Item Spotlight: Ties - Topic of the day 2/9/25
GQ recently decreed ties are "back" so we might as well get ready. What are your favorite ties (bow, neck, etc) of all price points? What are your favorite fabrics and patterns on a tie? Do you wear ties casually, and if so how? Are there any tie substitutes that can work in their place? Item Spotlight posts are a recurring Topic of the Day replacing the 'MFA Best of Picks (best X for $X)' posts on r/malefashionadvice.
19 Replies
bolo
I love ties and think they look good but feel a bit out of my element wearing them around the midwest. I think bolo ties are cool.
I have a theory that its cooler to look good in a group of people than it is to look good alone and i think the same thing applies to wearing a tie
Ties are one of the best items to get second hand
Massive selection, low prices
I've been searching for my perfect forest Green grenadine forever and I haven't found it yet. One day
i like ties with dogs on them
I really like the knit ties with the flat bottoms, though I only wear a tie a couple times a year myself.
Also think skinny ties are neat, though I know they're considered dated.
It's another mechanism of expression in a fit so I love them. Unconventional ties can be a really nice flourish that can change the tone of an outfit.
I want a super skinny drapey / flowy black silk tie rn but nowhere to be found so far.
Being from West Texas myself, my grandfather from rural New Mexico is the only person I know who wore bolo ties with any particular frequency, so I've always been a little wary of them
Obv I've been mildly obsessed with jamming a bolo in any fit I can lately too.
Oh, would love to see an inspo pic if you have one
What I'm trying to replicate is the lemaire shirts with tonal ties
My main issues with ties are the feeling of constriction and the (probably associated) formality, so this would also be a great direction to go
The whole baseball cap with a jacket and tie thing works really well to signal “I’m wearing a tie because it’s fun, not because I have to.”
Doesn’t necessarily need to be a baseball cap, but some other casual item
I got one Tie Your Tie tie on sale and would recommend them as a high end option. I really don't have a reason to wear them, but enjoy nicer ties. I remember when the Tie Bar was big on MFA, those are not good ties :pika: , but did the trick.
i have a bunch of ties and then a bunch of boop ties, but tbh i struggle to fit them into outfits
ties are fun and good; i had a stigma against them for similar reasons to jibba but found that sometimes i just needed something to fill through space between my neck and waistband lol
tie without jacket is a fun move i enjoyed last summer, and i imagine it'll land better now that i have cooler pants
I've been making an effort to try and wear a tie whenever I go into the office, which helped me get over the initial 'overdressed/out of my element' feeling since I at least nominally had an excuse to be wearing one
I like to think that the way I wear tailoring also makes it clear I wear ties for fun since my flares and heels are pretty far removed from any conservative dress code
I think part of what draws me to wearing ties (other than just making outfits feel complete like zeo said) is how personal they are, since there are functionally infinite options for dirt cheap prices online you can be really picky about what patterns and brands you wear
My favorite ties are Goodwill ties at the $3-5 price point 😁. I look for Brooks Bros and other brands I recognize, or 100% silk MIUSA, or any kind of interesting fabric (like wool or linen). I enjoy getting dressed up in a coat and tie, even when the situation doesn't call for it. Lately, I've been enjoying meeting my wife for late dinners, and getting dressed up for it, even though it's just ramen.
i want a leather tie