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Apr 19, 2014

Post-Wedding Wrap-up: WHAT WE WORE!



Readers, thank you!

It's not often that one receives advice from more than a hundred of one's closest friends, but so many of you came through for me about what I should wear to my friend's wedding.  And I listened!



Let me preface this by saying that my friend David knows me extremely well.  In response to yesterday's post, David himself responded on Facebook that he was excited to see what I chose to wear.  He was into it.  Also, his now-husband, Howard, who's British, wore a crystal-encrusted Indian sherwani, so I wasn't in any danger of outshining him.  He literally glittered!

Here is the happy couple, David and Howard.



This was the most memorable wedding I have ever been to.  Part of what made it so meaningful was that, for legal reasons, David and Howard have had to wait eleven years to get married.  (I met Michael only a few months before David met Howard.)  Also I've known David for nearly forty years -- a long time -- so we have a lot of shared history.

The space, 54 Below (the basement of what was once the famed nightspot Studio 54) is lovely; the officiant made the ceremony intimate, moving, and extremely funny, and there was even a live performance by cabaret artist Liz Callaway.  Also marvelous food and drink!



So what did we WEAR, already?

Here's Michael:





I made the crosswork puzzle shirt, of course; the jacket and pants are his.

And here I am:





As you can see, I opted for the suit, but without the black tie (or hat).  We probably both would have benefited from white (or light) shoes, but it is before Memorial Day after all.

The response to my outfit was, frankly, tremendous.  The compliments started with strangers on the subway ride up, countless passersby on the street, and just about everyone I met at the wedding.  People seemed blown away by the suit, particularly the Brits (who were more than half the attendees at the event).  When they asked where I'd purchased it and I admitted I made it, they nearly hit the floor.  When they heard it was a vintage 70's Springmaid bedsheet from the Salvation Army -- well you can imagine.  Michael's shirt also drew raves.  If I had my own custom clothing business, I could have drummed up quite a bit of work.

With brilliant officiant Barbara Ann Michaels

But truly, readers, so much of the credit goes to you.  Those who were rooting for me to go with the full-on floral gave me a new-found confidence.  And those who warned me not to successfully fueled my defiant side.  So thank you ALL!

In closing, I was blown away by the whole wedding experience.  Will Michael and I ever get married?  Maybe it's time to start scouting out more floral bedsheets!

Have a great day, everybody!

55 comments:

  1. Your suit brought joy to the wedding couple, to the other attendees, to the people who saw you on the street, and to all of us out here in internet-land. What could possibly be better? How wonderful that there was literally no need to worry about out-shining one of the grooms. You look fabulous, as does Michael. Congratulations on a thoroughly perfect decision!

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  2. David and Howard look so happy, and so handsome. And your suit is very joyful looking. I love Michael's monochromatic look with his crossword puzzle shirt. How fun!

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  3. Best wedding guest wear, EVER! I love your suit and I'm so glad that Michael wore his crossword shirt. :)

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  4. I got such a big smile on my face when I scrolled down and saw you in that suit!

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  5. I'm not sure if you mentioned in the original post (or if you knew) there was going to be Brits in attendance, but I would have pushed even harder for the full floral if I had know. In my experience, the Brits (or pretty much any one European) KNOW how to dress for a wedding.
    Michael looked handsome, you looked fantastic and the grooms looked radiant! So happy to hear they were able to finally make it legal! It makes my heart happy that more of my US neighbours are able to finally sign that piece of paper.

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  6. Oh my gosh! I didn't catch yesterday's post, but I love your suit choice!

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  7. I'm so glad your wore that suit!!! It's fabulous, and personally, I'd be totally ok with someone having that much fun with their clothes at my wedding. Weddings are joyous occasions and that suit fits that description perfectly. Love it!

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  8. Re a wedding in your future ...weddings are contagious! Loved the suit. Bravo.

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  9. Oh yay! I'm so glad you chose the full suit. Fabulousness all round.

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  10. You and Michael both looked great!! Sounds like a wonderful wedding.

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  11. I didn't see your previous post. Both you and Michael looked great in your outfits! Congratulations to David and Howard.

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  12. my caveat was contingent on whether the grooms were ok with it, and since they were, HOORAY! great choice. : ) they looked amazing, and so did you two. glad to hear it was a memorable occasion for all. : )

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  13. I'm so glad you chose that :)
    I didn't comment yesterday... I don't like giving advice... but thats what I was silently rooting for :D

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  14. How festive! You guys look great and sounds like it was a fantastic time. So happy to read you received all those rave reviews on you suit and Michael's shirt.

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  15. That sounds like a faboo wedding, and you added to the festivities (the responsibility of any good guest). I'm so glad you remembered that it's not yet Memorial Day (I was trembling lest I had to chide you ever so gently had you opted for those white trousers or the white espadrilles).

    As for your own wedding, well... I'm kind of an advocate. We had to wait 10 years, but having made the big step last summer, I can't imagine turning back. Of course, as much fun as the though of the wedding is, it's the marriage that counts, and from all we can tell the two of you have that down.

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  16. You are such well-dressed couple! The fact that your outfits are not matching, and you each look fantastic, wearing a handmade clothing, is just plain gorgeous. Hats off to you. (as your is already off!)

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  17. Fantastic :) David and Howard look both fab and so happy. If you've waited 11 years and for most of those years not believed that the day would ever come/be allowed then I'm sure you want it to be the biggest, boldest, happiest, most colorful celebration ever, but most of all wanted everyone to be true to themselves - and your floral bed sheet suit is not only true to you, but I bet half the room would have wanted to wear one too. So glad you all had fun but most of all that this country is gradually entering the 21st century where one day we can just talk about 'marriage' for all (ie. not distinguish gay marriage from any other kind, because all marriage is marriage……ok, this would make a lot more sense if I hadn't been on the vodka…..fab wedding, fab outfits….and so glad a fellow Brit was confident and radiant enough to carry off that bling as well as Howard does. I'll shut up now.

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  18. Absolutely amazing. You did a great job but then you always do. Fabulous! Congratulations to the couple.

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  19. You look fabulous! Michael looks fabulous! That suit is a real show stopper. Glad everyone got so much joy and you got recognized for your fabulous talent. You might have been the best thing in someone's day or life today. You are after all the most world's most popular men's sewing blog. You have to represent. Go boy go!!

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  20. I've got quite a collection of vintage sheets so not only would I have known what the suit was made of I'd know it was home-made and I'd have followed you down the street (in a totally non-creepy way) in wonder and admiration, even if I was too shy in the end to tell you how marvelous it was and how you'd totally made my day! Love that you wore it and it totally deserved all the kudos!

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  21. You put a big smile on my face this morning. You look SO fantastic. It's wonderful you brought so much pleasure to others by wearing the suit. :)

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  22. Sounds like a wonderful occasion, you both look fab. My brother and his husband got married in San Francisco in November - I got stopped in the street because I wore a big hat (yes, I'm a Brit), your wonderful suit would have stopped traffic :)

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  23. Hi, I have never met you, only lurked on your website. But looking at the pics and reading the post brought out the happy tears for all four of you.

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  24. WONDERFUL! I'm smiling from ear to ear reading this! x

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  25. I'm so glad you went with that suit - it's fabulous! You both look great.

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  26. what a wonderful day and you two were charming and delightful and looked like a million dollars each: style and wit! but the best part was being able to celebrate the *official* joining of two friends.

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  27. I'm happy you wore the floral suit. It's perfect for a spring wedding and you looked amazing. Good for you that you were finally able to wear it out to an event. All your hard work making it paid off with all the compliments you received.

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  28. You guys looked fantastic (and I absolutely love Michael's shirt). I'm so happy for your friends!

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  29. You both look GREAT. But Michael should have had a RED SILK ASCOT. All that neutral is just SCREAMING for a red accent. And you, maybe a pocket square of some kind. I think maybe BLACK. There's just a tiny bit more of something needed to 'ground" the look. Still looks GREAT though; PERFECT for a gay wedding at Studio 54's basement!

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  30. I love this post!!! You and Michael look! AWESOME! If I was a passerby I certainly would have added my two cents! Talk about a sewers high!!!!

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  31. I love it - that suit is PURE JOY which is exactly what weddings are about. Congratulations to the happy couple!

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  32. I cheered when I scrolled down, you looked Fantastic, so pleased you dared, I think you were right to ditch the tie and hat, and white shoes? well tan perhaps if you are worried about a seasonal faux pas.

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  33. Fabulous!!
    And if you two ever Do get married, you must take out a post office box so we can all send you gobs of presents that won't fit in your apartment!!

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  34. you looked marvelous, Peter, and so nice to reconnect after 40 years!

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  35. You both look great! And you and Sting are twinsies: http://tomandlorenzo.com/2014/04/pairs-division-trudie-styler-and-sting-at-the-25th-annual-rainforest-fund-gala/

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    1. As lovely as Sting's gucci suit is - he didn't make it HIMSELF.

      Out of a bedsheet.

      From Goodwill.

      Peter FOR. THE. WIN.

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  36. Eh, Stings suit had no joy to it at all! Grey, black and navy flowers...for a funeral not a wedding. Poor fit too.
    Good choice Peter! And I'll bet Gucci made his suit after you made your... reminds me of the Marcie (Oona) rip off by RTW last summer.

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  37. Most excellent, and best of all you received advanced encouragement from one of the grooms. Mazel!

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  38. You two look great, and so do the happy couple! What a lovely day! But I can't believe you're teasing us with the possibility of wedding bells in your future! I can't take the suspense!!!!! I know you and Michael will make the choice that's best for you, but selfishly I really want you to go for it so we can see some special occasion sewing from you!

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  39. And THAT is my trick! Go out looking outrageously fabulous to get their attention, then give them a business card. You guys look incredible, the whole event looks incredible! Congratulations to the happy couple!

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  40. Oh yeah, and the only other person I have seen that can wear a suit as amazing as that and pull it off like you is RuPaul. So. You are in well dressed fabulous company, well done.

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  41. You and Michael both look fantastic! Of course, I love how well you represent the homemade clothing community! And you remind us all to be true to ourselves by following our sartorial hearts.

    Peter, do you watch the web series, High Maintenance? I highly recommend the episode called "Rachel" starring Dan Stevens (from Downton Abbey). It's fantastic, and I initially thought of it while reading your posts on men wearing skirts. Enjoy...
    http://vimeo.com/channels/highmaintenance/90011431

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  42. I'm glad you wore the suit and helped celebrate such an important day with friends.
    I tend to wear my kilt if I go to a wedding, friends now expect it and it's always a good talking point with the new people you meet.
    Congratulations to David and Howard.

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  43. As a conservatively dressed Brit myself, I opted that you go for the dark trousers and the floral jacket - I'm glad you went with your gut instinct, you (and Michael) look great.
    Lee

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  44. your suit is wonderful - a joyful expression of celebration of spring and of friends' loving commitment. Congratulations to all of you!

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  45. An awesome suit. Great job, Mr. P.

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  46. Absolutely FABULOUS! Over the top, to be sure, but perfect just the same!!

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  47. Simply AMAZING. No other words do it justice!

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  48. If those 70s sheets could talk! You both look DY-NO-MITE!

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