What would a young man wear to an informal wedding reception- not a suit

[DelphiniumBlue]

We've got a family wedding celebration coming up- the wedding has already happened but this is the delayed celebration. It's an evening do, and DS has been working from home for the whole of Covid. He has no sense of style, lives in the same jeans and tshirts all the time, has nothing remotely suitable to wear. He doesn't care about clothes, but has said he will put on something new, if I help him source it.
I don't want to be embarrassed in front of family with DS looking like a
tramp -computer nerd- and don't mind helping.
But I don't know where to start for smart casual/presentable Any ideas?
He is 6', heavily built. Any suggestions welcome.

Chinos and a shirt?

Oxford shirt, unstructured linen blazer, slim fit chinos, chelsea boots is the type of thing my DS would usually go for in this scenario.

How old is your DS and what is his budget? Mine (26) buys most of his stuff from Mr. Porter, who currently have an up to 60% off sale on.

And make sure he's had a haircut and shave!

@NannyAndJohn

And make sure he's had a haircut and shave!

I don't think that's going to happen! Currently got shoulder length hair with a top knot and a slightly sparse goatee beard! He's 26, budget not a problem if it's something he'd wear again . I'll have a look at Mr Porter.

Smart slim fit chinos, cotton ,Iinen mix oxford style shirt, casual cotton blazer, , smart vans maybe

Depends on how 'informal' it is

One down from a suit and tie, for my ds (who is 25) would be a pair of black formal trousers and an open necked shirt

Next level would be a pair of black jeans and either similar shirt - plain, probably blue, or he has a navy one with a sort of green thread in it, but it is still a shirt with a collar

Then you get into smart jeans and potentially a check shirt, or a smart thin jumper type level

I know a lot of young men in early 20s and I have never seen any of them wear chinos, as always gets suggested on MN, so maybe is is regional or to do with your income or demograph ?

Chinos (or black or navy coloured jeans) & a shirt prob no need for blazer or tie unless venue uber posh. Haircut and shave.

I'm beginning to think black everything, collared shirt and maybe black jeans- decent ones would be worth spending money on from his POV. Not sure if it's worth getting some sort of jacket, maybe black linen?
But where from in an XXL?

Assuming that XXL converts to a 38 in trouser size, here are some black jeans currently half price or more. DS and DH both have some nice things from the second designer.

www.mrporter.com/en-gb/mens/product/frame/clothing/slim-jeans/l-homme-slim-fit-stretch-denim-jeans/25458910981921815

www.mrporter.com/en-gb/mens/product/officine-generale/clothing/slim-jeans/kurt-slim-fit-denim-jeans/46128359903046002

www.mrporter.com/en-gb/mens/product/clothing/slim-jeans/lewitt-slim-fit-selvedge-denim-jeans/3024088872969897

@NannyAndJohn

And make sure he's had a haircut and shave!

Yes, especially important if he has long hair and a goatee! A good barber can tidy it all up and make him look really put-together.

Deffo Chinos and linen shirt vibe or checked slacks and nerdy shirt look with a smart blazer or jacket.
Absolutely not black please OP. It would be disrespectful to wear black.
Have a great day 😊 xx
Not a good look for a wedding

Sorry last sentence dropped off to the end somehow. It was supposed to be before the salutation.
I hope he looks dapper 😊

Please don't encourage your DS to wear all black to a wedding, that really isn't appropriate. Smart black trousers and a lighter coloured shirt would be fine. My DS is going to a wedding next weekend - he is wearing chinos, open necked shirt and a jacket (as far as I know, he sorts his own wardrobe out).

My DS has a similar look with the hair etc. His go to is a kilt with a leather jacket.

I'd do decent boots or maybe converse, slim dark jeans, maybe a plain t shirt and a casual bomber or Harrington jacket, or a dark coloured button down collar shirt teamed with the jacket. Hair either clean and down or tied up neatly and beard trimmed neatly if he has one.

Maybe even this:

fhwt.app.link/QPdC4vFymhb

Teamed with a nice Oxford or button collar shirt and dark plain jeans.

I'd not say this if it was the actual wedding but for an informal celebration event I think tidy casual will be fine, better than shorts and a t shirt anyway...

Or a shirt like this?

fhwt.app.link/EAORdAezmhb

DS was best man at an informal wedding where all the male wedding party members wore light coloured chinos, crisp white shirts and silk waistcoats. They looked wonderful.

As well as the haircut and shave, make sure his underwear is not visible.

If he's XXL jacamo might have solutions

This may be going too far even for these post COVID times and it depends on the do but I've noticed some young men are wearing shorts in a dressed up way: obviously appropriate length and fabric and with a smart long sleeved shirt.

Disclaimer: I've not been to a Do since 2019, it's just something I've noticed in restaurants lately.

DH has this in a XL, its roomy and looks great. It is £££ but he wears it a lot

uk.americanvintage-store.com/ProductDisplay?urlRequestType=Base&catalogId=10051&categoryId=99547&productId=244511&errorViewName=ProductDisplayErrorView&urlLangId=-1&langId=-1&top_category=99503&parent_category_rn=99540&storeId=11152&sku=244515#

Kin at John Lewis might be worth a look, eg jacket ; linen shirt ; chinos.

Thanks for all the suggestions.
I'll show him the Kin stuff.
ElephantofRisk I can't open the Next links properly, they all go to the opening page - is the first one a jacket?
I've looked at Jacamo, which is where most of his clothes come from, but the jacket choice is not great, and I can't imagine the clothes on there as an actual outfit. I couldn't see him in light or ankle length trousers, for example. That's why I'm not sure about the Chino options, or what sort of jacket to put them with. I think part of the issue is his size, he's very concious of it, and anything drawing attention to thighs, or lower leg ( so not very slim cut) would be rejected. As would a short jacket.
This is why I'm doing the looking, shopping for clothes is a really miserable and soul-destroying task for him. When he is thinner, he enjoys clothes more, and there is of course more choice available.

Could try Levi's website for black jeans
They go up to a 40 inch waist on most styles and a 44 in some.
Leg length up to 36
Some have stretch denim so may feel more relaxed, they do proper shirts as well

Sorry the links didn't work but yes, it was a leather jacket.

I really feel for him and it was a similar issue with DS2. He just looked like.a sack of potatoes in a suit.

Something reasonably fitted and not too sack like would be a better option than something baggy honestly. It's difficult with shops at the moment but going in and trying a range of things would have been a good option.

It obviously depends on where his weight is distributed as to what the best look would be, but slim jeans would be better than loose and a decent length shirt would be good. The one I linked to was a grandad collar which might fit better with his style?

He could completely go without a jacket but I still think some sort of bomber type jacket, leather or otherwise, would be a decent option to try.

I know chinos and shirt are the go to option but neither of my DSs would wear that and your DS sounds most in line with my DS2, long hair, band t shirts etc and he wasn't an xxl but has been XL and very self conscious about it. So I've tried to recommend things that I think he would wear as your DS might like similar.

I think feeling good in what he wears is more important than fitting in with a stereotypically wedding type outfit.

Pick somewhere with a good return policy and order in a range of options for him to try on at home. MandMdirect might be another source of things?

I find Next decent as I have an account to get free delivery and returns so I can order in multiples. They do some particularly flexible jeans which DS really likes. He's a 36 waist now as he lost a bit of weight. he still gets the skinny fit though and they look good on. He tends to go for a dark grey or black.

I really hope you find a nice option for him, we all deserve to feel good about ourselves.