Yes, Ties Are Back. Here's an Indispensable Guide to Buying—and Wearing—Them.
Of all of menswear’s many recent losses, the necktie may be the most lamentable. We can all do without sock suspenders (I assume), and few of us will weep at the departure of top hats, jaunty as they may be. But the idea of a world without neckties is one we shouldn’t even entertain.
Once, the necktie—henceforth referred to as just a “tie”—was an everyday essential. Men wore ties to work under blue collars and white ones. They wore them to bars, to dinner, on movie dates, and on the sofa watching TV. Ties were as commonplace as wristwatches and underpants.
Until the ‘90s, ties were cool, too. Even subversive cats like David Bowie, Elvis Costello, and Andy Warhol understood that you could give the finger to the system and sport a strip of gabardine around your neck at the same time.
Then business casual came along and messed everything up. Polos replaced button-front shirts at the office and collar-wear lost serious ground. There was a short, irony-drenched resurgence in the 2000s, when hipsters in skinny jeans would wear equally skinny ties a la The Strokes, but it quickly faded. Eventually, the rise of streetwear delivered the final death blow, effectively obliterating ties from relevance. Even politicians and the most corporate of CEOs stopped wearing them daily. Now, for many guys, ties seem like a restrictive throwback— a tool of corporate subjugation and a needless sartorial appendage.
That’s a damn shame. While the red carpets of Hollywood have proven that open-necked looks can still be quite sharp, the fact of the matter is they’d likely be even better with a tie. It’s the finishing touch—the item that, like Lebowski’s rug, ties the whole thing together.
But long last, ties are making a comeback. You can see it on the runways of big brands like Saint Laurent, Prada, and Hermès. Or on the social feeds of Aimé Leon Dore, Todd Snyder, and Drake’s. Preppy Americana and ‘70s swagger are both having a moment right now. The vibe is very tie friendly, and it’s trickling down to real guys on the streets of London, New York, Paris—and soon, your town, too.
Maybe that external validation makes it easier to consider wearing a tie again. But even if the winds of fashion were blowing in a different direction, it’d still be the right move. What better way to thumb your nose at convention than wearing a tie just because you damn well feel like it, thanks very much?
And of course, there are still times when wearing a tie is necessary. So, when should you actually wear one? Which one should you wear? And when you knot that sucker up, which technique should you choose? If it all sounds overwhelming, worry not. Let’s break it down.
How to Choose a Tie
Sad though the news may be to deliver, I would suggest that most ties in existence are dreadful—thick, shiny slabs of polyester that would be better suited to wedding venue upholstery than one’s neck. A great tie has texture, and that can come from myriad fabrics. It could be knitted wool or woven cotton or classic silk, just avoid man-made fabrics or anything too shiny.
The two great tie brands are Drake’s (London) and Charvet (Paris), and they are all handmade by people that have been doing it over and over again for a very long time. But they are very expensive—around £200 to £300—so it may be prudent to by one second hand. Ties are one of the great hacks of affordable menswear; so many good ones have been made over the years that it’s easy to find fantastic-looking, well-made ones for just a few bucks in vintage stores.
Solid colours are a good go-to. But patterns shouldn’t be overlooked. Diagonally striped “club” or “repp” ties have their roots in the members’ clubs and universities of England. American versions nod to that tradition—they’re the go-to choice of Northeastern prepsters, after all—but without all the social strings attached. (In England, you might get shouted at for wearing a tie from a club you’re not a member of). The look can be really cool, especially if you’re channeling a Robert Redford, Ivy League feel. But be careful not to stray too far into the collegiate look. Never go full Rushmore.
Something with a retro geometric feel— the kind of thing Tony Soprano might have worn to a teamster meeting—is fun. I also like polka dots (small) and baroque style prints, like a nice paisley. Again, Drake’s does the best, but there are great patterned ties at Ralph Lauren, J. Press, Turnbull & Asser, and Tie Your Tie, too.
If you’re not sure, get a knitted silk-grenadine tie in navy, charcoal, or burgundy. This one at Todd Snyder is perfect, and shows how the loose weave of the fabric helps the tie sit flat and easy under a collar, so you’ll barely notice it’s there. Sid Mashburn does great knitted silk ties, too, as does Canali.
When to Wear a Tie
Now, in terms of when you should wear a tie, I would say there is only one occasion when good neckwear is truly obligatory: a funeral. For everything else, unless there’s a specific uniform, a tie is kind of optional. Weddings? Job interviews? Graduations? Optional, optional, optional.
But I implore you to wear one anyway. In the post-tie tie era, putting one on says—however improbable this might seem—that you are both subversive and ready to do business. It connects you to a legacy of other men: your father and grandfather, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Frank Sinatra, FDR, Al Capone, Oscar Wilde, et al. A tie boosts your confidence and improves your overall look. The long vertical line of a tie can help you appear slimmer than you really are. Moreover, ties embody the idiosyncratic pleasure of menswear—they are one of the many little variables that make getting dressed more interesting.
Plus, unless you’re Brad Pitt, opting not to wear one with a suit or a tailored jacket means you run the very real risk of looking like a politician trying to look like a man of the people while attending the G8 summit.
How to Tie a Tie
The tying is of course a crucial element of ties in general, and I have always been of the thinking that the less you have to do, the better. The four-in-hand knot is perhaps the simplest to perform, and as luck would have it, the best looking, especially with a little dimple pinched into the face of the tie, just beneath the knot. It is bookish and low-key, and looks good with a nice button-down oxford. In fact, from an institutional perspective, we here at Esquire would suggest you choose the four-in-hand and stick with it. It is, simply put, the best tie knot.
If you feel compelled to explore alternatives, the Windsors (“half” and “full”) are popular, though the bulk of the full Windsor tends to overwhelm the proportions of most modern collars. It also makes you look a bit stuffy and self-consciously businesslike. The key is to keep heft to a minimum. A small, unfussy knot will always trump something fat and overwrought. Those hyper-complicated knots you see when browsing the depths of Pinterest or Reddit? Leave them in the digital trash heap where they belong.
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