Black Tie with Sam: The Dress2Kill Guide to Dinner Suits.

Black tie season is approaching, bringing Christmas parties, awards ceremonies, charity dinners, winter weddings and some of the smartest events in the calendar.

But what should you actually wear for black tie? What’s the difference between a dinner suit and a smoking jacket? Should you wear a wing-tip collar? And does anyone really need to know how to tie their own bow tie?

We sat down with Sam from Dress2Kill London to talk about bespoke dinner suits, velvet smoking jackets and the black-tie rules every man should know.

Sam, what should a man wear for a black-tie event?

A proper dinner suit.

Black tie is one of those occasions where I think men should embrace the dress code rather than try to reinvent it. The details matter — the jacket, trousers, dress shirt, waistcoat, bow tie and shoes all need to work together.

But traditional doesn’t have to mean boring.

With a bespoke dinner suit, we can respect the rules of black tie while creating something individual to the person wearing it.

What’s Dress2Kill’s most popular black-tie jacket?

Without question, the velvet smoking jacket.

Velvet smokers have become our most popular black-tie choice because they give you all the elegance of traditional eveningwear but allow you to introduce more personality.

We offer our bespoke velvet smoking jackets in a huge range of colours. You can keep things understated with black or midnight blue, or go for richer shades such as bottle green, burgundy and other statement colours.

Pair a velvet smoking jacket with black dinner trousers, a crisp white dress shirt, a proper self-tie bow tie and patent shoes and you’ve got an incredibly sharp black-tie outfit.

Our bespoke velvet smoking jackets cost £1,000.

Does a black-tie jacket have to be black?

Absolutely not.

Your trousers will generally remain black, but your dinner jacket is where you can introduce colour and personality.

Velvet is particularly good for this because of the way it looks under evening lighting. Deep greens, burgundies, blues and other rich colours can look fantastic while still feeling sophisticated.

The key is making sure the entire outfit still looks like eveningwear rather than simply a colourful suit.

What shirt should you wear with a dinner suit?

This is one of my biggest black-tie rules.

A black-tie dress shirt should ALWAYS have a full cutaway collar.

There’s a common misconception that you should wear a wing-tip collar with a dinner suit. You shouldn’t.

Wing-tip collars are for white tie, not black tie.

For black tie, I want a beautifully fitted white dress shirt with a proper full cutaway collar sitting cleanly underneath the bow tie.

If you don’t believe me, watch a James Bond film and look at what he’s wearing with his dinner suit.

That’s the look.

Our bespoke dress shirts cost £150.

Marcella bib or pleated dress shirt?

Personally, I prefer a Marcella bib every time.

A pleated bib is perfectly acceptable, but I think Marcella gives a dinner shirt a cleaner, sharper and more sophisticated appearance.

I like to take that detail further.

My preference is to make the bib, collar and cuffs all in Marcella. That means that once you’ve got your dinner jacket on, essentially all the white shirt detailing you can see is Marcella.

It’s subtle, but that’s exactly what great black tie is about.

It’s those small details that elevate the whole outfit.

Should you wear a waistcoat with a dinner suit?

I personally love a dress waistcoat, and I encourage a lot of our customers to wear one.

For me, the perfect option is a double-breasted dress waistcoat with a satin shawl collar.

It completely finishes the outfit.

There’s also a practical reason I like them. At some point during the evening you’re probably going to take your dinner jacket off.

If you’re wearing a beautifully cut double-breasted dress waistcoat underneath, it’s almost like you’ve still got a miniature dinner jacket on.

Everyone else takes their jacket off and suddenly looks less formal.

You still look like the smartest person in the room.

That’s exactly what I want from black tie.

Should you wear a self-tie or pre-tied bow tie?

For me, there’s only one answer.

Self-tie. Always.

I can spot a clip-on or pre-tied bow tie immediately, and it just doesn’t have the same character.

The slight imperfection of a hand-tied bow tie is part of what makes it look so good. And later in the evening, when you undo it and leave it hanging around your collar, that’s part of the classic black-tie look too.

What if I don’t know how to tie a bow tie?

I’ll teach you.

It’s much easier than people think once somebody has shown you properly.

We’ve also created a step-by-step bow-tie tutorial on the Dress2Kill Instagram page, where I show you exactly how to tie your own bow tie.

So there’s no excuse for a clip-on.

Peak lapel or shawl collar for a dinner jacket?

Both can look fantastic.

For a traditional dinner suit, I’m a huge fan of a peak lapel. It’s strong, masculine and incredibly flattering.

For a velvet smoking jacket, I love a shawl collar. It gives you that classic smoking-jacket feel and works beautifully with velvet.

That’s one of the advantages of having your dinner suit made bespoke. We’ll look at your build, your personal style and the type of event you’re attending and create something around you rather than following a standard template.

Satin or grosgrain lapels?

Again, both work.

Satin gives you that classic polished dinner-suit finish, while grosgrain offers slightly more texture and is a little more understated.

There’s no need to overcomplicate it. The important thing is making sure all the elements of the outfit complement each other.

What does your perfect black-tie outfit look like?

If I were putting together my ideal black-tie look, I’d go for:

A beautifully fitted velvet smoking jacket, black dinner trousers, a white bespoke dress shirt with a Marcella bib, Marcella full cutaway collar and Marcella cuffs, a double-breasted dress waistcoat with a satin shawl collar, a hand-tied black bow tie and patent shoes.

It’s traditional black tie, but with enough detail and personality to make it your own.

When should I order a bespoke dinner suit?

Now.

Black tie season comes around incredibly quickly, and every year we see people leave ordering their dinner suit until the last minute.

If you’ve got Christmas parties, awards ceremonies, winter weddings, charity dinners or other formal events coming up, don’t wait until the invitation is sitting on your desk.

A bespoke dinner suit gives us the opportunity to create something specifically for you, but doing it properly takes time.

What’s the biggest black-tie mistake you see?

Trying too hard — and getting the basics wrong.

Black tie isn’t fancy dress.

You don’t need loads of accessories or gimmicks. You need a beautifully cut dinner suit or velvet smoking jacket, the correct white dress shirt, a hand-tied bow tie, proper evening shoes and attention to the details.

Get those fundamentals right and you’ll stand out for the right reasons.

Finally, what would you recommend to someone buying their first dinner suit?

Buy something you’ll still want to wear in ten years.

A great dinner suit isn’t a one-season purchase. Done properly, it’s one of the hardest-working pieces of formalwear you’ll own.

And if you want something with a little more individuality, come and look at our bespoke velvet smoking jackets. With the range of colours we offer, we can create something completely personal while keeping the traditional black-tie details exactly where they should be.

Bespoke velvet smoking jackets – £1,000
Bespoke dress shirts – £150

Looking for a bespoke dinner suit in London?

Visit Dress2Kill London to discuss your next black-tie outfit, from classic dinner suits and velvet smoking jackets to bespoke dress shirts and dress waistcoats.

Book your black-tie consultation and get ahead of the season.