Ties

[Sir Didymous]

Having never really been the t-shirt type, I find that when not in reenactment clothing that button down shirts are more my thing as it relates to preference. Usually there are ties involved, even more so when kilted. So I thought that it may be of some interest to discuss ties as they relate to kilts and kilt wear. For example I think that due to the higher waist of kilts as opposed to p@nts, shorter ties look better. I like mine to just touch the middle of my belt buckle when I'm not wearing a waist coat. I don't know if there are others who have different opinions, but if there are I'd like to hear them. Also I feel that there are ties that look good with kilts and those that don't. Here is a shot of some of my favorite ties for kilting; three of which are due for a good pressing because of either living in the pocket of a jacket or being improperly packed in a haversack. (My reenactment troop meets shortly after church on Sundays.).

I like patterned ties more with tartans. The following are ties that I wear to more casual church picnics and such, but I think they look terrible with kilts. I'm not sure why, but they seem off to me. I think it could be that the bottom images just don't flow well with plaid.

Thoughts and opinions are what I'm going for and any pictures of what you consider good/bad ties and/or tie lengths are more than welcome.

[Steve Ashton]

One thing you must remember is that when the full rise kilt was developed a man would never be seen in public without a vest and coat. If no vest was worn the jacket was buttoned. (And heaven forbid you were seen without a jacket, in just a vest that had a satin back with the adjuster thing showing) The only part of the tie that was ever seen was the knot.

the top tie in your first photo and all three in the second are modern ties designed to show the body of the tie when without jacket. These 'picture' ties gained popularity after WWII.

Even the "hand painted silk tie" of the Zoot Suit era was seen as unusual and outside the norm.

Today we do not wear jackets as often as we did. This is the reason that most new kilt wearers do not know that the kilt should be worn up at the natural waist. They have never worn anything at the natural waist. If they did the first image to pass though their mind is the old, fat grandfather, with his pants up high and a 4" long tie.

[Lime]

I have a penchant for knitted ties (silk and wool). You can, of course, get them with stripes and spots but I think that even the plain ones go extremely well with highland attire; the texture gives more interest than a plain wool or silk tie. They seem to be natural bedfellows with all the "traditional" elements of kilt wear; tattersall check, brogues, tweed, wool and leather. Another tick in the "for" box is that they have a flat, rather than pointed, bottom edge which I think goes rather well with the higher waist of a kilt.

Clearly they are not for everybody, but are still "correct" in a traditional sense; which in my book is another good reason to like them!

I don't have any decent photo's showing the texture and bottom edge nor paired with any of the points I have mentioned but this shows the sort of tie I'm talking about:



Drakes are known to be one of (if not "the") finest producer of knitted ties: http://www.drakes-london.com/ties/knitted

[Downunder Kilt]

Personally not a fan of picture ties with any garment. Usually wear with kilts, or saxon wear, some form of symbolic tie, club, association etc.
eg ABF tie or the XMTS tie
XMTS tie


ABF tie

[BCAC]

I have a penchant for knitted ties (silk and wool). You can, of course, get them with stripes and spots but I think that even the plain ones go extremely well with highland attire; the texture gives more interest than a plain wool or silk tie. They seem to be natural bedfellows with all the "traditional" elements of kilt wear; tattersall check, brogues, tweed, wool and leather. Another tick in the "for" box is that they have a flat, rather than pointed, bottom edge which I think goes rather well with the higher waist of a kilt.

Clearly they are not for everybody, but are still "correct" in a traditional sense; which in my book is another good reason to like them!

I don't have any decent photo's showing the texture and bottom edge nor paired with any of the points I have mentioned but this shows the sort of tie I'm talking about:



Drakes are known to be one of (if not "the") finest producer of knitted ties: http://www.drakes-london.com/ties/knitted

This is one reason to be glad that we're all different, Lime. I HATE knitted ties with a venemence and the only time that I have worn one was because the British Army N°2 uniform tie was knitted!

I don't agree with you that they "go extremely well with Highland attire".

I will continue to wear my silk "regimental" tie with my kilts, as usual.

To each their own!

[Lime]

This is one reason to be glad that we're all different, Lime. I HATE knitted ties with a venemence and the only time that I have worn one was because the British Army N°2 uniform tie was knitted!

I don't agree with you that they "go extremely well with Highland attire".

I will continue to wear my silk "regimental" tie with my kilts, as usual.

To each their own!

It's quite alright: you are more than entitled to be wrong! Knitted ties are not my only option; I am a daily tie wearer so have "regimental" "geometric" "Hermes" all in the quiver so to speak it is just that knitted are my favourite, partly because they are less usual, partly because they are slightly anarchic (in a UK professional business setting) and partly because I just like them.

I'm surprised that anyone hates them with a passion; is it a kick-back against having to wear them as a uniform, the 1970's connection ,a dislike of the James Herriot look or just a mild psychosis (of which I have many relating to mundane clothing matters - such as ties with little horseshoe motifs!)?

[tulloch]

Your young lady seems quite pleased. I would not change a thing.

[BCAC]

It's quite alright: you are more than entitled to be wrong! Knitted ties are not my only option; I am a daily tie wearer so have "regimental" "geometric" "Hermes" all in the quiver so to speak it is just that knitted are my favourite, partly because they are less usual, partly because they are slightly anarchic (in a UK professional business setting) and partly because I just like them.

I'm surprised that anyone hates them with a passion; is it a kick-back against having to wear them as a uniform, the 1970's connection ,a dislike of the James Herriot look or just a mild psychosis (of which I have many relating to mundane clothing matters - such as ties with little horseshoe motifs!)?

It's probably the last option It's certainly nothing to do with who is right (nor who is wrong!) and nothing to do with uniform (I spent 31 years in uniform, hated knitted ties beforehand and still hate them afterwards!).

[Tobus]

I wear ties on a regular basis, either with the kilt or with trousers for work. I have dozens of ties, and have gone through quite a change in taste over the years. When I first started wearing ties in the 1980s, it was popular to wear silly ties with pictures on them. I remember having a Harley Davidson tie with a big eagle on it, as well as a tie with hammers and saws and other tools on it. I cringe now, thinking about how ridiculous that was.

I also went through a phase where I wore only Paisley ties. I still own some of them, but just don't tend to wear them much any more. I've phased away from large patterns on my ties (with the exception of a couple of tartan ties, but those are never worn with my kilts). Pretty much all I wear these days are solid-colour ties, regimental/university style striped ties, and ties that are solid-colour with a small repeating pattern. Oh, and I've been going through a vintage skinny-tie phase. They work better for a small guy like me, since most modern ties are way too wide to look right on my small frame. And the great thing is that you can find vintage 1950s and 1960s skinny ties all over the place for just a few bucks. I also have some knitted wool ties for when the mood strikes me.

In the OP's photos, I would probably wear the three blue ties with small patterns in the first photo, but the one on top is a little too busy for my tastes. Would not wear any of the ones in the second photo; they just aren't my style and IMHO don't go well with a kilt. Just my preference.

When it comes to the kilt, I am a little more particular than I would be with trousers or a suit. I've stopped trying to be matchy-matchy or colour-coordinating, but I still try to pick a tie that somewhat goes with my tartan and jacket pattern. I don't care for the look of a tie without a jacket when wearing the kilt.

Solid-colour tie examples:




Striped ties can really give a lot of personality to the look while still being traditional:




Random small-pattern tie:

[creagdhubh]

Never dry-clean or press a silk tie! You'll ultimately destroy it. Instead, untie it in the precise manner it was tied and hang loosely on a proper tie rack. Gravity and time will eventually remove any wrinkles caused by the knot. If you accidentally spill something on your tie, use club soda or water and gently blot the stained area with a soft cloth. Well made ties are surprisingly resilient.

I almost always wear a necktie with my Highland day attire, unless the contextual factors lean more towards the casual end of the spectrum, of which common sensibilities prevail. All of my neckties are from Barbour and Ben Silver, with the vast majority coming from the latter. Whereas I am quite fond of solid coloured, knitted ties (wool, cotton, or silk) with Highland dress, I am entirely more fond of handmade, 100% silk neckties in a smart regimental stripe, or crested. Sometimes I'll opt for a solid coloured necktie (usually darker colours such as burgundy, navy, brown, etc) but most of the time it's striped or crested.

Here's an interesting link about neckties that may be of interest:

http://www.bensilver.com/AllAboutTies.dlp

Several from my collection: