Necktie fashion tips
One person's opinion from 2012:
If I try to crochet my own neckties with a very thin wool, assuming that's available, then I'll probably lean toward making the tie 2.5 inches to about 3.0 inches wide at its widest. I would probably still try to taper the tie to a point, but the square-tipped would be simpler.
If a thin wool yarn is unavailable, then maybe that would be the impetus to learn how to spin yarn.
For most guys, with most body types, your tie should be 3 inches wide or less at its widest point. And even then, that’s pretty freakin wide. Conventional business attire for the last, I don’t know, 40 years, has included wide, 3″ to 3.5″ ties. That’s so big! I’m an average build 170 lb guy, and if I wore a 3.5″ tie, it would be 25% to 30% of my midsection. Way out of proportion.
Most of my ties are right around 2.5″. It’s a nice balance for my body type, and appears in proportion with the rest of what I’m wearing. That should be your go-to in my opinion. Now, if you’re a bigger guy, you can go for a bigger tie, absolutely. Remember, tie width should be proportional to your suit jacket’s lapel width. So unless you’re wearing some wicked John Travolta collars, 3.5 inches is just gigantic.
The skinnier your tie, the less formal it becomes, so if you’re trying to rock the casual tie, pick one that’s on the slim side. I have a wool 2″ tie that I love to wear casually.
Some shirt info
It used to be hard getting a trim fit dressed shirt for less than the cost of a Playstation. Luckily more budget friendly stores like H&M have expanded into a lot of areas, and traditional go-to’s like Gap and mall department stores now offer slimmer fits for reasonable prices.
The problem with mass-produced clothing lines is sizing has to be universal enough to fit a wide range of body types. So, a few years ago when stores only offered one cut it had to fit big and small alike. Now that we have options it’s time to take advantage of them. Nothing looks worse than a muffin top and blousy pirate sleeves.
The new cuts go by many names, slim cut, tailored fit, modern fit, and athletic fit.
http://www.gilt.com/giltmanual/2013/01/white-collar-style-matt-bomer-q-and-a/
http://www.gilt.com/giltmanual/2011/01/usa-network-white-collar-style/
http://masculine-style.com/dress-like-neal-caffrey/
a skinny guy I’m a fan of narrow ties – but Caffrey takes them beyond narrow and into skinny territory. This was very popular a few years ago with the resurgence of Mad Men and has waned a bit since. However, it’s crucial to nailing this look – especially because Caffrey’s style is rooted in the icons of the 60’s. On top of the size of the tie itself, the patterns are important. Keeping with the slimness of the rest of his ensemble, all the patterns in his ties are small – be it microprint checks, polka dots, or thin rep stripes. Keep it between two and three inches in width and make sure you pick up a tie bar or two. The show uses a lot of vintage finds for their bars and it’s been my recommendation as well. However, there are plenty of places that will throw in a tie bar along with your skinny ties to give you the whole look.
http://www.essentialhommemag.com/matt-bomer-giltman-alton-lane-caffrey-collection/
YouTube : How to Tie a Tie - Mad Men Style
All of Don’s ties are slim, and sometimes even very skinny. They range from ivy league club stripes to solids to satin with clocks. The colors are usually dark or muted and range from grey to black to blue, but you usually never see Don in a red tie. In regards to texture he prefers to wear plain weave or satin ties and only on rare occasions do you see twill or repp fabrics. Note that Don avoids the modern faux pas of the too-long tie; his ties are the appropriate length for his height that either skim the belt or fall slightly higher. A great source for ties that have the right length is Fort Belvedere, which offers ties in three different lengths.
All the ties seem to be very authentic, but it is not really difficult to source 1960s ties. Usually, the tie knots are simple four-in-hand knots without a dimple. The ties are usually kept in place with genuine tie bars, if worn at all, from the 1960’s.
Belts
Don is clearly from the generation that wore belts instead of suspenders. He matches the belt with his black shoes and slim ties. This means the belt is very slim and not more than 1 ” wide. Today this size would be mostly categorized as a women’s belt. The buckles he mostly wears are typical sixties gold plated plaque buckles.
I prefer the slimmer vintage necktie and #belt looks over the wide belts and wide ties of today, but I mostly wear neither, therefore it may not matter.
http://www.gentlemansgazette.com/shop/ties/ties-3-fold
Necktie lengths
SHORT - for men that are 5'8" - 173 cm or shorter
REGULAR - for men that are around 5'11 - 180cm tall
LONG for men that are 6'3" - 190cm or taller