The Minimal Necktie Wardrobe

[Frederic Leighton]

Start with solid midnight blue and discreetly patterned wine-colored. Get a few weights and textures for the blue (reppe, Oxford, Atkinsons, etc.) and make sure there's a madder or two in there. Then some Macclesfields in sky blue, and pink, and yellow. - Concordia

I find a couple of knits look good and basic printeds always work for me. [...] I could easily get through a year with 3 ties: one grenadine navy white pin-dot tie, one dark burgundy paisley madder tie and one small-print bottle green tie (and a black bowtie for DJ, obviously). - Luca

Classics. Classics. Classics. Edit. Edit. Edit. That's where one can find solitude peace and elegance. - Uppercase

I did my struggle with blue - here is what worked for me: solid midnight blue silk repp (Drake's), solid large knot grenadine in blue and purple (Drake's), solid knit ties in different shades from light blue to black (Drake's, Budd and some others). - Davidhuh

When I started wearing business clothes, after unit, I stuck for a couple of years purely to navy blue printed ties with small dots (1 white, 1 red, 1 green). They worked with most anything. - Luca

I usually don’t like to wear a solid tie with a solid suit, even when the shirt is patterned. [...] Were I to wear more tweeds then I would probably have more plain silk ties, as well as a cashmere tie or two. I do like to wear a wool tie or wool/silk mix with a worsted suit. Grenadines too (here I do prefer solid over patterned). - T.K.

Alden has written many times before on how the suit should be the "frame" of the picture, with the shirt and tie the centre of interest. It just seems wrong to have an elaborate frame and a dull picture! - Scot

Another style for your consideration is ancient madder. Two or three examples chosen carefully, that is, of varying scale and colour, will go with almost anything. - Scot

I buy neckties that I like (in terms of color, pattern or design) and that I feel that will tie a good four-in-hand. Many times I have even bought ties that I did´t like that much because I have learnt that sooner or later they will come alive when put around good company. - Hectorm

Buying the right tie at the store for the specific suit and shirt can be efficient in terms of time saving but, tell me, who´s looking for efficiency here. Also the right tie in color, shade, texture, etc. would be too perfect for my style. That would make me too predictable and I´m afraid people around me could come to know me for that specific match. I´d rather come up and try different satisfying combinations chosen from within my collection that getting it before hand and hanging the right tie next to the suit. - Hectorm

A man cannot even live without 20. Twice that number seems moderate for someone who wears a tie every day. - Rodes

I have seen that bright bronze or copper ties work very decently with blue suits. Also when wearing a blue pinstripe, although a bit boring, a white pindot necktie on lighter blue background is pretty safe. - Hectorm

It's a lot of work to come to a minimal wardrobe. A lot of experimenting, trial and error, and pruning. You can't edit a blank page, nor an empty wardrobe. Beware: confine yourself to a minimal wardrobe and your eyes will wander, your mind will dream, and your heart will lust. - C.Lee

Browns and greens go well with blue suit/conservative shirt, in an understated way. The reds/yellows/oranges clearly contrast more violently but are also fairly classic, I think. Blue suit + blue tie, as long as the blues contrast sufficiently, is also quite nice, in my humble opinion. - Luca

Personally I like orange and muted yellow with navy and darker blues, as well as light grey or b/w houndstooth. - T.K.

After much postponing (to establish my favourite trousers rise, to find a reliable shirtmaker, to keep an eye on the ties I'm using the most), now it's time to order some ties of the right length. Below I share thoughts and ask for advice.

NUMBER. I'd like my wardrobe to be minimal - I believe there is an intrinsic elegance in achieving more with less and the added challenge adds fun as well. I like to wear ties 7 days a week and their number should allow ties to rest enough after each use. I said once that 24 ties/bow-ties would be plenty; 18 ties, 6 bow-ties (sorted out first at Sam Hober's).

MATERIAL AND PATTERN. Solids in wool and in reppe/madder silk seem very versatile - I think I'll start from there. Plaid patterns in wool go very well with tweed, are very addictive and less available. Regimental ties are great, although I find a bit silly the thought of wearing the colours of an institution I don't belong to; wearing the colours of London or one-two other 'universal' colour combinations is still an enjoyable experience. Some chances of saving Macclesfield silk printed dots; all other patterns are out. I like linen but there's no room for it. No grenadine.

COLOURS. Black, red, brown, orange. I have some wonderful solid blue ties that I never wear; the trademark of politicians, they never look right to me. Is it serious, doctor? should I learn to like them? More colours with striped and plaid patterns, of course. Yellow, salmon - I like them on fellow tube commuters, but don't have any and don't feel the urge to buy.

STYLE. Like people sticking to one style (sometimes a 'house style') for their suits or frequently opting for similar configurations (buttoning, lapel, SB/DB), is there some 'structure' in your necktie wardrobe? Please share your advice!

[Concordia]

I sort my ties into buckets: blues, red/greens, yellow/pink, and obviously seasonal (linen, madras, cashmere, etc.)

Start with solid midnight blue and discreetly patterned wine-colored. Get a few weights and textures for the blue (reppe, Oxford, Atkinsons, etc.) and make sure there's a madder or two in there. Then some Macclesfields in sky blue, and pink, and yellow.

[Luca]

I really like your idea of (periodically?) editing one's aesthetic schema not by top-down pruning but by bottom-up rethink. I need to do that with my trousers but due to the lack of higher (i.e., traditional) rise RTW I'm daunted by the cost of MTM/bespoke wholesale replacement. My thoughts on your points are:

Number. Some chaps really love their huge tie collection and manage to use them all. I find myself regularly returning to a versatile half dozen. I don't suppose I own more than 20-30 in all but could easily cut that in half. Ties is where I have the most "goes with only one specific outfit" items, which I find increasingly pointless. I only wear a tie 3-5 times a week, though.

Material. I find a couple of knits look good and basic printeds always work for me. I have come to like wool and grenadine but I find most woven and all satin ties just extremely delicate in use.

Colours. I like stripes (there are plenty of good ones that are not strictly associated with a unit/club and even there, the "Guards" tie is identical to my university's tie, so… Small, conservative, 'Italian businessman' prints are subtle and never age. I am also partial to the older-style paisleys (not the bold ones, the 'fuzzier' overlapping designs). I must say that Blue is a standby for me, especially in winter when many of my jackets are more patterned tweed, rather not blue/charcoal. I've found a recent (wool) green acquisition (at Drake's sale) really, really versatile. I've somewhat gone off red but it can look quite nice, in the right circumstances.

Style. I suppose one could say that I have no tie that is clearly a 30s to 40s or 50s style but neither do I have any ties that would have appeared out of place at that time (I think…). I haven't ventured into bowties yet, mostly because in my line of work they would be considered eccentric and how many 'Saturday' ties do I need?

Super-minimal tie wardrobe. I know, the opposite of many a clotheshorse's idea of fun, but here goes. Were it not for wear-and-tear, I could easily get through a year with 3 ties: one grenadine navy white pin-dot tie, one dark burgundy paisley madder tie and one small-print bottle green tie (and a black bowtie for DJ, obviously).

[bond_and_beyond]

Abit of topic, but do I see some collar movement on the Duke's coat when he is tying his tie in the photo posted by Federico?

BB

[uppercase]

I'm not too far from Luca's views.

6-12 tried and true ties is all I need. Though I have many more.

More than a few of these ties are from paramours whose gentle gifts outlived the relationship. And there must be a lesson there too though I don't know what….

As with everything else, I get more conservative with age in my choice of ties; that means repps, dots, solids, knits. Most everything in a subdued hue.

I like the kamakura site if only because they sort of summarize different countries' tie aesthetic in a photo : British, Italian, French, Japanese.
http://shop.kamakurashirts.com/contents/en_USD/tiestop

Not sure where I belong, perhaps a bit of everywhere.

Classics. Classics. Classics. Edit. Edit. Edit.

That's where one can find solitude peace and elegance.

[Frederic Leighton]

Start with solid midnight blue and discreetly patterned wine-colored.[...]

Thank you, Concordia! I might need a lesson or two on when to use blue ties (help please); it just doesn't come natural to me. The hanger of the blue ties is the dustiest piece of my wardrobe - all I wear is a regimental blue&white and two Brooks Bros knitted ties in blue/white/red horizontal stripes for the summer. They are all retiring exactly today - I can't cope any more with those 13 inches of extra material and with tying the knot in a silly place of the blade.

Number. Some chaps really love their huge tie collection and manage to use them all. I fund myself regularly returning to a versatile half dozen. [...]

Super-minimal tie wardrobe. [...] I could easily get through a year with 3 ties: one grenadine navy white pin-dot tie, one dark burgundy paisley madder tie and one small-print bottle green tie (and a black bowtie for DJ, obviously).

Thank you, Luca, for your generous and detailed discussion of all points. I'm with you for the number. I could easily stick to your 'Super-Minimal tie wardrobe' and, if I wrote 18 instead of 3, that's because I tie very small and compact knots and need to give my ties enough days of rest after. 1 black, 1 dark red, 1 burgundy, each of them x6?

[...] 6-12 tried and true ties is all I need. [...] As with everything else, I get more conservative with age in my choice of ties; that means repps, dots, solids, knits. Most everything in a subdued hue.

Thank you, uppercase. I'm not conservative enough with my suits (and I doubt I can still blame my age for that), so I try to compensate by wearing white shirts and conservative ties. I'm happy with the overall resulting picture and stick to this simple self-imposed rule.

*

I was thinking of starting with few reppes, either solid or with pin dots, although before starting I'd like to have a general idea of where I'm going to give my minimal tie wardrobe some 'consistency'. Another very enjoyable way of managing the transition from RTW to bespoke ties would be popping in at Drake's once every two months to commission a new tie that goes well with at least three different suits from my wardrobe. 18 is not a big number and I wouldn't feel too bad about slowly buying them of the best quality possible.

[uppercase]

Marinella. Charvet. Drakes.
The triumvirate of classic neckwear.
Choose from these. Can't go wrong.
Of course there are others. Equally good. But you will find everything here that you need.
No need to look further. Simplify your life.

Btw, when buying a tie, always wear the suit you are buying the tie for.
I would buy ties for each individual suit. Ties are often not interchangeable with other suits, even if suits are in similar colors.

[davidhuh]

Start with solid midnight blue and discreetly patterned wine-colored.[...]

Thank you, Concordia! I might need a lesson or two on when to use blue ties (help please); it just doesn't come natural to me. The hanger of the blue ties is the dustiest piece of my wardrobe - all I wear is a regimental blue&white and two Brooks Bros knitted ties in blue/white/red horizontal stripes for the summer. They are all retiring exactly today - I can't cope any more with those 13 inches of extra material and with tying the knot in a silly place of the blade.

Dear Federico,
I did my struggle with blue - here is what worked for me:
- solid midnight blue silk repp (Drake's)
- solid large knot grenadine in blue and purple (Drake's)
- solid knit ties in different shades from light blue to black (Drake's, Budd and some others)

Budd grenadines and knits are significantly cheaper than Drake's.

Cheers, David

[Melcombe]

Marinella. Charvet. Drakes.
The triumvirate of classic neckwear.
Choose from these. Can't go wrong.

*cough* Gravy stains will not come cheap on that selection - impeccable choices 'though!

Btw, when buying a tie, always wear the suit you are buying the tie for.

Sound advice. I have a box full of decent ties that, on their own, have lovely colouring, discreet patterning and feel the business.

Actually being worn, however, trying to find something that sets them off well (more probably, just doesn't clash) permits only a charcoal grey suit and a white shirt - anything bolder just won't work.

I think my problem is an inclination towards small geometric patterns. If I could only limit myself to plain colours, that would be a start.

My most recent acquisition was a black knitted example from Ede & Ravenscroft (in the sales, naturally...). I suspect it might be very versatile : next stop, a blue one maybe?

[Luca]

I have a box full of decent ties that (permits) only a charcoal grey suit and a white shirt

When I started wearing business clothes, after university, I stuck for a couple of years purely to navy blue printed ties with small dots (1 white, 1 red, 1 green). They worked with most anything.

Then I moved to London and started branching out. As a consequence, for years the quoted statement above applied to 75% of my ties which therefore went unworn (especially since, from the late 1990s onward, everyday ""City"" suit wearing began to be phased out).

I am still a bit shy of solids (especially as I've almost completely renounced shirts other than solid colour or at most a simple stripe) but the ties are getting edited towards the sombre end of the spectrum.

Now, pocket squares... that's an entirely different kettle of fish.
"

[uppercase]

For gravy stains, just tuck a white napkin under your collar to protect your tie.

Everyone here is confident enough to do that.

Regarding spending money on your clothes, my view is to go for broke.

Spend spend spend. On the classics. And buy less of everything.

Why?

Because quality design and beauty shows through. And you'll be happier.

Just go for top drawer right from the start. Shoes, ties, shirts. Etc. Etc. ( suits I would place on a lower priority).

You'll never regret buying the best.

[T.K.]

Hi Federico,

I love wearing ties as well and do so on work days and to the occasional wedding. My wardrobe is minimal out of necessity and the method I use for installing diversity in it is by ordering solid (mostly grey) suits, then combining these with coloured or patterned shirts and ties (mostly silks). I’d rather have two suits against eight shirts and ties than three suits against four shirts and ties. I suspect I would feel more limited if it was the other way around.

I usually don’t like to wear a solid tie with a solid suit, even when the shirt is patterned. Solid ties get the least wear, blue ones in particular (same here!). Were I to wear more tweeds then I would probably have more plain silk ties, as well as a cashmere tie or two. I do like to wear a wool tie or wool/silk mix with a worsted suit. Grenadines too (here I do prefer solid over patterned).

Most of my ties come from David Hober and are cut a bit slimmer and straighter than most RTW. If you like your knot to be small than you might benefit from this as well. Also consider a thinner interlining. But be careful with going unlined! I have a couple that are simply impossible to tie properly. And they don’t hang well. I would only skip on the lining again if I were sure the fabric could handle it.

Nice thread!

[uppercase]

Unlined, 7 fold, or is it 9 now? , are an abomination. No weight, substance, body.

Yes, I have a few and they do float charmingly when caught by the breeze from the Golfo di Napoli.

Is this again something foisted upon us unsuspecting northern hemispherians by the wily
Neopolitan pizza makers?

Gotta love those folks.…

But Marinella is solid.

[T.K.]

What I like about the unlined necktie is the thin knot and the way multiple small pleats instead of a 'dimple' arise. This much more than its airiness.

[Scot]

the method I use for installing diversity in it is by ordering solid (mostly grey) suits, then combining these with coloured or patterned shirts and ties (mostly silks). I’d rather have two suits against eight shirts and ties than three suits against four shirts and ties.

This seems to me to be exactly the right approach. Alden has written many times before on how the suit should be the "frame" of the picture, with the shirt and tie the centre of interest. It just seems wrong to have an elaborate frame and a dull picture! The approach of the politician is to have a dull frame and a dull picture, in an attempt to appear "common". Hence, dark blue suit, white shirt, shiny solid coloured tie. A simply awful, awful way to dress.