Necktie Knots

[bombayjack]

Interesting question, I've wondered the same thing. I feel like a slightly looser knot is a sign of the times recently -- a bit of a trend. I could be wrong, though.

 

[tonyb]

Sometimes I wonder if what we're seeing might be the wrong type of knot for the type of tie. You know, the fabric content and weight of the backing, etc. Perhaps some knots just won't stay in place when they're made with certain types of ties?

 

[cufflinkmaniac]

I usually use a half Windsor which covers the fabric on top.

 

[dhermann1]

I've given that a certain amount of thought also. I suspect that it's the shirt that's the culprit. When a shirt collar folds down correctly over the tie, it shouldn't show at the neck. I find that the dress shirts that I own that have stiff papery collars tend to do this. I don't like seeing a little patch of shirt collar sticking up over the knot. Kind of kills the neat appearance you're trying for.

 

[Bourbon Guy]

Should any of the shirt material show above a "standard" tie knot?

No.

 

[Wil Tam]

**

the shirt needs to be the right size too... when I was working @ Deutsche Bank, I would see some the probies wearing ill fitting shirts, usually too big, so the neckline would be too wide... which would make the tie worn look funny .. also the whole look didn't hang right.

half-windsor knotted ties paired with a good fitting shirt and you would look crisp, even if you rolled your sleeves up & unbuttoned the top button.

----------------
Now playing: Radiohead - (Nice Dream)
via FoxyTunes

 

[Ethan Bentley]

I like the Cavendish know but have more recently been using the Half-Windsor. That link is very good and I have just tried that full Windsor again. It's just too thick up there with all that tie. But I think this feeling is also largely due to the large number of awful Windsor know I've seen round the necks of Bankers in the City of London - those that still wear ties.

 

[cufflinkmaniac]

I prefer the half Windsor or Pratt knot to the full Windsor. That said, I second the 2TieATie notion.

 

[pipe23]

http://www.sexytie.com/ is the online source I use, only a few knots shown but I find myself watching them over and over.

 

[The Wolf]

I use a Windsor knot with my modern ties to use up more of the fabric and avoid having the tie hang too low.

Sincerely,
The Wolf

 

[Subvet642]

I used to always use the Double (Full) Windsor knot, having learned it in boot camp oh-so-many-years-ago. Now that I am a bit "larger" than I used to be, and spending more for ties, I've begun to use the four-in-hand knot, as it stresses the tie much less than the Windsor, and reaches my belt easier. :whistling

 

[Macheath]

The Four-in-Hand

For far too long I've avoided using a four-in-hand not, even when it was probably appropriate. Perhaps it was because it is such a simple knot, and for most people, the only type of knot they ever bother to learn.

There's something about the asymmetry of it that bothered me as well, and the way it comes loose and skews off to the side when tied loosely. Maybe it's because my head is the size of Montana and I need fullness in my knots.

In any case, for one or more irrational reasons, I've thought of it as an inferior knot, and I'd like for my mind to be opened.

Let's see your smartest looking four-in-hand, be it on your Morning Dress ensemble or paired with your favorite collar bar.

 

[Trotsky]

Ahh, the poor neglected four-in-hand. Often a boy's first tie knot. For most of us, the only knot we will ever use. For some, passed over in favor of the knot of the moment. I have seen far more windsors and half windsors than anything on photos of sharply dressed men. (Ironically, ZZ Top never wore ties, save for the bolo).
The four-in-hand is a noble knot, and worthy of our use. Look at any picture of the soldier from the Second World War, and what knot are they wearing? The four in hand. Easy, works good with issue ties and often the only knot those fellows knew.
So, we can legitimately call the four in hand a veteran of both sides during the war. I'm wearing one right now at work, with a '70s Countess Mara tie. Nice, pleasantly thick and just right.

 

[Macheath]

These guys wear it well:

It was the movie The Roaring Twenties that made me question my deep-seated bias against the humble four-in-hand. I think it was Jeffrey Lynn wearing a club collar shirt with a four-in-hand knot. After seeing that, I realized that almost everyone else in that movie tied a four-in-hand, and it fits.

 

[skbellis]

Depends on tie length...

With normal modern ties I usually use the half-windsor knot, however with my vintage ties I find it necessary to use the "Four-in-Hand" knot due to the physical shortness of these ties.

Cheers,

Scott

 

[Feraud]

Good point skbellis. Modern ties are so long that they require a half or full Windsor to take up some slack. Yet most modern ties are so thick that full knots tend to look huge. This is a good reason to avoid most modern ties.

A Lounger mentioned his preference for a Pratt/Shelby knot. I've tried it and it is a good one.

 

[cufflinkmaniac]

I'm a half Windsor kind of guy but I do use the FIH with thicker ties and button down collars. I also like the Pratt and Prince Albert (glorified FIH).

 

[Subvet642]

Good point skbellis. Modern ties are so long that they require a half or full Windsor to take up some slack. Yet most modern ties are so thick that full knots tend to look huge. This is a good reason to avoid most modern ties.

I'm both tall and big, so I've found that the FIH is just the thing to keep my ties from being too short. It also has the added benefit of not stressing the fabric of ties too much. It's funny, I've only just discovered the FIH, I've been using the full Windsor knot my whole life, it's the knot I learned in the Navy (in addition to the square knot for the neckerchief).

 

[Fletch]

My 17" neck, and taste for 30s-40s (always short!) ties and barred collars, mean I use the four almost exclusively.

I like the Pratt knot with spread collars, especially for knit ties, because there's no lining to show on the short end (with the Pratt the lining faces out).

 

[Tomasso]

IMO, it is much more difficult to tie an aesthetically pleasing FIH than any other type of knot; the others basically tie themselves whereas the FIH requires practice and skill to pull off effectively. The FIH's pictured above are pitiful, IMO.


This is my vision of a well executed FIH:

Mind you, it requires a tie of just the right cut and thickness. That's why I always give a tie a test tie before I buy.