The many Virtues of the Bow Tie (Send Pics)

[CactusJax]

When I got out of College in '77 I worked in downtown Dallas for a while. I noticed a Tie shop going out of business. I went in and found a bunch of 50's skinny ties and a bunch of skinny 50's bow ties. They were almost giving them away. I left with a huge sack of retro ties all for less than my last Hermes at N M up the street. I hadn't had a bow tie except for my tux since those clip ons when I was a kid. It wasn't long until I was hooked.

Did you ever notice that every time you buy a Hermes or other expensive tie that you seem to get a spot on it the first time you eat in it? (Around here we say that dinner wasn't any good if you don't wear some home...)You get bumped into, while drinking cheap wine at a wedding reception by some drunk your kids age.... Not with a bow tie! They fit so neatly in your jacket pocket after you take them off. They don't wrinkle in your suitcase. OK, it takes an extra 45 seconds to tie one but so what. You can not get a bow tie stuck in a car door, nor do they blow up in your face in the wind. I'll bet nobody has ever been accidentally or intentionally strangled with a bow tie. Most people think they are exotic, wierd and would never try to tie one... Several of my lawyer friends told me that when learning to pick juries they were told not to wear a bow tie. People just dont trust people wearing a bow tie...

OK, I started the list. I'm sure I'll think of more. Add yours please....


CJ

 

[CactusJax]

Even your family will look better in the proximity of a bow tie!

 

[CactusJax]

Hint

A hint. Don't wear them in Japan. You would think George Carlin was doing Stand Up Comedy every time I walked into a restaurant in Japan a few years ago. People walked buy pointing and laughing hysterically all night, every night. Of course I got a kick out of it... I wonder what it symbolizes there. No giggles in China. I was in plentiful company in Europe and Great Britain...

 

[Spats McGee]

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to post. I started wearing bowties ~15 years ago and they've become one of the staples in my wardrobe. I don't wear them all the time, but I do wear them regularly. When you've got to wear a tie, it's nice to have something other than a standard tie.

Most people think they are exotic, wierd and would never try to tie one...

Absolutely true. I've even offered to teach some of my friends how to tie them, but only had 1 taker in all the years I've been wearing them.

 

[kpreed]

I have been doing Bow for a long time, but to be honest I do them now because they tend to look best for me in pre-tied for me as my hands shake a bit much for a tie. I do have a few 1940's era silk ties, but I am lazy.
Going to a dance just before Halloween in my wheelchair.

 

[Edward]

I've never worn one outside of evening wear (oh... and a Brad majors costume ). I remember one of the history professors at universtiy, must have been in his sixties, wore one daily, but that's very rare nowadays. For lounge suit or sports jacket and trousers I prefer a four in hand or cravat. Bow ties can look good as part of a vintage outfit and it's nice to see that variation; just not really me. A lot of FL members look great in them, though!

 

[Haversack]

Back before the near universal adoption of CAD and CADD in architectural offices, bow ties were practically a uniform item among many architects. For a very practical reason: They don't drag when you are working over a drafting table nor do they require artificial means of restraint like tie bars or tacks. (Those are engineers' solutions.) The British architect/cartoonist Louis Hellman uses bow tie wearers as a caricature of architects.

Haversack.

 

[renor27]

Bow ties

I have been thinking of taking the plunge and going to bow ties.
They are very 1920's to the the era that I wish to follow.
Has any one ever found a pattern for one, am starting to learn to sew ( only way I seem to be able to get the vintage clothing I want )
What made a bow tie vintage say from the 20's or 30's size? shape ? width?
Where is there a good place to buy them?
David

 

[Spats McGee]

I'm afraid that I don't know anything about 20s or 30s bow ties, much less about patterns or sewing one. If you're willing to wear new ones, however, they're not that hard to find. Most men's clothing stores will have at least a few bow ties for purchase. I've even seen some at the large chains like Dillard's. Naturally, there are a few online vendors and ebay, as well.

 

[Qadain]

I'm a big bow tie fan too. Bow ties and ascots are really all the neckwear I wear.

1. Bow ties are cheaper than four-in-hands and you can use either side.
2. When worn, more of the bow tie is showing, compared to four-in-hands that are mostly hidden by the jacket or waistcoat.
3. Bow ties look decent even un-tied at the end of a day, whereas four-in-hands look tacky when loosened.
4. Bow ties are easier to tie than four-in-hands. This is probably a personal thing since I wear bow ties so much and four-in-hands so little, and it takes me less time to tie a bow tie than putting on both my shoes and tying them.
5. A slight imperfection in the knot is a virtue for bow ties, but not for four-in-hands.

 

[Jovan]

I'm going to disagree with the last one. An imperfection is exactly what a four in hand knot is based on. It's asymmetrical. I don't see that as a non-virtue.

 

[Mid-fogey]

Where is...

...CharlestonBows?

I wear a bow tie once a week on Friday. It makes it a "Bow Tie Friday." I always say: "if you see me in a bow tie, be happy, it's Friday."

People get indignant if I forget. They demand them on "Virtual Fridays." Last time I forgot I had 7 people ask.

 

[CharlestonBows]

What made a bow tie vintage say from the 20's or 30's size? shape ? width?
Where is there a good place to buy them?
David

Bowties, really, haven't changed that much over time. Mid-century, you saw them narrow a bit, and in the 70s you saw those horrendous floppy things. All in all, though, a basic club bow, either straight edged or diamond point, or better yet, the classic thistle, have been the order for bows for nearly as long as the lounge suit was S.O.P.

I happen to offer many unique and exclusive fabrics, as well as some of the usual suspects, all ready made in a standard thistle (also known in the US as a 'butterfly'), or you can go bespoke and elect to have any of the fabrics (if available still) on the website to be made up in a custom bow. I also have about 30 constant-stock silks from which you may choose.

Learn more @ CharlestonBows.Com!

...CharlestonBows?

lol - observing quietly. Haha.

I'm having fun watching this thread. I'll see what pictures I can dig up of some of my favorites.


Part of the beauty of a bow is the slight messiness, the imperfection. It's the only garment in a man's closet - and yes, including the normal necktie - that can combine, quite elegantly, a level of sprezzatura, of flourish, a twist with an unrivaled level of dignity and formality. Not to mention the unspoken jealousy and admiration of those fellas turned out in less than spectacular form, or whom you see at a black tie affair wearing those terrible poly-blend pre-ties.

To tie a bow is to mark oneself with a level of dignity and sartorial mastery that most men simply cannot comprehend. It takes skill to learn to do it, and do it right. It takes confidence to wear it, and wear it right.

It's a shame that such an item of sartorial history, and which can serve so many varied and wide-ranging functions in a wardrobe has suffered with being equated with Pee-Wee Herman. Bows deserve better, precisely because of the skill required to tie and expertly wear it. It is an inherently elegant item -- and for many architects, doctors, pediatricians, academics and tailors (no one ever thinks of us!), it is a really practical alternative.

If you've been thinking about giving a bow a go, there is no better time than now -- and thats not just me being a salesman.

Over the past 2 years, young men have started to (try) and dress again. Suit sales have seen a marked increase in younger demographics, and along with tailored clothing, sales of accouterments have seen an increase.

Menswear Magazine has heralded the return of the bow, noting it as one of the essential items for the fall (not that the fashion glossies have much meaning here, but they do for the bottom line, lol). Bow business has blossomed across the north-east, and the mid-west. Some of my biggest bow clients are in Kansas, North Dakota and Iowa.

And as an aside -- while it is commonly known to those in the Lounge that the fabric makes the tie, this is doubly true for bows. If you get a poor silk, or worse, poly-blend, the bow will look deflated and floppy and impotent, and we don't want that. Buy a bow of high quality silk, something that will stand on it's own, wear after wear.

I don't mean to turn the thread into a sales pitch, so I'll shut up for now.

 

[vonwotan]

Referring back to the original post - another virtue of the bow tie is you won't dip it in the soup when eating. I wore my first bow ties in grammar school. It was still within the dress code but stood out, and I still tell people that I began weating them since I was always dipping my four-in-hand in the food at lunch.

It can also be a great conversation starter. On our last trip to San Diego, visiting a client, we all went out to a roof top bar / club and several young women introduced themselves, sat down at our table and started asking why I was wearing a bow, did I always, how/when did I start, etc. By the end of the evening we had invites to two local parties in two truly amazing homes.

 

[CharlestonBows]

 

[scotrace]

Even with Hemingwayjones' excellent tutorial, I've never mastered the damn thing.

 

[AlanC]

Here are a few...

Vintage Brooks Brothers:

Hanauer:

Vintage 'Original Adjusto-tie':

 

[CactusJax]

I'm going to disagree with the last one. An imperfection is exactly what a four in hand knot is based on. It's asymmetrical. I don't see that as a non-virtue.

I used to try to make the four in hand more symmetrical,,, as you wear them they tend to kind of shoot your tie farther & farther to the side... I was always checking & adjusting. Drove me nuts. I guess I need symmetry. I'm a double windsdor guy. I always know my tie is pointing straight down where it belongs....

 

[Jovan]

You and Stanley would get along great... I never use anything but a four in hand knot. Asymmetry is beauty, IMO. After all, no person is perfectly symmetrical either.

 

[CactusJax]

I occasionally use the Four In Hand (FIH). It really looks great with the right tie... So many are just a hair thick or wide in the section where the knot is to look right IMO. I guess one might experiment with each new tie to see which knot looks best. but usually when you are putting on your tie its time to boogie...I probably just got lazy.... and resort to The Double Windsdor (DW)