The Windsor Knot: "Mark of a Cad"?

I never understood why people live by the etiquette of this fictional character.

I don't like them though.

When done right (and by right I mean not the size of a mature coconut), with an appopriately wide spread...they look good.

Mike

The problem with many double windsors worn today (and most any knot that looks off) is that they're not pinched and pulled tightly/expertly enough. Knots--especially bulky ones--need to be shaped.

I don't tend to wear DWs much anymore, but I do think that they can help a lighter weight tie fill up a wide/spead collar nicely.

This.

With the right spread collar they look good to me. What's wrong with them? I use different knots everyday, depending on the collar, tie thickness, mood, and occasion. I have been wondering, though, how to tie it so that the knot is wider and less tall.

One of the partners, who is of the triple pleat MC Hammer looking pants type, came today to the office with a very nice cutaway collar shirt and tie combo, very unlike him. However, he tied a double windsor that filled out the whole collar space that looked exactly like a coconut,and which was the first thing I saw when I entered the office. I had to grip myself to not tell him anything, cause I would've sounded extremely homo. Not sure if a 4IH would've been better because of the extreme spread, but at least a half windsor would have been a better choice.

Exactly. I used to tie double windsors all the time, because that's what my father used back when everyone was sporting tiny 4IH's with 4" ties. To me they looked much better. However, they tend to look too bulky with thick ties.

I work with a guy that ties them huge and loose. I mean, every time I see it I want to grab the tie and fix it. And, he wears point collars..so these lossely tied atrocities take up every square MM of space and then some. Drives me nuts.

Nice and tight and they look good. Until I came here, a Windsor was all I tied.

Mike

What about the latest trend I'm seeing? Loose 4IH's that look huge and rectangular? Ugh.

Never liked the Windsor, and the quote by Flemming is one of my favorites and stayed with me. I first read From Russia with Love nearly 25 years ago in college and I remember laughing out loud when I read that line. I don't know if it is always the mark of a cad, and some Windsor knot tying people turn out to be perfectly fine, but it's one of those red-flag-first-impression prejudices that I have always had.

When tied with not-so-fat ties to me they seem highly natural. In fact is the first knot I learnt and it is (was) used everyday by my father (and grandfather).

This is how I do it.



Mike