It’s still likely (though not guaranteed) to be warm in September. Suits are no fun in warm/hot weather, especially if it’s humid.
I haven’t been to every wedding in the midwest, obviously, but if their town is anything like the places I have lived in the midwest… almost no guys will be in suits, except close family and the groomsmen and groom. Male attendees mostly will be in a polo or button-down short sleeve shirt and khakis. Some will be in jeans or even shorts. I would think that business casual would be fine, especially given the presumed heat level.
Does it fit (or is it within alteration range of fitting), and is it a typical ordinary color? If so, wouldn’t that work if the wedding dress expectation is suits for men?
On the other hand, the dress expectation on a tropical island may be something else.
If there is a wedding website that may give details about dress code and/or you or your H can call his brother or SIL. Sounds like he will need a suit/tie or at least dark pants and a sport jacket with a tie from your description.
My H “outgrew” his old work suits and hadn’t needed one in years (wore tux to D’s wedding). We had/have upcoming a bunch of weddings recently so I insisted he get a suit that fits and we were able to do so pretty inexpensively on sale at Joseph Bank (owned by Mens Warehouse). I know for D’s wedding my BIL got a very inexpensive suit off the rack at Kohls and it was just fine.
My daughter’s boyfriend just got a suit (really two separate pieces) at Macy’s for a wedding he was in. They go to a ton of weddings and he decided he could use the ‘outfit’ many times even though he doesn’t wear suits to work. Dark but light weight, so he can wear it any time of the year.
I’d go with summer pants (khaki, white linen) and a shirt with a sport coat. Sounds like that could work for both the park wedding and the island wedding.
Honestly most people are not going to be looking at what he is wearing. As long as it’s in the ballpark of “made an effort” I’m sure it will be fine. If he shows up in flip-flops and shorts and a t-shirt he might get some looks, but unless he makes some effort to stand out everyone is going to be looking at the bride and groom and attendants.
Another idea could be navy blazer. It could be paired with shirt/tie or for more casual look a polo shirt (gives extra comfort after ceremony, when blazer sits on back of the chair.)
It’s obviously best to get the dress code from the bride or her mother, but in the absence of solid guidance I’d just get an inexpensive blazer from Men’s Wearhouse, pair it with existing khakis and any old button-down shirt and call it a day.
We attended a wedding in June that was, “semi-formal.” My friend’s dh is a mason, and he had nothing to wear. My friend found a gorgeous sports coat for him (new with tags) at Goodwill.
Kidding aside, for a beach wedding, I’d be inclined to wear shorts or swim trunks. If I wore pants, I would want to roll them up to the knee. I mean, it’s a beach. Or… arrive in nice clothes, but have some beachy clothing in the car just in case.
Maybe I hang with a more conservative (or older LOL) crowd but I would not wear shorts/swim trunks to a beach wedding (unless they noted that we’d be swimming) even if it is in a tropical climate. Likely I would wear a sundress with flats or and H would wear lightweight slacks and a short sleeved collared shirt.
In any event, one can always look on the wedding website and/or ask the hosts/wedding couple for guidance.
Thanks for all the tips. Husband said, I have a suit. Not that he’s worn it in 20 years.
Going to wait on the invite to see what that says. But now I have some leads on where to buy a suit or sport coat if he needs one. Since he hates to shop, he will probably be wearing an old suit. However it fits. Sigh
If the suit is 20 years old but fits well, it should be OK. FWIW, my husband wore a two decade old classic charcoal Boss suit as the father of the bride. He wore the same suit to big kid’s wedding 10 years ago. IMO, he looked just fine. I don’t think suit jackets evolved that much in that timeframe.