna (city known for its formal balls and strict dress code). Note that there are only two colours in this formal dress attire, black (for traditionalist) and white. Nothing else. I think so should it be.

HRH Prince Philip of England in full evening dress

Full evening dress as worn by US President John F. Kennedy to his inaugural ball

US President Reagan in full evening dress for inaugural ball. Probably the last US President who wore a full evening dress to the inaugural ball at the White House 

Much dispute and talk has been going on regarding the 2013 inaugural ball of US President Barack Obama for his second term. The US President's choice of evening dress was half heartedly a mixture of eh.....you decide. Some people argued that he wore a similar attire when getting married some 20 years ago, so it was a combination of the inaugural celebrations and marking the 20th anniversary of his marriage. I am not going to go into the flap pockets of the supposedly dinner jacket. I will get there once we touch on the Dinner suit.

Hmmmm... I also found out that white tie (bow tie) with a dinner suit is common for American marriages. Odd tradition anyway. Either we stick to tradition (enforce it) or ...leave it and not invert in between. The below is neither fish nor fowl.

I will not say a word about the bulgy sacking trousers. 

Photos sourced from various Knize, Wiki other Internet sources.

Gent's white attire formal dressing - Downton Abbey

I have just began following the TV series Downton Abbey (Highclere Castle), which depicts  the lives of the English aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in the post Edwardian era. My focal point being the appropriate classical, stylish gents dressing as portrayed by the TV series. 

I was impressed by the fact that Mr. Hugh Bonneville "Earl of Grantham" head of the "Crawley" house hold went to some great length to get the true sartorial white tie attire made at one Savile Row's bespoke tailors as shown below. A lot can be learned from Downton Abbey's Earl of Grantham, as how a true gent should / must dress.

For me Downton Abbey is about keeping the tradition, high standards and ....more.

This brings me to the days subject, why do men commit unforgivable sartorial sins? I am not talking of the every day Jack and Joe, for whom getting "properly" dressed will mean upgrading from jeans to a pair of baggy chinos below the buttoms and an oversized button down shirt, paired with some trainers and perhaps a tie of some sort with a Mickey Mouse motif. Nothing wrong with that, unless you are employed at Walt Disney. No, I am referring  to some men of International power who have the means and the aides to be very elegantly and sartorially dressed. But .....

Mr. Hugh Bonneville as Earl of Grantham (here being suited properly by one of Savile Row's tailors) for the Downton Abbey series. Well done Earl of Grantham.

The Earl of Grantham in a bespoke white tie suiting from one the SR tailors.

HRH Prince Philip in white attire, very correctly done as always.

The Sartorial sin of white attire committed by President Barack Obama & former USA President George W. Bush Jr. 
First, note that Mr. Barack Obama is in a white attire ensamble, however his waistecoat is a tad longer than the tail coat, that is one sartorial sin, but when paired with the second sin as shown below in the next picture, the scene is disastrous. 

White tie attire worn with a down collar shirt. Hmmm, wonder were are all those White House advisors, protocol managers etc. This is not suppose to happen. But.... not to mention that the tail coat looks a wink oversized by judging by the stance at the back of the neck.  The shirt has no studs but normal buttons. Too many sins for an evening. President Obama can definitely afford a bespoke white tie attire ensemble. 

Below is ex US President Mr. George W Bush Jr. committing the same sartorial sins as Mr. Barack Obama above.

Well, it is not only the American powerful men that commits sartorial sins but the Prime Minister of the UK, Mr. David Cameron pulled the same trick of having the waistcoat a tad longer than the tail coat, but otherwise he was looking very dapper for the occasion. 

Photos sourced from Savilerow Tumblr,NY times, George W Bush White House Archives and MSNBC, Daily Mail UK and The Gentleman's Gazette