DIY bow ties: A guide for those attending black-tie functions

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/01/2009 (6150 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s not often that “black tie” are buzzwords, but with 10 official inaugural balls Tuesday to celebrate the presidency of Barack Obama – and at least 10 unofficial ones – the bow tie will surely be back, if just for one night.

But there is an art to tying a bow tie. Enough men apparently don’t know how to do it because the St. Regis Hotel, for one, is offering a walk-by bow-tie service for guests on their way out the door.

Here’s a DIY guide from upscale menswear label Thomas Pink:

-Drape the bow tie around your neck and under your collar and grasp the ends. Make sure the end on your right is about four centimetres (1 1/2 inches) longer than the one on the left.

-Cross the longer end over the shorter end. You should cross the tie near your neck so that the loop around your neck is just large enough to work with and not too low on your chest.

-Pass the longer end up through the loop, forming a simple, loose overhand knot.

-Grasp the loose end that is hanging straight down on your right and fold the widest part of the end back to form a loop and hold it with your thumb and forefinger between the collar points.

-Drop the left end of the bow tie – the one which you passed up through the loop – down over the front of the bow.

-Form a new loop with the left end, folding it at the widest part.

-Put the new loop behind the front loop, going in the opposite direction. Push the new loop into the know behind the first loop using the tip of your finger. On one side the loop will be in the front, on the other side, it will be in the back.

-Tighten the knot by pulling the two loops at the same time, while simultaneously straightening the tie.