Black Tie in Los Angeles: What the Dress Code Actually Means

Black tie is one of the last dress codes that tells a guest precisely what to wear, and it is still the one most often guessed at. Every few weeks somebody comes into the shop on Culver Boulevard holding an invitation, slightly irritated by it, asking whether the black suit in his wardrobe will do. It is a fair question, and the honest answer is that it will get him through the evening but it will not look like the thing the invitation asked for, and in photographs the difference is obvious.

So here is what the words mean, in the order a man usually needs them.

What black tie actually asks for

Black tie means a dinner jacket, which Americans more often call a tuxedo. It is not a dark suit. The two garments are cut along similar lines, but a dinner jacket is distinguished by one thing above all others: silk on the lapels, and silk down the outside seam of the trousers. That facing is what catches the light in a room lit by candles and chandeliers, and it is why a black suit under the same lighting looks flat and slightly municipal beside it.

The code is older than the lighting, but the reason has not changed. Evening clothes were designed for evening rooms.

The jacket

Midnight blue or black. Midnight blue is the older choice and, under artificial light, reads blacker than black does, which is one of the small pleasures of knowing the rules. Either is correct.

Lapels are peaked or shawl. A notch lapel on a dinner jacket is a borrowing from the business suit and it is the commonest giveaway on a rented tuxedo. Peak is the more formal and the more flattering on most shoulders. Shawl is softer, a little more Hollywood, and entirely at home at a Los Angeles dinner.

One button at the front, or two on a double-breasted. No vents at the back if you want the classical line, although a single vent is a reasonable concession for a man who will be sitting through a long dinner. Pockets are jetted, which means no flaps. Buttons are covered in the same silk as the lapel, not horn and never plastic.

All of our custom tuxedos in Los Angeles are full canvas and cut from the client's own pattern, as everything we make is.

The trousers

A single line of silk braid down the outside of each leg, matching the lapel facing. No belt and no belt loops, because evening trousers are held by side adjusters or braces. No turn-ups. The waistband sits higher than a modern suit trouser, which is not an affectation: it is what allows the shirt to stay covered when you reach for a glass.

The shirt

White, with a turndown collar or a wing collar, and a front that is either pleated or marcella, the waffle weave sometimes called pique. A plain poplin business shirt is the second commonest giveaway after the notch lapel.

Studs rather than buttons down the front, and double cuffs with links. If you own one pair of simple studs in mother of pearl you are set for the next twenty years. A custom shirts Los Angeles commission from us is $295 and takes two to four weeks, which is worth knowing if the dinner is closer than the suit.

What goes round the waist

The join between trouser and shirt should be covered. Either a cummerbund, pleats facing upwards, or a low-cut evening waistcoat. Not both, and not neither. With a double-breasted jacket you need no covering at all, since the jacket stays fastened all evening.

Bow tie, and only a bow tie

Black silk, hand-tied, matching the lapel facing in material. A pre-tied bow tie is perfectly symmetrical and reads as such from across a room. Tying one takes ten minutes to learn and the slight unevenness is the point.

A long tie with a dinner jacket is not black tie. It is a different look, worn deliberately by some people, and if you are reading this for guidance you probably do not want to be one of them tonight.

Shoes

Black. Patent leather oxfords are the formal choice, highly polished calf is entirely acceptable, and velvet slippers belong to a host rather than a guest. Thin soles, no brogueing, black socks in silk or fine wool.

Black tie optional, and creative black tie

Two phrases that cause more anxiety in Los Angeles than anywhere else, largely because they appear on so many invitations here.

Black tie optional means the host would like black tie and will not mind a dark suit. If you own a dinner jacket, wear it. If you do not, a very dark suit with a white shirt and a sober tie is correct and nobody will look twice.

Creative black tie means the structure of black tie with one considered departure: a midnight velvet jacket, an ivory dinner jacket for a summer evening, a different silk at the lapel. The structure stays. One departure, not four.

Hiring, or having one made

Most men meet black tie for the first time at a hire counter, and for a single costume evening that is the sensible thing to do. Past the fourth or fifth hire the arithmetic turns the other way, and the shoulder of a rented jacket is the one part that cannot be put right on the night. We have set the two costs beside each other, hire by hire, in renting a tuxedo or having one made, including the three occasions on which we would send you to a rental shop ourselves.

What it costs, and when to start

A fully bespoke tuxedo from us starts at $1,795, full canvas, made by hand in our atelier in Southern Brittany by Max, who has made every garment this house has produced since 2010. That is the same entry price as our two-piece suit, and it includes unlimited fittings and a year of complimentary alterations. There is more on how our pricing works on the page about what a bespoke suit costs in Los Angeles.

Allow four to six weeks in domestic cloth and six to eight in imported Italian or English cloth. For a wedding, six months is comfortable and three is plenty; the wedding suits page covers the timings in more detail, and wedding parties take twenty per cent off. For a gala or an awards dinner, start the moment the date is in your diary rather than the month before, because a tuxedo ordered in a hurry carries a rush charge and, more to the point, loses a fitting.

We are at 221 Culver Blvd in Playa del Rey, with free parking front and back, and a consultation takes an hour and costs nothing. You can book a fitting here, see what the hour covers on our book a fitting page, or call 310-503-3592. If it is easier, we also come to you: there is a page on home and office tailoring visits in Los Angeles.

Questions we are often asked

Can I wear a black suit to a black tie event?

You can, and you will be the man in the black suit. Nobody will comment, and the photographs will show it. If black tie events come round once a year or more, a dinner jacket earns its place quickly, because it is the one garment that never dates and never needs replacing for fashion.

Is a tuxedo more expensive than a suit?

Not here. Our tuxedo starts at $1,795, the same as our two-piece suit, because the making is identical. The price of any garment we make is set by the cloth, not by the occasion.

Peak lapel or shawl collar?

Peak is the more formal of the two and tends to broaden the shoulder, which suits most men. Shawl is rounder and quieter, and looks very well on a man with a strong frame who does not need the extra width. Both are correct, and it is worth seeing the two in the mirror before deciding.

What is the difference between a dinner jacket and a tuxedo?

Nothing. Dinner jacket is the British name and tuxedo the American one, after Tuxedo Park in New York, where the short evening jacket first appeared in the United States in the 1880s.

Do I need a cummerbund?

With a single-breasted jacket, yes, or an evening waistcoat instead. The purpose is to cover the waistband so that the line from collar to shoe is unbroken. With a double-breasted jacket you need neither.

How long does a bespoke tuxedo take?

Four to six weeks in domestic cloth, six to eight in imported cloth, from the first consultation to delivery. A rush is possible at twenty-five per cent above the normal price, though it costs you a fitting, which is the part we would rather not give up. Each of those weeks is accounted for in how long it takes to make a bespoke suit.