And while I'll pretend that I didn't notice the feminie hygene comment, I'll go ahead and say that women don't ever have to wear hose and high heels, but men do have to wear neckties.
Posts: 16551 | Registered: Feb 2003
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Heels yes, hose no, at least in formal business settings. Suits w/ pants instead of skirts have become acceptable in all but the most formal of settings, so there are many times a man has to wear a tie when a woman doesn't have to wear hose.
But there's no time when men don't have to wear a tie for business that women can't get away with not wearing hose.
Dagonee *Sometimes double negatives are necessary. Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
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I agree on the heels/hose point, Dag. I own heels (although I rarely wear them) but not hose.
I don't see the big issue with ties anyway, though. I wore one for three years (boarding school uniform) and didn't find it uncomfortable. Now, I get to find it amusing when my guy friends ask me to tie theirs, because they never learnt how. Posts: 1431 | Registered: Aug 2003
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The necktie is the last bastion of individuality for those constricted to wearing a suit for work.
Pick one that makes you laugh, or one with colors that really work for you. Heck, learn to tie a bow tie (that's really, really hard btw) or pick up some odd bolo ties.
When forced to wear a tie, I go for the slightly unconventional, or something retro from the 20s in style. And I still like paisleys, whatever the fashionistas say about them.
My favorites of all time: A Persian design (think like a Persian rug design) that's mainly black and tan, but with flecks of color that work with anything.
A neutral colored one that looks like it has tan and blue fried eggs on it... it's kind of a hypno-tie.
A teal cord bolo tie held together by a light blue sculpy brontosaur that looks like it was made by an eight-year old.
But make sure you buy one that is of a medium width, has a slightly coke bottle shape (this ties much neater), and avoid anything that isn't 100% silk. Also, always leave a dimple at the knot when you tie it, that way it doesn't look like a clip-on.
And unless you are a highway patrolman, don't wear a clip on. They can get away with it after a few times when they would lean into someone's car window, have their tie grabbed and the perp drive off, literally dragging them by their necks.
[ November 03, 2004, 09:22 PM: Message edited by: Lost Ashes ]
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I think some of the problems expressed with ties here are actually dealing with badly fitted shirt collars.
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When I worked in combustion wearing anything that couldn't get covered with soot was out of the question. So now that I'm a teacher I wear a nice shirt and tie, wool slacks, and leather soled shoes everyday. I love it.
Then I look at the teachers that come to school dressed like I used to dress for the lab and I wonder...
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I like neckties. They look good, and they make me look good. Sometimes I've been known to wear them on occasions when they weren't even called for, just because I like the way they look. And besides, where else in our society could you wear such a blatant phallic symbol so prominently in view and have it be called "formalwear"?
quote:The necktie is the last bastion of individuality for those constricted to wearing a suit for work.
Couldn't have said it better myself. I have a friend whose workplace banned casual Fridays a little while back. Now he's required to wear a suit like any other day, so he fights back by wearing colorful ties instead of dressing casual. It's permitted because, hey, he's still wearing a tie.
quote:I think some of the problems expressed with ties here are actually dealing with badly fitted shirt collars.
Precisely. I've never had trouble breathing because I was wearing a tie. I've had trouble breathing because the top button of my shirt was too high, but that was true even without a tie. If your tie is constrictive, you are wearing it wrong.
quote:And you can pee standing up.
So can women. Most choose not to, since the design makes it harder to aim, and they don't want to get pee on their shoes. But it is physically possible to actually do.
Posts: 1814 | Registered: Jul 2004
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It's not that it's constrictive. It's that even the slight contact of the tie on the wrong spot, which can happen just by looking up and down or side to side, makes me feel like someone poked a finger in my neck.
posted
Well, yours is a special case. Most guys don't have the same physical situation you have. And believe me, as a pro-tie man who has worked in a number of offices, I've heard a lot of guys complain that their ties are constrictive or "suffocating". In every such case, simply loosening the tie or undoing the top button solved the problem.
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Dag, then you might want to change how you tie your tie. A full Windsor or half Windsor knot usually creates a larger knot and if tied improperly can ride up a bit. You might want to try the simpler four-in-hand knot. I find it to be faster to tie, less fussy and more forgiving around my neck. It also adjusts easier and tends to make the knot drape instead of bulge.
Also, if you are a bit taller than norm, the four-in-hand uses less of the length of the tie, leaving a bit more to cover your button placard. (If you're on the chubby side, like me, it works well, too).
Posts: 472 | Registered: Aug 2004
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I'm fairly anti-tie, but then I'm fairly anti-suit. And I'm fat, which means that most ties look ridiculous anyway.
I can pull off a semi-casual sport jacket and dress shirt look -- in fact, this is my preferred method of dress -- but adding a tie makes me look like a high school football coach or desperate insurance salesman.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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You'll find that there is a difference in "putting on" the clothes and "wearing" the clothes.
The assistant coach look is oftentimes the result of not knowing what to buy, or what to look for. And it has a lot more than just suits and ties. It explains fit, for all shapes and sizes, quality materials and design. And for the more casual, how to look good in casual clothes without looking like the Sporty Ken Doll.
It's a book for guys, rather than dandies. And it has more to do with the classics than with what GQ's sponsors want you to wear.
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My husband is a science teacher. I bought him a tie with the periodic table (artistically accented with test tubes, tongs, and crucibles) printed on it.
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I like suits, though. Probably because I'm a twig and therefore look bigger in a suit. I've been known to wear a shirt, tie, and blazer with shorts and knee socks to formal dances.
Ties I like -- provided I had the foresight to put on a shirt with a sufficiently roomy collar.
Posts: 10886 | Registered: Feb 2000
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Sopwith, what a great resource. There is another one for guys I like, but I'll have to go back to the coffeestore where it hangs out to remember the title. (Frugal Muse, an awesome used bookstore, stocks one of the local coffeehouses.)
quote:And you can pee standing up.
There is this website ... No, I'm serious. The nurse who hosts the site used to just have techniques, but it is now focused on a device you can buy for assistance (profit margins ). And from all I hear, it has its uses.
[Disclaimer: non-erotic but certainly explicit technical language. No inappropriate pictures.]
This is not, uh, a matter I have personal experience with. Just found it interesting. I heard about it from a nurse I worked with during one of those long, slow nights -- then punctuated by giggles.
[ November 04, 2004, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: Sara Sasse ]
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