Alexander McQueen for a June wedding

A wedding at Cap-Ferrat in late June is not the same wedding as one in Brooklyn in late June, and dressing for it isn't either. The Riviera asks for less than people think — a wide-leg trouser, a silk shirt that sits an inch off the collarbone, sandals that don't announce themselves. The work is in the restraint. The work is always in the restraint.

Alexander McQueen understands occasion in a way that most houses don't. The tailoring holds its line in heat. The silhouettes photograph well but don't demand the camera. And crucially, the pieces move between registers — garden ceremony to dinner under tent fabric — without looking like they're trying. What follows are four approaches to June wedding dressing, scaled to four different thermostats.

The Mediterranean Afternoon (85°F, low humidity)

Start with the Curve blazer in ivory grain de poudre. It's cut with a nipped waist and a longer body than you expect, which means it skims rather than clings. The wool is a 240-gram weave, substantial enough to hold structure but light enough that you're not fighting it by 4pm. Wear it open over a silk camisole — the maison's bias-cut versions in oyster or champagne sit flat against the ribs and don't ride up when you sit.

Pair it with wide-leg trousers in the same grain de poudre or switch to linen if the venue's on grass. McQueen's linen tailoring comes pre-washed, so it wrinkles with intention rather than looking like you slept in it. Shoes: the Curve slingback in patent leather, mid-height. Patent reads formal without reading bridal, and the ankle strap keeps them on when you're navigating uneven stone. Carry the Jewelled Satchel in brushed calfskin. Small enough that it doesn't compete with the outfit, large enough for a phone and the lipstick you'll reapply twice.

The English Garden (68°F, chance of rain)

McQueen does summer suiting better than it has any right to. The wool-silk blend they use for their Peak blazer has a subtle sheen that catches light without looking like you're trying to catch light. Choose it in soft grey or navy — both photograph as near-black in shade, which matters if this wedding has a no-black dress code that someone will enforce.

Underneath: a high-neck blouse in silk crêpe de chine. McQueen's versions come with a mandarin collar and covered buttons, which gives you formality without fuss. The sleeves are long but can be worn pushed to three-quarter length if the sun breaks through. Trousers again, this time in the same wool-silk as the blazer. The continuity of fabric makes the outfit read as a suit without announcing itself as one.

For shoes, consider the Tread Slick oxford in polished leather. Yes, it's technically a boot — the sole has a commando tread — but the silhouette is clean and the grip matters when you're on wet lawn. If that feels too mannish for the occasion, the Curve pump in suede works. Bring a structured tote. The East West in grained leather has an interior pocket wide enough for an umbrella.

The Brooklyn Warehouse (78°F, industrial ventilation)

This is where you can lean into McQueen's more sculptural instincts without looking like you're cosplaying. The Peplum jacket — cut in cotton faille with a defined waist and a flared hem that hits mid-hip — gives you shape and movement. It's a piece that looks considered in photos but doesn't require you to stand still.

Wear it with a slip dress underneath, not a trouser. McQueen's slip dresses in silk satin are cut on the bias with enough weight that they don't cling to shapewear. The contrast between the structured jacket and the fluidity of the dress does the work for you. Keep the dress in a neutral — ivory, blush, or that specific shade of grey-beige the maison calls String.

Shoes are the Knot mule in nappa leather. Backless, which matters when you're standing on concrete for two hours, and the knotted vamp gives you a detail to hang the outfit on. The Skull clutch in leather — not the crystal version, the leather one — works here in a way it doesn't at most weddings. The industrial space can take a harder edge.

The Amalfi Terrace (90°F, full sun)

You need less than you think. A silk midi dress in one of McQueen's archival prints — the Ivy Lace motif or the Japanese Floral, both of which have been in rotation since 2016 — does the entire job. The prints have enough contrast that they read as dressed without requiring jewelry or a jacket. The silk is a 16-momme weight, which means it has body but still moves.

If the dress feels like too much colour, the Draped gown in silk crêpe comes in solid tones and has an asymmetric neckline that gives you architecture without structure. Both dresses work with the Curve sandal in metallic leather — gold or silver, depending on your undertone and whether you're willing to have that conversation with yourself.

Carry the Nano Jewelled bag on a chain strap. It holds almost nothing, which is the point. You're not working. You're witnessing.

What Not to Do

Don't wear the Armadillo boot to someone else's wedding. Don't wear the Knuckle clutch unless you're prepared to talk about the Knuckle clutch for 45 minutes. Don't assume that because it's June you can get away with a cotton dress — cotton wrinkles with malice in heat and McQueen's cotton pieces are often lined in ways that make them warmer than the fabric suggests. And don't wear black to a wedding unless you've been explicitly invited to or you're prepared to be asked about it. Even McQueen's black has a point of view, and that point of view will become the conversation.