I have always found it interesting that though there are different sizes and constructions there is essentially one shape of four in hand necktie. Contrast that to the bow tie, where speaking generally there is but one size and construction and several different shapes (I include the skinny bow as a shape rather than a size but I will not hold it against you if you hold a contrary opinion). Butterflies, diamond points and skinnies are perhaps the most common of those shapes, with the butterfly by far the most popular.
The butterfly's very popularity is reason for a change of pace of course. The shape of one's tie is one of the few variations allowed with the dinner jacket (the other being the shoes, socks pocket square, style of shirt and type of waist covering), so there is good reason for the man who dresses for dinner more often than rarely to own at least two styles. And then there is day wear, where Sir Winston Churchill popularized the white on navy dotted tie.
The Churchill spot as that design is known is to the bow tie roughly as white moiré braces are to the suspender market post Daniel Craig, which is to say that Churchills may well outsell every other design and colorway added together. The nice thing about the Churchill of course is that it goes with most of the classic suitings, whether navy blue, tan or gray as well as blazers and many other odd jackets. Those men who wear the bow, most of whom are doctors, architects and other professionals who are bending over into their work constantly as well as dandies seeking a change of pace, should own the Churchill in a couple of shapes. For one design rules them all.
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4 comments:
Maybe less than one in a thousand doctors in Australia now wears a bow tie (and those that do are traditionally gynaecologists for reasons that should be obvious)... The standard of dress for doctors is quite low these days most favouring jeans and polo shirts. I've heard many doctors even wear t shirts and sandals up north in Queensland!
dear Down Under,
This is very true. But we are not trying to promote that to the rest of the world because then they will think of us as heathens. We should try and at least purport an image, regardless of whether it is false, that we Australians are as smartly dressed as our northern counterparts.
:-))
I like the batwing myself or the one with pointed ends (whose name eludes me) because I like a fairly large center wrap if that's the right word. The Victorians favored this approach(see Burt Lancaster in THE LEOPARD) and it's worth semi copying in 2013.
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