Put This On

$35 Lambswool Ties

I’d like to meet Paul Winston someday. As regular readers know, Paul runs the traditional clothiers business Chipp2/ Winston Tailors out of midtown Manhattan, and his father – Sidney Winston – was one of President Kennedy’s tailors. I’ve talked with Paul a few times over the phone and he always comes off as an incredibly charming man with lots of great stories (which he tells in his slight New Yorker accent). Last time we spoke, I asked him why doesn’t he charge more for his grenadines. They’re handmade in the US and use the same fabric as everyone else, but are currently cheaper than grenadines machine stitched in East Asia. Paul told me that it’s because he’s old enough to remember what prices used to be like back in the day, and can’t bring himself to charge more, even if people will pay. I’d normally think that was some slick marketing line, but when you talk to Paul, you easily get the sense that he’s a real deal, sincere guy, and I believe him.

In any case, Paul recently got a bunch of lambswool ties in. Since he runs a custom clothier business, he has some lambswool left over from jackets he’s made, so he decided to turn them into ties and sell them at a cheap price. There are seventeen colors, all solid, which make them a good complement to patterned shirts and jackets. Each tie measures 58.25” long and 3.25” in width, and costs $35 (shipping for up to three ties is $7.50 within the US, and $13.50 for international). Unlike his grenadines, these are machine stitched, but still made in New York. The interlinings are a wool/ poly blend, and a bit thicker than what seems to be the trend in high-end neckwear these days, but I knotted a few of them up and they still seemed great. With a little bit of tugging on each side of the loop, as demonstrate here by Bernhard Roetzel, you can get the knot pretty small. For $35, I think they’re a pretty good buy. Good enough that I purchased one for myself before sending the lot back.

I snapped a few photos, but for some reason, the colors didn’t come out terribly well the group shots. In the top most photo, moving from top to bottom we have: tan, gold, toast, sky blue, light blue, navy, and black. The “black” should really be the same color as my navy sport coat, which the ties are laying on top of. It’s really more of a midnight navy, not true black, in my opinion. The tie labeled navy (second from the bottom) is perhaps one shade lighter than a midnight navy. The colors are better represented in the close-up pictures, though navy and black are still lighter in the photos than they are in real life.

In the second group shot, again moving from top to bottom, we have: grey, light grey, pumpkin, mauve, coral, purple, light plum, and lilac. Again, the colors are better represented in the close up photos.

Tan and sky blue are already sold out, and two colors not pictured here are chocolate brown and royal blue. Customers can request swatches if they’d like to get a better sense of the fabrics’ textures and colors. And if you purchase something and don’t like it, Paul is happy to take returns. 

To order, you can just go to Chipp2’s website and buy one of their dog ties, then in the comment section, say something like “I don’t want a dog tie, I want a ….” Or you can call Paul directly at (212) 687-0850. Unlike his grenadines, which will always be available, this is a limited run only. The quantities are quite uneven, and some colors only have six or less in stock. Once they’re gone, they’re gone. 

It’s On Sale: The Knottery Silk Knit Ties

The Knottery is having a clearance sale right now, with 50% off all of their ties, pocket squares and scarves (with the exception of their grenadine ties). Use code HALFSIES until Friday to receive the discount. 

I own a few of their silk knit ties and can recommend them and have reviewed them in the past. For just $12.50 you can pick up the staple black silk knit tie in either 2.25” or 3” widths. Derek has written about the versatility of the black silk knit tie and I tend to agree. Personally, I’d also pick up the navy one, too, but that’s just my own personal bias toward that color — and there are plenty of colors to choose from. 

I’d also recommend taking a look at the dual-textured silk knit tie (called “The Acquittal”), which has a checkerboard of small and large knitted loops. This adds a nice visual differentiation that you don’t see on most silk knit ties and I think is a great way to have some subtle variation on a solid-colored tie. A good deal for $17.50. 

-Kiyoshi

The Price of Chipps

Paul Winston over at Chipp2 kindly gave us a heads up yesterday to say that the price of his grenadines will be going up March 1st. Instead of $47.50, which is what they’re priced at now, they’ll be $49.50 starting next month. That’s because the price for grenadine fabric has been steadily rising, so Paul has to keep up. Even with the price hike, however, Chipp2 remains the most affordable grenadine tie supplier around. And if you for some reason could only own one tie, it probably should be a navy grenadine. It’s arguably the most versatile tie you can own. 

To buy one of Chipp2’s greandines, call Paul at (212) 687-0850 or visit his shop at 28 West 44th Street in New York City (it’s between 5th and 6th Avenue). You can also order them online through a slightly circuitous route. First go to Chipp2’s website and order one of the dog ties. Then in the comment section, tell him which color grenadine you want and the correct charge will be made on your credit card. He also accepts Paypal.

To read more about Chipp2’s grenadines, you can check out a review we did of them last year.

Update: One of our readers asked for the width of Chipp2’s grenadines. They’re 3.5” wide, and about 58” to 59” in length. If you need, Paul can shorten them for you, but if you want them narrowed, your best bet is to take them to TieCrafters (who charges about $22 or so). Note, Chipp2’s grenadines are all hand stitched, so there will be some variation in measurements because of the nature of the work. It won’t be much, but expect a 1/16 or 1/8” allowance. 

The Most Basic Ties

Like any part of a good wardrobe, building the right collection of neckties requires some forethought and planning. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of beautiful neckties out there, but not all of them will be worth buying. Knowing which ones are requires some thinking about what you plan to wear your ties with.  

If you wear suits often, consider silk foulards. Foulards are those small-scale, symmetrical patterns featuring things such as medallions, florets, or geometric shapes. They’re typically conservative in nature and printed on medium weight silks. These will be good in dark colors such as navy, burgundy, dark green, or dark brown. Pick something with a bit of light blue or white somewhere in the pattern and you have the advantage of picking up the color in your shirt.

If you mostly wear sport coats instead, then focus on repp stripes. It’s not that you can’t wear silk foulards with a sport coat, it’s that often you’re safer off – if not better off – with something striped. Dark ties with small repeating geometrics are often a bit too “suit-ish” for odd jackets. Plus, if push came to shove, you can usually wear a repp-striped tie with a suit, at least to most occasions. Again, focus on dark colors, as those will be the easiest to wear, and try to get ties in various scales of pattern. Some ensembles look better with big block stripes, while others will call for a thinner stripes. It’s nice to have some flexibility.

Finally, it’s always good to have some solid-colored, but also textured, ties on hand. These include woven grenadines, fuzzy wools, and silk knits. Such ties pair especially well with rustic sport coats or suits, such as those made from tweed or corduroy, and they’re quite useful if you wear patterned shirts often. You can wear a patterned tie with a patterned shirt, but a solid, yet textured one will take less thinking and always be tasteful.

Of course, these aren’t the only ties worth buying, and as you expand your collection, it can be nice to pick up things such as dotted silks, ancient madders, and even some unusual designs. However, the above sets a good foundation and helps underscore something important: no matter what you choose for yourself, buy ties that work well with what you typically wear, not just ones that happen to look good on a store’s counter.

At Die Workwear, Derek takes a look at Drake’s Spring line. Absolutely stunning palettes in the pocket squares.

Hank, No Tie

Hard-line traditionalists may wince, but I think a sport coat with no tie is a perfectly acceptable look. A nice one, even. In fact, when going out to a restaurant or bar, I’ll often wear a sport coat with woolen trousers and a nice shirt, but forgo the tie. This kind of ensemble is especially good in areas of the world where a necktie – no matter how casual – is still seen as somewhat of a formal statement (I’m looking at you, Bay Area).

If you decide to go tieless, I recommend at least wearing a pocket square. Not doing so can leave the look a bit unfinished. Something made out of a matte wool or linen will do better than a shiny, wet silk. The latter will have a sheen that may be too distracting when there’s no tie to counterbalance it. You might also want to tamp the square down a bit, so that it’s not sticking up too high into the air. I don’t think pocket squares should ever look too loud, but this may be even more important if you’re just wearing a square alone.

For your shirt, stick to solid light blues, or something like the soft pink that Alan Flusser is seen wearing above. Both are considered more casual than a solid white. For something even more causal still, consider shirts with stripes or checks (such as tattersalls, graph checks, or ginghams). Remember, the bolder the pattern, the more casual the shirt is considered. This kind of combination – a casual shirt and sport coat, worn with a hank, but no tie – will allow you to look sharp, but also well suited to certain casual environments. 

(Photos via The Sartorialist, Alan See, A Bit of Color, Tredici e Lupo, Off the Cuff, and StyleForum member Montesquieu)

Whenever we post a picture of Rob, a teacher from Brooklyn, we get a flood of emails from guys who wish they were as sharp as he and gals who want his number. He’s spoken for, but if you’re interested in the former goal, Rob’s starting a necktie company. It’s called Yellow Hook Necktie Co., and for now you can find it primarily on Facebook. Like our Put This On Gentlemen’s Association pocket squares, Rob’s ties are made by hand by a single artisan. A genuine cottage industry, in Brooklyn, New York. We’re excited to see where this leads.

The Wool Herringbone

I remember having this mid-grey, wool herringbone tie by Thom Browne when I was in my mid-20s. It was lightly lined, untipped, and featured handrolled edges. I wore it with everything back then - brown tweeds, navy sport coats, and a charcoal double windowpane jacket that I inherited from my father. It was one of my favorite ties, until it got ruined in a greasy lunch accident. 

Wool herringbones ties are still some of my favorites, especially for winter. Wool has the advantage of reflecting the season’s mood, just like how cotton and linen do for summer. Solid wool ties with a slight mottling to them, like these from Drake’s, are very versatile, but if you just want a bit more pattern, try herringbones. They’re good for when you’re not sure whether to go for something solid/ semi-solid, or a straight-out pattern, such as a rep stripe. This is helpful if you, like me, enjoy dressing well, but don’t want to spend too much time in the morning trying to figure what can be worn with what. Depending on the scale of the herringbone, these can be successfully paired with almost any kind of shirt and winter sport coat you can think of (barring except maybe a herringbone coat that looks too similar). Just stick with something mid-scale: a slightly noticeable pattern, but not so large that it could compete with other elements in your ensemble. 

The three best places I know of to buy one (at the moment)  are Drake’s, E&G Cappelli, and Marshall Anthony. The first two makers are pretty well known, but the last is a bit of a newcomer to the neckwear industry. I thought they made pretty nice ties when I first reviewed them, but they’ve come even further in their quality over this past year. 

The color selection for Drake’s wool herringbone ties is a bit limited on their website, but you can find more options through A Suitable Wardrobe. Linkson Jack also sells some E&G Cappellis at slightly lower prices if you don’t need something custom. For something more affordable, try Mountain & Sackett. They do pretty good end-of-the-season sales, though not all of their stock is always included.

Pictured above: First tie by E&G Cappelli for Napolisumisura; second and third by E&G Cappelli; last by Marshall Anthony.

The Most Versatile Knit Tie

Jake over at Wax Wane already wrote about black silk knit ties this week, but I thought I’d give them another plug anyway. Black is, unexpectedly, one of the most versatile colors for knit ties. Better than the standard go-to colors for neckwear, such as brown, burgundy, and bottle green. Better even than the always wearable navy. The black silk knit was perhaps most famously worn by the literary version of James Bond, who was often described by Ian Fleming as wearing a dark suit, clean white shirt, and a “thin, black silk knitted tie.” It’s also heavily associated with other mid-century icons such as the fellas in The Rat Pack. In fact, one of the first ties I bought as an undergraduate student was a black silk knit, precisely because I thought Sammy Davis Jr. looked so great in them.

You can wear almost anything with a black silk knit tie: brown tweeds, navy jackets, or grey suits paired with white or light blue shirts in solids, stripes, or checks (knit ties are especially nice with checks). Given that many men today want to wear a tie without looking too formal, the black silk knit is about as good as you can get. Versatile in color; casual in form.

There are many places to score one. On the high-end, we have Drake’s, who makes them in a rather unique weave. They’re also commonly found at traditional American haberdasheries, such as Ben Silver, Brooks Brothers, and J. Press (the last of which is having a 25% off sale right now). Additionally, Howard Yount, Kent Wang, and Sid Mashburn sell them for between $60 and $75. For more affordable options, consider Land’s End and KJ Beckett. The stock at Land’s End doesn’t include black right now, but they regularly restock their knit tie inventory in wide range of colors and their navy blue’s more like a midnight blue. If you join their mailing list, you’ll be notified of when they do their 30-40% off sales (which happens a few times a season). That will knock down the price of their knit ties to something around $25. Not bad for a tie you can wear with almost anything. 

We Got it for Free: The Tie Bar’s Grenafaux

The Tie Bar recently released a line of solid-colored, textures silk neckties that vaguely resemble grenadines. These aren’t true grenadines; they just somewhat look like them from a few feet away. Curious about the quality, I contacted Greg Shugar, one of the co-founders of the company, to see if he would be interested in sending me one for review. It arrived last month and I’ve worn it a few times since.

The tie is better than what one might expect. It compares well to the mass-manufactured neckties you might find in a department store – the Perry Ellises, Tommy Hilfigers, Calvin Kleins, and the like. To be sure, I don’t think any of these brands make particularly nice ties, but I appreciate that The Tie Bar has a bit more honest pricing - $15 for such a tie, rather than $50 in a department store, regularly discounted to $35, then $25, then $20, in hopes that customers think they’re getting a steal.

Obviously, a $15 tie will have its limitations. The grenafaux they sent me lacks the body on a truly, well-made tie, and the fabric has a slight sheen to it. It’s a bit light and flimsy, and not particularly enjoyable to knot. On the upside, the interlining is a wool-poly blend, which isn’t as ideal as a pure wool interlining, but at least it dimples better than a tie lined with polyester, and the wrinkles fall out a bit more easily at the end of the day.

It’s become a bit of a cliché, but I strongly believe in the “buy less, buy better” philosophy. Better one tie from EG Cappelli than three from Brooks Brothers, and better one from Brooks Brothers than three from Alfani. Men don’t need as much clothing as they think do, and if they traded many of their purchases for nicer things, I think they’d be left more satisfied. The most affordable grenadines I know of are from Chipp2 ($47.50) and The Knottery ($55). After that, there’s Kent Wang ($75), Sam Hober ($80), J Press ($90), Henry Carter ($100), Drake’s, Vanda, and EG Cappelli (~$120). I would feel more comfortable recommending any of these - or even a non-grenadine from a mid-tier maker - over The Tie Bar.

At the same time, I remember there was once a point in my life when I couldn’t afford a $50 necktie. It wasn’t that I was being stingy; it’s just that all my money went to rent, food, and my education. For people who on a truly tight budget, but still wish to dress well, I think The Tie Bar’s grenafux ties are an option. They’re not the best ties in the world, but I couldn’t say someone would look terrible for wearing one. As you can see above, it does indeed kind of look like a grenadine, and The Thrifty Gent wore one a few weeks ago and still looked pretty sharp. Plus, if you needed to skimp on your wardrobe, it would better to cut out $50 from your necktie wardrobe than, say, footwear. There, $50 could mean the difference between full-grain leather shoes and corrected grain, the latter of which you should never buy.

My standard recommendation for affordable neckties remains the same: Land’s End and Brooks Brothers once they hit their sales. They usually discount stuff to under $40 a few times a season. If you can’t afford those, try thrift stores or eBay. If you don’t have the time, however, then consider The Tie Bar’s grenafaux. I still believe people should buy the best they can afford – as they’ll be happier in the long run – but the same can be said about buying what you can afford, and not spending outside of your means. 

(Pictured above, from left to right: The Tie Bar’s grenafaux, Drake’s navy grenadine, E.G. Cappelli blue grenadine)