Wait, isn’t the four-in-hand supposed to be crooked? I thought the point of that knot was that it was thinner and gave a sort of rakish, jaunty angle to your tie.
yes, I just used rakish and jaunty in the same sentence
For regular ties, I use a four-in-hand. I did know the half and full windsors at one point, but have forgotten them.
I do tie a bow tie with my tux. It’s disappointing how many formal ties and tie/cummerbund sets come as pre-tied compared to the relative rarity of finding a formal set that you can tie.
It usually takes me a couple of tries looking in the mirror to get my bow tie right, but if I’m the right level of drunk, I am able to untie and retie my bow pretty effortlessly, particularly if challenged by some attractive woman who disbelieves that I actually tied my tie.
Part of the problem, I think, is people like me, who have absolutely no idea how to tie a bow tie. We see the old movies, and watch a character pull one “thing” and the whole tie just undoes and falls into two neat (if oddly shaped) ends. My Dad taught me how to tie a necktie, but Dad never wore bow ties–unless they were pre-tied and he was wearing a tux. I never had the opportunity to learn how to tie a bow tie from my Dad–or anyone else, for that matter.
I will admit that the idea of wearing a properly-tied bow tie intrigues me. Maybe it’s the Damon Runyon impression of a bow tie as belonging to the hard-bitten sports reporter who spends too much time at the racetrack, or maybe it’s the James Bondian idea of the suave, cool gentleman in a dinner jacket who doesn’t flinch at adversity. But no matter what, a real bow tie, as opposed to a pre-tied one, always looks good, IMHO. If I only knew how!
The only knot I know is the one I learnt when I was eleven and was starting high school. I only have ever used clip-on bow ties. And the only redundant ties I have are horrid novelty ones.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
All of them.
Which one do you tie most often?
Windsor(I have a fairly long neck).
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
Yes and yes(I worked in a hotel and was used constantly for weddings because I’m English).
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
A yellow tie with a blue outline of the country of Colombia centered at the bottom(Colombian Neck-Tie, get it?)
I don’t wear it because it’s ugly and offensive.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
One; Windsor
Which one do you tie most often?
Ditto
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
Hell, no.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
I don’t have a particular favorite, but I have maybe 100 ties, so I don’t really distinguish them that much. My dad was a Dr. and had quite a few very nice, expensive ties made by Ermenegildo Zegna. I inherited them when he died, as I’m the tie-wearing one in the family. There are some of them that are a bit fancy for this cubicle dweller or don’t match anything.
Zero.
N/A.
No and no.
They’re all the same to me. I wear them only when necessary, and I only have just enough to fit the color combinations in my closet.
I do a double windsor (can also do a single windsor). No, I can’t do a bow tie
Favorite that I never wear is a tough one. Bruce Lee white on black, beer mug, calvin and hobbes winter one that I wear around Xmas occaisionally.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie? All of them.
Which one do you tie most often? Half-windsor
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux? No.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear? If I like it - I wear it.
I was once talking with a woman who during the conversation reached up, untied my tie, and then retied it. While she continued to talk about the subject of the conversation. I was dumbfounded, and just said, “Thank you.”
But later, I was a little insulted: “She thinks I don’t know how to tie a tie!” :mad: “Well, she’s wrong!”
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
(only?) three. Windsor, Half Windsor and the Four in Hand
Which one do you tie most often?
Windsor, but it depends on the tie and the collar
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
Yes, and yes. But the only time I wear one other than with a traditional dinner suit is with a Charlie/Argyle. Just had to hire a Charlie jacket a few minutes ago, and I will wear the proper bow-tie for the obvious reason as soon as dress is relaxed, you look a lot cooler.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
I have two lovely handmade silk ties which were given to my by an ex’s mum. Only worn them a couple of times since I only really have one shirt which they go with.
Although wikipedia isn’t always the best source of information, I’m pretty sure it shouldn’t be called a ‘double windsor’. Only the full and the half.
4-in hand and Half-Windsor slip variant, know full Windsor but never use it. Which of the two others I use depends on the tie (length, thickness of fabric, width) and the collar spread. Being an inveterate off-the-racker I have quite a variance in those aspects.
No idea how to actually do a bow tie, though. Not having worn one since the Carter administration, wherein someone else tied it for me, I have now realized I don’t even have any idea if I know anyone who does… sounds like a project for some day when I’d have absolutely nothing to do on a Sunday afternoon.
My favorite almost-never-worn tie is a Snoopy-at-the-library one, that is relegated because on the days I’m in suit and tie I never know when I may suddenly be asked to go to some big-time-serious meeting and “project authority” (how I’m expected to project something I’m not given, the head staff has never told me…)
Anyone under 40 should be using the 4 in hand. If you are over 40, go for the half Windsor if you want, pops.
Full Windsor? I cannot imagine anyone not looking like a complete tool.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
Just one, unaware of its name. I do make sure it’s “cupped” in the middle, a symmetric verticle crease.
Which one do you tie most often?
The one I know. The ones I don’t know look like shit.
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
No. With a tux it’s still the kind with a band that hooks. I’d never wear a bow otherwise seeing as I’m not a weatherman.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
I wear most all my favorite silks but if I had a really nice turquoise bolo, that would probably be it because no matter how nice, when in the heck would you ever wear a bolo?
ETA: When I turn 60 I probably will buy a nice bolo. Until then though I’d feel like a poser.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
Three: the four-in-hand, the Windsor, and the Shelby.
Which one do you tie most often?
Windsor
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
I’ve never tried, and no.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
I have two Cirque du Soleil ties that I really like, but never get to wear (too flashy for court). One is a chair balancing act, and one is a pole climbing act.
How many necktie knots do you know how to tie?
One. I don’t know what it’s called.
Can you tie a bow-tie and do you ever wear one other than with a tux?
No. Never worn a tux, either.
What is your favorite necktie that you never wear?
Damned if I know. It’s been a decade since I regularly wore neckties; I only wear them a few times a year nowadays. I really don’t know what ties I have anymore, when I’m not looking at them.
Maybe not! The act of straightening a man’s tie is an intimate moment. This woman went so far as to untie and retie yours, which is a long, drawn out intimate moment, even though she stayed calm and on-subject. Possibly even a little sexual, especially the part where she untied your tie!
Or, maybe she’s just a control freak. 
Not so puzzling, really. A half Windsor is a turn around one side, a turn around the bottom, then tuck through. For the full, you just add a turn around the other side before the turn around the bottom. It’s too big for some ties and some necks, but it is symmetrical and elegant. If it looks more like a trapezoid than a triangle, pull harder on the wide end of the tie, and pinch the knot.
Its is a favorite, I wear it. I only have the ones I wear. No slackers.
The first time I had to wear a tie, I just puzzled out a knot that I thought looked symmetrical. Turns out that I invented the Windsor. That I what I’ve tied ever since.