Ties under $50 (Advice for a Female)

[transatlantique]

Hi, everyone! I'm afraid that I might get berated here for not wanting to spend more on a tie, but here is my situation: I'm shopping for a holiday gift for my boyfriend, and we aren't going more than $50 on gifts (we've only been together 7 months, are college students, don't want to spend a fortune on each other, etc.) He has no ties and needs one -- although he very rarely needs to wear a tie, about twice a year some kind of formal event happens and he has to borrow a tie from someone. Anyway, I'm trying to find the highest quality tie I can find for the price. So far I've found Stafford, J. Ferrar, Michael by Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger, Lauren by Ralph Lauren, Donald Trump, Club Room, Calvin Klein, Perry Ellis, and the ties that Men's Wearhouse and Jos A. Bank sell. I also saw a lot of suggestions for Andrew's Ties, but I would kind of rather get something I could find near me and not have to get shipped. I have done some research on this, but I feel like most of the discussions I've found regarding this kind of thing have devolved into investment bankers yelling at people for considering buying a tie under $100 or people suggesting going to a thrift shop, but for some reason I feel weird about giving him a used gift. Do any of you have constructive opinions comparing these brands? Any other suggestions? Like I said, it wouldn't get a ton of use but is kind of necessary.

Thanks!

 

[Gauss17]

Most of those brands (in my opinion) are of relatively similar quality, and not typically the brands on this forum go for as a general rule. Ralph Lauren does have some higher end labels (black label, purple label) that are of higher quality. However, the idea that you cannot get a very quality tie under $100 is simply not true.

I do think you could get the best value for you money if you were willing to order online. A lot of places have no sales tax and free shipping (or cheap shipping) at this time. You could get a very respectable tie for $50-$75 in this manner.

If you insist on being able to go to a local store (and if you are clever) you can probably get a brooks brothers tie on sale for around $50. I think they normally retail for ~$80.

All that said, if the guy has zero ties and will rarely ever wear it. You might as well just go find an inexpensive tie that looks nice, nearly all brands are 100% silk these days. I would recommend a solid navy tie as a first color.

 

[ter1413]

If he rarely wears a tie, DON'T get him one!

 

[Louys]

Ok, so here's the thing. The cheapest ties anyone talks about on these forums are probably kent wang's knit ties at $65. There's no way to say this but the blunt way, 99% of ties that cost less then that are made from cheap materials with corner cutting manufacturing techniques. If you want to get something nearby under that cost this is what you will get. (Don't bash the "investment bankers" to much, I'm in college too, I wear a tie at least once a month and they're right, the nice ties are worth it.)

That's not really that terrible. The guys wears a tie twice a year and you haven't even been dating a year so no reason to splurge. The best gift you can get him is a tie that doesn't suck. Most ties suck, especially at that price range, they just look bad. Help your BF by getting him a simple, versatile, no nonsense piece of neck wear.

If he wears a black or grey suit or suit jacket when he dresses formally get him a navy blue tie with no pattern, thicker than 2.5 inches at its widest point. If he wears a navy suit or suit jacket get him a light grey tie, also thicker than 2.5. If he doesn't wear a jacket but just a dress shirt then get him a black knit tie. Knit ties can be a little slimmer. The boring color scheme is there for a reason, respect it as the wisdom of sages.

I can't recommend mall brands but if you change your mind a shop online, (though I imagine that will make your gift come too late) I recommend:

http://theknottery.com/
and
http://www.chippneckwear.com/

only look at the grenadines and knit ties. Also, should you want to get a quality tie for as cheap as possible try kent wang for the 65-75 price range.

http://www.kentwang.com/ties

Good luck, I hope he likes it. Personally, I'd get him Kent Wang's black knit and photographs of Sean Connery as James Bond wearing one.

 

[The Thin Man]

For a well-made, classically styled tie under $50, I'd go with chippneckwear.com. For a more formal look, I'd go with a black or navy grenadine (both currently out of stock). For more casual, a black or navy silk knit tie.

 

[VinnyMac]

Hi, everyone! I'm afraid that I might get berated here for not wanting to spend more on a tie, but here is my situation: I'm shopping for a holiday gift for my boyfriend, and we aren't going more than $50 on gifts (we've only been together 7 months, are college students, don't want to spend a fortune on each other, etc.) He has no ties and needs one -- although he very rarely needs to wear a tie, about twice a year some kind of formal event happens and he has to borrow a tie from someone. Anyway, I'm trying to find the highest quality tie I can find for the price. So far I've found Stafford, J. Ferrar, Michael by Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger, Lauren by Ralph Lauren, Donald Trump, Club Room, Calvin Klein, Perry Ellis, and the ties that Men's Wearhouse and Jos A. Bank sell. I also saw a lot of suggestions for Andrew's Ties, but I would kind of rather get something I could find near me and not have to get shipped. I have done some research on this, but I feel like most of the discussions I've found regarding this kind of thing have devolved into investment bankers yelling at people for considering buying a tie under $100 or people suggesting going to a thrift shop, but for some reason I feel weird about giving him a used gift. Do any of you have constructive opinions comparing these brands? Any other suggestions? Like I said, it wouldn't get a ton of use but is kind of necessary.

Thanks!

Go to http://www.thetiebar.com/ (The Tie Bar)
There are a lot of nice gift ideas in your budget. You'll have to wait for shipping, but if you pay for express shipping, then you can probably get the package for Christmas. Buy the 3 inch ones. Here are two nice options:

http://www.thetiebar.com/order_page.asp?pn=33525

http://www.thetiebar.com/order_page.asp?pn=33523

 

[transatlantique]

Thank you for the advice, everyone! I'll definitely take it into account.

And ter1413, I'm getting him one because he specifically said that he wanted one. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother with it

 

[jungleroller]

TJ Maxx or Marshalls if you have one in your area. Usually you can get decent name brand ties for $9.99-$19.99.

 

[JubeiSpiegel]

I would also suggest your local Premium Outlet, if you have one around your area. In Last Call & Saks off Fifth, you can get even Tom Ford and Brioni ties at $60 with their current discounts. Worth a look...