As a college student, I see some fraternity brothers commit outrageous acts with their neckwear. Since I haven’t spent enough time in the “adult” world, I can’t say whether these atrocities diminish with age. If not, the best cure is a steady dosage of this blog. Here are the five biggest mistakes men make when wearing ties:
1. The tie is too long or too short. When I see someone wearing a tie that’s a hand’s length above or below the top of their pants, 
I can only think, “they clearly care so little about their appearance; why wear a tie at all?” It’s an obvious sign that you lack the skill to tie a tie to the correct length For instance, would you buy an album from a group that couldn’t tie their ties to the correct length?
Conventional wisdom is that the tip of the tie should barely touch the top of the pants/belt, though you can probably get away with tying it an inch longer or so. Exceptions are Neopolitans, those with much larger frames and anyone paying tribute to the pre-WWII fashion era. That’s it.
2. When in storage, the tie is kept tied. First off, storing ties in the tied position is terrible for their upkeep. Of course, if you like permanent wrinkles in your ties, it’s a great idea. Moreover, keeping a tie tied implies you lack the skill to properly tie it; and the time you did tie it was due to coincidence/luck/help from mom. Please don’t do it, and especially not in front of another human being.
3. The tie is thrown over the shoulder. This is a common occurrence first semester at my fraternity, when pledges don a suit and tie every Thursday for lunch. I realize it’s tempting to eliminate the chance of spill, but, as GQ’s Glenn O’Brien writes, a tie thrown over the shoulder begs to be snipped off. Ok, so throwing your tie over your shoulder may not put it at risk. However, it does make you look silly and unable to eat responsibly. The eating-while-wearing-a-tie dilemma leads me to my next point…
4. The tie gets food spilled on it. I realize that accidents happen. However, during my pledgeship, 
I found I could eliminate almost all my spills simply by scooting closer to the table. Who would have thought? Take good care of your ties, spilling food on one leads to an immediate trip to the bathroom and later trip to the dry cleaners. No man should leave a business dinner to clean up his tie.
5. The tie is rolled up into the front pocket. Yes, I’ve seen this happen. One of my high school teachers wore half his tie in his front pocket the entire year. Though certain circumstances are understandable, wearing a tie rolled into a pocket implies several unmanly motives:
- a. I can’t handle something swinging in front of my chest.
- b. I’m grudgingly obeying a strict wear-a-tie policy at my workplace.
- c. I’m afraid I’ll spill something on it.
Wear your tie with pride; and don’t give the impression you can’t properly tie or wear it. Notice I didn’t touch on matching—that’s another post for another day. In the meantime, avoid these mistakes, and you’ll at least dress better than college students.
Christian Crusaders photo credit: www.funnyalbumcovers.com
Tie spill credit: Shareki’s Flickr Stream
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