# Does Anyone Ever Regret Joke Outfits for Special Occasions? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 14, 2025, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041 "2025-09-14T20:48:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/1 "2025-09-14T20:48:01Z")
I was checking my Facebook feed when I come across a photo of a young couple who were going to homecoming. As I get older, young people only look younger, and I think they’re high schoolers rather than college. The kid wanted to wear a Rick & Morty tie but couldn’t fine one, so his mom bought a black tie and painted Rick & Morty on it for him and it looks pretty good. I don’t personally have strong feelings one way or the other in regards to how someone chooses to dress for some social occasions. If someone wants to wear a tuxedo t-shirt to prom, well, more power to ‘em. On those rare occasions when someone looks back at a joke outfit they wore to a serious occasion, do they ever regret their choices? I’ve certainly laughed at some of the outfits and styles from my youth, but I can’t say I’ve ever regretted what I chose to wear when it came to formal events. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/2 "2025-09-14T21:12:46Z")
I’d hardly call a tie with a cartoon character on it as a “joke outfit.” ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/3 "2025-09-14T21:23:11Z")
For a formal occasion I can’t help but think of it as a joke article of clothing at least. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/4 "2025-09-14T22:05:16Z")
I don’t regret not setting foot in stuffy formal occasions. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/5 "2025-09-14T22:07:23Z")
My son wore a chainmail tie to a formal wedding recently, and it was a huge hit. Turns out the other groom (not the one who invited us) makes chainmail, and loved it. Anyway, my guess is that the sort of person who wears a joke outfit to a formal occasion is generally happy with the outcome. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/6 "2025-09-14T23:06:30Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > If someone wants to wear a tuxedo t-shirt to prom, well, more power to ‘em. I wore a tuxedo t-shirt, not to prom, but to our state fair as a member of a small pep band that roamed the grounds in the 1970s, playing our school fight song, which was well received by alumna there. I’m pretty sure we never asked for permission, we’d just find a spot or take over the beer hall for a mini-concert. We were supposed to dress as a bum, but back then the tuxedo t-shirt was just gaining popularity, and were hard to find. So I just took a magic marker to a white t-shirt, drawing on a tuxedo. It was fine, until I got home after a long day and saw myself in a mirror for the first time. As I sweated in the heat, the magic marker had ran and streaked all over. Nobody said anything all day. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/7 "2025-09-14T23:11:26Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I’d hardly call a tie with a cartoon character on it as a “joke outfit.” When I think of a ‘joke outfit’ for prom, I’m thinking of something more along the lines of a duct tape tux: [![](https://captainchang.com/images/photos/tape-couple.jpg) ](https://captainchang.com/images/photos/tape-couple.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/8 "2025-09-15T15:27:16Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I’d hardly call a tie with a cartoon character on it as a “joke outfit.” Yeah, as a guy who has appeared in numerous absurd and creative outfits…. I mean, I did a Jews Harp solo wearing nothing but a large moustache, cowbow boots and rhinestone spangled g-string, that tie is pretty tame. (It was for a fundraiser for our camp at Afrika Burn, an offshoot of Burning Man, so weird is fairly normal) ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/9 "2025-09-15T15:29:52Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > For a formal occasion I can’t help but think of it as a joke article of clothing at least. Homecoming is not an actual “formal occasion.” It’s kids going to a dance. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/10 "2025-09-15T16:54:18Z")
A college friend of mine got married on the pirate ship outside Treasure Island Casino in Vegas. My invitation got lost in the mail, so I wasn’t able to attend. The bridal party was dressed in pirate attire, and guests were invited to do the same. I absolutely 100% would have rented a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform to wear, and there’s not a day goes by that I don’t regret having missed that opportunity. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/11 "2025-09-15T16:59:56Z")
I think any event with kids isn’t really formal, if a high school dance isn’t a good time for playful wardrobe, when is? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/12 "2025-09-16T08:06:25Z")
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet [wore a Nazi uniform](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-64245422) to his 21st birthday party. He revealed this after a colleague raised it with him. I would imagine that, since the article mentions Prince Harry being photographed in a Nazi uniform with a swastika armband, it was a fairly common thing for those that could afford a costume. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/13 "2025-09-16T13:24:28Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > A college friend of mine got married on the pirate ship outside Treasure Island Casino in Vegas. My invitation got lost in the mail, so I wasn’t able to attend. The bridal party was dressed in pirate attire, and guests were invited to do the same. I absolutely 100% would have rented a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform to wear, and there’s not a day goes by that I don’t regret having missed that opportunity. My wife’s sister got married at the Jersey shore aboard ship, and it was suggested that everyone dress like Pirates for the occasion. So I did – I had a pretty good and complete pirate costume I’d put together for Halloween a few years previous. So I got there, dressed as a pirate, braided beard, eyepatch, and all (but no peg leg or hook hand – there’s a limit). And found that I was the only one who dared show up in costume. I’m not sure I regret it. You feel a certain freedom when you’re in costume. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/14 "2025-09-16T14:05:35Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I’m not sure I regret it. You feel a certain freedom when you’re in costume. Of course you wouldn’t regret it. Given you were encouraged to dress that way, your outfit was entirely appropriate. I wouldn’t normally wear shorts and a Hawaiian shirt to a wedding, but the invitation encouraged me to dress in that manner and so I was happy to oblige. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-regret-joke-outfits-for-special-occasions/1023041/15 "2025-09-16T14:32:59Z")
A character on a long-forgotten TV show in the 70s wore a red suit, and it got comments. So I thought I needed one. I could wear it and make an impression! People would comment! The best we could find was a red sports jacket. The reality of wearing it didn’t match my visions, so it went to the back of the closet and eventually away. So I regret spending good money we didn’t have on something that really wasn’t a good idea. I was 10.