Loosened ties...

[CharlestonBows]

Gregory Peck

... looks like he just finished a days work, not like he did that to go about town.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Everything we do as men (and women) when it comes to how we look is affected. It may be to please ourselves or someone else. It may be because we have no imagination and dig ourselves into *perceived* "tradition" holes. It may be because it's what's expected of us.

Really i don't think clothing or grooming matters very much (see my filthy hippy long hair). *I* prefer to see people well dressed - as i subjectively view "well dressed". But it doesn't matter one way or the other. I like stubble, and the look of stubble.

And yes, i think we should have chaos in men's dress: Total chaos. No strictures. None. No judgement. Wear what you want. In any situation. Naked if you want. Irvin suit on a 35 degree Celcius summers day if you want. White suits and shoes all through the year.

And yes, i wear a suit every day (almost; today i've got on a western plaid shirt and striped jeans). 3 piece usually. Fedoras, homburgs, and flat caps. Tie always. Leather shoes always. I choose this. I couldn't give a damn in hell what Gary Cooper or Edward VIII or any of my style icons wore. I don't want to be them. I cannot pretend to care about tradition, "propriety" or any of tese other affected standpoints.

Wear what you like.

bk

VVVVV

 

[J. M. Stovall]

I'm really not trying to prove anything...it's just fun to try and find photos of Golden Age actors with loose ties.

It sure is easy to get you guys in a tizzy.

 

["Doc" Devereux]

:eusa_clap

When we finally meet, Baron, I'm buying you a pint.

 

[scotrace]

A loose noose isn't comfortable for me, that's all. I leave it cinched, even in hot weather, even when tired. If it becomes uncomfortable, off it comes completely.

A bit like underpants.

 

[J. M. Stovall]

A loose noose isn't comfortable for me, that's all. I leave it cinched, even in hot weather, even when tired. If it becomes uncomfortable, off it comes completely.

A bit like underpants.

So true, there is nothing worse than loose underpants.

Is that what we're talking about?

 

[CharlestonBows]

Everything we do as men (and women) when it comes to how we look is affected. It may be to please ourselves or someone else. It may be because we have no imagination and dig ourselves into *perceived* "tradition" holes. It may be because it's what's expected of us.

Really i don't think clothing or grooming matters very much (see my filthy hippy long hair). *I* prefer to see people well dressed - as i subjectively view "well dressed". But it doesn't matter one way or the other. I like stubble, and the look of stubble.

And yes, i think we should have chaos in men's dress: Total chaos. No strictures. None. No judgement. Wear what you want. In any situation. Naked if you want. Irvin suit on a 35 degree Celcius summers day if you want. White suits and shoes all through the year.

And yes, i wear a suit every day (almost; today i've got on a western plaid shirt and striped jeans). 3 piece usually. Fedoras, homburgs, and flat caps. Tie always. Leather shoes always. I choose this. I couldn't give a damn in hell what Gary Cooper or Edward VIII or any of my style icons wore. I don't want to be them. I cannot pretend to care about tradition, "propriety" or any of tese other affected standpoints.

Wear what you like.

bk

VVVVV

I love your posts! :eusa_clap

I agree with most of your points. I asked the questions -- and we all, here, respond with opinions -- through the prism of the Golden Age. Some choose, like us here, to adhere to these rules, traditions and notions of propriety.

I disagree, though, that tradition & sartorial etiquette and propriety aren't important or necessary. I also think that what important men of each generation does has an important and necessary influence. I think this because it is this sense of tradition, of propriety, and what is appropriate in dress that forms - and has formed - the very lubricant of our society. The manner of dress marks who you are, what you do, and from which segment of society you come from -- for good or ill. One dresses according to these traditions in a sign of respect and courtesy towards colleagues and superiors. Its why courts and businesses (most) demand adherence to a code of dress. Sartorial icons of contemporary and recently passed generations are important beacons of what has been, is, and what will be acceptable dress. It is through these men that mens style has evolved -- again, for good or ill.

Don't take this as an endorsement of an unquestioning submission to fashion or narrow prescriptions of dress, it isn't. Individuality and personality give a man's dress life. It defines who he is. For many of us here - like you, BK - share a fondness for vintage and classic style helps express who we are and what we believe as individuals. For others, jeans and a white t-shirt might do. That's fine.

But my main problem -- to get back to the point of this thread -- with the loosened tie (and oversized shirts, excessively labeled clothing, athletic wear, and other odd evolutions in modern dress) is that it makes no sense, at least within the science of clothing. Mens dress, and the evolutions that men like Edward VII, Cary Grant, Bogart, Faribanks Jr., etc. initiated in their generations still made sense. It had aesthetically pleasing proportions, it had art, it fit - it achieved the one great effort that all men (well, most) strive for, and that is to flatter their appearance. Peak lapels made skinny men look wider, stripes made the short seem taller, etc. It has, or had, a purpose, however small.

A loosened tie is usually, in my opinion, counterproductive to these ends. It does not achieve the same goal of making a man look better, or adding style. It detracts from his appearance. But, that is of course, my opinion. [huh]

Maybe I'm wrong and I'm just a crotchety young man! lol I'm in class, as it is, so I'm not sure if that made any coherent sense at all.

 

[CharlestonBows]

I'm really not trying to prove anything...it's just fun to try and find photos of Golden Age actors with loose ties.

It sure is easy to get you guys in a tizzy.

Principle, my man, principle! lol

 

[tonypaj]

Everything we do as men (and women) when it comes to how we look is affected. It may be to please ourselves or someone else. It may be because we have no imagination and dig ourselves into *perceived* "tradition" holes. It may be because it's what's expected of us.

Really i don't think clothing or grooming matters very much (see my filthy hippy long hair). *I* prefer to see people well dressed - as i subjectively view "well dressed". But it doesn't matter one way or the other. I like stubble, and the look of stubble.

And yes, i think we should have chaos in men's dress: Total chaos. No strictures. None. No judgement. Wear what you want. In any situation. Naked if you want. Irvin suit on a 35 degree Celcius summers day if you want. White suits and shoes all through the year.

And yes, i wear a suit every day (almost; today i've got on a western plaid shirt and striped jeans). 3 piece usually. Fedoras, homburgs, and flat caps. Tie always. Leather shoes always. I choose this. I couldn't give a damn in hell what Gary Cooper or Edward VIII or any of my style icons wore. I don't want to be them. I cannot pretend to care about tradition, "propriety" or any of tese other affected standpoints.

Wear what you like.

bk

VVVVV

Couldn't agree more. Real style comes from confidence, sense of self, and individuality. Definitely not from text books or fashion guides, rules created by, yes, just another man...

tonypaj

P.S. If I wear ties, they are loose if I feel like it. And I hate socks. And I commit all kinds of faux pas. But I enjoy watching and learning about the style of the 40s, and I like trying to figure out which parts I can use myself...

 

[CharlestonBows]

Couldn't agree more. Real style comes from confidence, sense of self, and individuality. Definitely not from text books or fashion guides, rules created by, yes, just another man...

So, Carrot Top is stylish? lol lol

 

[kenji]

heresy

I have to admit that I hate wearing ties, loose or tight, and avoid doing it unless I have to. I don't mind wearing purely nonfunctional clothes to suit convention, but I draw the line at wearing a noose snugged against my neck.

That said, there's no point in doing something halfway. If I have to wear a tie, I'll do it properly.

 

[tonypaj]

So, Carrot Top is stylish? lol lol

Being pretty much bald I'd love the hair The 60's psychedelic stuff, oh well.

tonypaj

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

And yes, i wear a suit every day […]. 3 piece usually. Fedoras, homburgs, and flat caps.

Indeed rather an anarchist definition of a three-piece suit. Also could get a bit chilly in winter. Well, beauty must suffer.

 

[CharlestonBows]

Being pretty much bald I'd love the hair The 60's psychedelic stuff, oh well.

tonypaj

lol

 

[SamMarlowPI]

at senior ball a bunch of us took the bowtie off and folded the shirt collar over the jacket collar like so:

and it looked good...we were all tired...and Scarface was big with us...

 

[resortes805]

at senior ball a bunch of us took the bowtie off and folded the shirt collar over the jacket collar ...

Yes, the popped collar. But I'm thinking more Louis Jordan, than Tony Montana.

 

[Miss Brill]

Until I came here I didn't know men still wore ties, unless they were lawyers, or were on televison. [huh]

 

[CharlestonBows]

at senior ball a bunch of us took the bowtie off and folded the shirt collar over the jacket collar ....

[huh]

 

[SamMarlowPI]

Yes, the popped collar. But I'm thinking more Louis Jordan, than Tony Montana.

yah it looks better on Jordan...
popped collar, huh? i didn't know what the name for it was...thought popped collar was just pulling the collar up like James Dean for example...unless it has double meaning...

 

[StanleyVanBuren]

As someone who works and goes to school at the same time, I'm often wearing a suit to school, having just come from work. I make a few adjustments at school, one of which is to unbutton my collar and loosen my tie. Something about this says to my fellow students, "Yeah, I was at work... but now I'm here." At my law school at least, there are a few other people like me who will show up to school in suits and they all seem to be making similar adjustments.

I'd also point out that a loose tie is not dissimilar from leaving the bottom button of your suit jacket unbuttoned. That practice was probably looked at the same way initially, and now it's the standard.