Which Width is Which? The Most Common Neck Tie Widths

assorted colorful ties

Just like color and fabric, the width of your tie can change your entire look. Here’s the skinny on the most common tie widths, from thinnest to widest.

2 IN

The narrowest of ties. The 2-inch is for truly fashion-forward gents. Less tie = more statement.

2.5 IN

2.5 inch is the classic skinny tie. It’s a favorite of GQ and looks best with slim suits or trim lapels.

3 IN

Not too skinny, not too wide…juuust right…If you’re a modest guy who wants to try something a tad more modern, go with the 3 inch.

3.25 – 3.5 IN

Wide ties are a very traditional look. They’re also good for bigger guys, or guys with very broad shoulders.

See which ties work best for you by coming into Christopher James Menswear and sampling our selection of ties. We have tons of sizes and styles, and will happily guide you through all of them.

Bigger Men Can (And Should) Wear Slim Clothing

That full-framed guys can’t wear slim apparel is a popular notion. It’s also utterly ridiculous.

Can bigger guys were slim clothing?

Let’s get hypothetical for a minute.

Imagine Bill, 47, a successful investment banker in Fort Wayne. He’s a big guy, say, 6ft tall and 240 pounds, most of it around his middle.

He’s always shopped for bigger sizes in clothing, even when he was a kid.

When the slim trend became a global phenomenon a few years back, Bill abstained, despite his love for dressing well. He resigned himself to “classic” and “traditional” cuts, believing he’d look like an overstuffed sausage in “slim” or “skinny” clothes.

That look is for thin guys only, Bill thinks.

And anyway, he feels better in loose clothing. He can move comfortably (don’t skinny jeans choke your you-know-whats? He wonders), and more importantly, he believes he is cleverly concealing his size by wearing clothes that look “too big.”

So, day after day, Bill wears large suits that hang from his shoulders like a tunic, pool at his ankles, and crease repeatedly in the arms.

Then one day, at a business conference, Bill notices a man who looks oddly familiar. He was built like Bill, even looked like him…and…whayda know…the man is wearing an almost identical suit. How strange!

Bill At first wonders if he’s looking into a mirror, but quickly spots clear differences. The strange man’s suit doesn’t have excess fabric hanging from the ankles and waist. The jacket hem hits just above his upper thigh, and his pants have a clean quarter break just above his shoelaces.

Bill silently marvels at the man. Not only does the guy look incredibly polished—he looks like Bill, only 10 pounds lighter!

Bill grabs his phone and texts his wife to ask if she remembers the name of that menswear store they always pass by in Covington Plaza in downtown Fort Wayne.

Luckily, she does. A few minutes later he has a consultation with the store booked for the following week.

During the appointment, Bill tells the helpful salesman that he’s interested in slim clothing, but had, until recently, thought he didn’t have the right body type.

Everybody has the right body type, the salesman explains. “Slim means that the garment fits closer to your body, not ‘you have to be slim to wear this.’ You can wear a slim 38 and a slim 44. It’s relative.

The salesman then shows Bill a variety of slim-cut suits in Bill’s size. They need to go up a size with a few brands, but, as the salesman explains, this is common with slim cuts, even for skinny guys.

They find a suit in Bill’s size, but it needs a few alterations. The in-house tailor takes Bill’s measurements, and puts pins in here and there.*

(*Bill enjoys keeps an eye on a football game, thanks to a big screen TV hoisted on the far wall, during this time.)

A week later, Bill sports the slimmest suit he’s ever worn. And he feels fantastic.

To his surprise, he is incredibly comfortable. In fact, he feels more comfortable than before. He hadn’t realized how much all the extra fabric on his other suits had been weighing him down, and the clean, sharp silhouette puts a pep in his step.

Bill’s wife looks at him differently, too–in a way she hasn’t since their first few months of dating. Meanwhile at work, he senses his sharper, more professional appearance is eliciting more respect from his boss. Oh, and Barbara from accounting even asks if he’s lost weight.

Moral of the story: Big guys, don’t dismiss slim clothing. It can definitely look good on you.

Bow or No? Proper Neckwear For a Tuxedo

Should I wear a bow tie or neck tie with my tuxedo?

“Should I wear a bow tie or necktie with a tuxedo?”

We get this question often here at Christopher James in Fort Wayne.

Our answer is always the same: Bow tie.

(Sorry if that was anti-climatic.)

The explanation is more fun, promise.

A matter of etiquette

Black tie is all about rules, and dressing accordingly shows respect for the event, person, place, etc. for which you’re dressing up. Your wedding, for example. Or an elegant dinner party, reception, or formal dance.

Your date didn’t spend hours primping like royalty to spend the evening with a dude who looks like he couldn’t be bothered to gussy all the way up. (And you don’t want to spend a long evening by the punch bowl.)

Not to mention: a long tie with a tux just looks odd.

It’s not quite a tuxedo, but it’s certainly not a suit. It’s a conundrum, that’s what it is.

Don’t be fooled by celebrities on the red carpet, either. Subtract the glitz and glam of Hollywood (not to mention all the heavy photo editing), and a guy even like, say, Chris Hemsworth, will look goofy in a tie tux combo.

Also keep in mind that a stylist, looking to make a name for him or herself, is often behind the red carpet looks of many celebrity men. To stand out, a stylist must sometimes push boundaries, which is especially true for men’s formal wear because hasn’t changed all that much in the past century.

But, wait.

We don’t mean to sound like a sartorial hall monitor, and we certainly don’t want to squash personal expression. Although you can’t break the rules here, we never said you couldn’t bend them.

Therefore, here are a few ways you can have a little more fun with your bow tie.

  • Nobody said your bow tie must be black. Experiment with a darker color, like burgundy or navy. Patterns are all the rage these days too.
  • Bored with silk satin? Try a lightly textured fabric, or if you’re feeling bold, go black velvet.
  • Butterfly schmutterfly. There are many other knots you can create, including the batwing, the diamond point, the club round, and the jumbo butterfly. Mix it up.

If you’re in the market for fun bow ties, or you want to just see how a patterned bow tie will look with your tux, come see us. We have a superb selection of bow ties here at Christopher James Menswear and we’d love to help you experiment.