Wearing a Tie Bar: A Question

I searched but couldn't find what I was looking for. I was wondering a few things about tie bars:

1. Um, are they "in"? It seems I've been seeing more of them.
2. My ties are usually 3.25", so what length tie bar goes well with that?
3. How do you know how high up you are supposed to wear the tie bar?
4. I mostly see silver and gold colored. Any advice on when to wear which?

Thanks for any help!



TreadNotOnMe said:

I searched but couldn't find what I was looking for. I was wondering a few things about tie bars:

1. Um, are they "in"? It seems I've been seeing more of them.

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Does it matter?

2. My ties are usually 3.25", so what length tie bar goes well with that?

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Depends on thickness of bar.

3. How do you know how high up you are supposed to wear the tie bar?

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Below the nipples.

4. I mostly see silver and gold colored. Any advice on when to wear which?

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Depends on the color of your watch and the colors of your clothes.

Thanks for the reply! Yes, the "in style" thing matters to me a little bit because left to my own devices... well, it can be bad. Real bad.

I always wear one with a tie - more for function than for show. Usually not visible with my jacket buttoned but when I sit down to eat it keeps my tie out of my soup!

This is Styleforum not Fashionforum so it shouldn't matter if they are 'in' or not, more whether you like them and can wear them with confidence.

Silver if your watch, belt buckle etc are silver. I'm one of those who likes to match my metals.

No wider than the width of your tie. Don't clip them perfectly horizontal. I prefer the slides to the spring clips, but please for the love of god stay away from those despicable one inch wide pathetic looking things from The Tie Bar that are in just about every GQ photo shoot of the last couple of years, they look ******* ridiculous!

Thanks! But don't clip them perfectly horizontal? That would have never occurred to me. So do you slope it down... or up?



TreadNotOnMe said:

Thanks! But don't clip them perfectly horizontal? That would have never occurred to me. So do you slope it down... or up?

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Usually slope it down, especially if I'm wearing a US repp stripe tie with the stripes going top right to bottom left ( English ties go the other way so slanting your tie bar down puts it at odds with the tie's stripes!)

I just think clipping them perfectly horizontal is a bit OCD but like I said, as mine are rarely visible I don't sweat it!

Double post...sorry

Ianiceman said:

I prefer the slides to the spring clips, but please for the love of god stay away from those despicable one inch wide pathetic looking things from The Tie Bar that are in just about every GQ photo shoot of the last couple of years, they look ******* ridiculous!

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I don't have a lot of experience with tie bars, can you elaborate as to why you prefer the slides to the spring? Also, the only tie bars I have are from The Tie Bar...where would you recommend looking for a good quality one?



Ianiceman said:

Usually slope it down, especially if I'm wearing a US repp stripe tie with the stripes going top right to bottom left ( English ties go the other way so slanting your tie bar down puts it at odds with the tie's stripes!)

I just think clipping them perfectly horizontal is a bit OCD but like I said, as mine are rarely visible I don't sweat it!

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Because it's less OCD to intentionally place them at an angle?

When I put mine on, I put it on horizontally, because that's how it's supposed to go. It's the default position. I don't spend hours with a level, but I don't intentionally put it on crooked with the intent of not doing it like everybody else. I put my pants on with the zipper in the front, too, does that make me OCD?

OP:

1. Doesn't matter. They're a classic thing, and regardless of the whims of fashion, will never be out of place.
2. As long as they don't go wider than the tie, you're good.
3. About halfway down- I put mine right about at the solar plexus. The point is to keep your tie from flopping around, not to display a piece of jewelry near your throat. I've seen guys who do that, and it either makes them look like idiots or trashy attention whores.
4. Silver with silver metals, gold with gold metals. If you're not wearing other metals, gold with earthtones and blue, silver with blacks and grays.



taint it sweet said:

I don't have a lot of experience with tie bars, can you elaborate as to why you prefer the slides to the spring? Also, the only tie bars I have are from The Tie Bar...where would you recommend looking for a good quality one?

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Less risk of damage to the shirt and the tie, the teeth on some can be a little sharp. They're usually fine if you pay attention when putting them on or off, I wouldn't worry about it.

As for better ones than the tie bar, the ones from the tie bar are fine, so long as you're getting reasonable styles. Better ones will be made with silver rather than stainless steel or use better metal under the gold plating, but those are fine in general. I'm not sure what Ianiceman has against the short ones. They're not to my taste, but they're profoundly inoffensive. The brightly colored ones are a little more jarring to my eye, as are the extra thick ones I see on occasion. The darker colors could be interesting though, but not as your first or only tie bar. Cover the basics first.

Tie bars are commonly worn horizontally right below the pec. Btw LOVE the avatar Tread.

Nothing wrong with them being horizontal, but they can/do move around a bit so don't sweat it if they aren't perfectly horizontal.

Like Capt. says, the teeth can bite into your tie but I also prefer the slides as the teethed ones seem to have a really acute triangle at the hinge side while the slide ones look more trim and will lay flatter against your shirt.

No problem with The Tie Bar in general, I just hate them one inch wide ones and sick of the sight of them on every GQ spread every month.

I've had a couple of nice slides in sterling from eBay. Gave them to my groomsmen at my wedding. It's also the kind of cool thing you sometimes find in antique and thrift stores. You may even hit your dad or grandad up for one he doesn't use any more that has a bit of heirloom / family history to it.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. My only concern with getting a slide one is that I wasn't sure if they would lose their shape over time... I'll have to look into them.