It varies. HalfWin, 4inHand, depends on the collar, the tie and my degree of patience or give-a-damness that morning.
(Is it me, or are those diagrams confusing, in that some make it look as if there already were a knot in there during the first looping?).
Lady Doper here.
I use the four-in-hand for (long silk) scarves, where its asymmetry is more stylish than it would be for a men’s tie. 
But when menswear is fashionable for the ladies, I use the four-in-hand because I’m too girly-girl to learn a better knot. 
Half Windsor. I wore a tie for many years in elementary school, and was only taught four-in-hand as a kid. The asymmetry is not that appealing. Four-in-hand is referred to as a farmer’s knot by some. I wore a four-in-hand for many years into my adulthood until I figured that it couldn’t be that hard to learn to tie a better knot. You know what? It wasn’t.
I tried full Windsor too, but the knot is too thick for my tastes, and even though I’m not very tall, my torso is disproportionately tall compared to my legs, so the half Windsor works best for me.
Half Windsor or four in hand. My dad only does the Windsor, I don’t care for 'em. Too bulky.
This about how easy it was to tie a better knot is true for me too.
Wide tie: Four-in-hand.
Narrow tie: Windsor.
Tie made of thick material: Four-in-hand.
Tie made of thin material: Windsor.
My mother taught me how to tie a necktie about 60 years ago and I’ve been tying them the same way ever since, but I have no idea what its name is. And I can’t take the time to check those links to find out because I have to go chase some kids off my lawn.
Four-in-hand for thin ties, something not listed here for thick ones.
I own a couple ties that I don’t know how to tie. I get them out for funerals or the rare wedding. I leave them tied and just loosen them to take them off.
Too “girly-girl”? I once was talking in a semi-professional setting with a woman who–without asking or warning–reached up and undid my tie completely, and then retied it perfectly (actually better), without in the slightest interrupting herself or deviating from the focus of her discourse, which was some kind of a gripe against her landlord.
However, I can’t for the life of me remember which knot she used.
When I taught myself in high school I looked it up on line and the knot I know was card the half Windsor apparently it’s been wrong all of these years and I tie a four-in-hand. Unfortunatly I voted for a half Windsor.
I have an extremely long torso (6’6" with a 34" inseam) and even with the 4 in hand I have trouble making the extra long ties reaching my belt while tucking in the back. I’d love to try the better knots but I know the Windsor uses the whole tie. I will probably give the pratt a shot the next time out though.
I’ve got 4 more weddings I’m going to this year so I’ll have plenty of opportunities.
Possibly dumb question, but are you starting with the underside of the tie outwards? That is, with the other knots you generally start with the tie’s seam against your neck (or against your shirt… you know what I mean…) whereas with the Pratt the tie is “upside down” at the start. At the end the “face” of the tie is still against your neck (with your collar hiding the outwards facing seam), but the hanging part looks normal (i.e. face outwards).
Yes, length is about the same, but the knot itself is symmetrical, which is why I like it; it works very well with my favourite lightweight silk tie… though not as well with thicker materials (IMHO).
Reading these replies I am vacillating between thinking of the doom of American civilization because nobody under thirty knows how to tie a fucking tie and joy because we are moving beyond such an uncomfortable and useless affectation as a tie. Being an Engineer over 40 I remember when you wore ties, and as a west coast engineer when you wore long pants, to work. I am not sure if it is a gain or a loss.
Half-Windsor
This site I think has better diagrams (http://www.tie-a-tie.net/).
Anyway, I use the four-in-hand knot. I like the asymmetry. The windsors look too stodgy, in my humble opinion. Maybe it would be okay if I worked at a bank. But since it’s mostly weddings, I try to look like I’m somewhat happy. I think I might look at the pratt for next time, though. It seems interesting, and if it looks pretty good when it’s loose, that seems like a nice advantage.
I hate asymmetrical knots and think they look sloppy¹, so for me it’s the Windsor. My ties are generally fairly thin (usually light silk, because silk has this very nice “fall” compared to other fabrics) and I’m rather short(ish), so the length of the tie or size of the knot usually isn’t a problem.
On the rare occasion that the Windsor becomes too big for the shirt collar, I use a self-releasing half-Windsor variant. I wasn’t aware of the Pratt, though. Maybe I’ll try it (or rather the Nicky, I prefer my ties with self-releasing knots) instead of the half Windsor next time.
Ugh. That’s just nasty on the tie. I always loosen the knot and hang or roll up my ties, neat and tidy. I mean, I use a tie only a few days during one year, so it’s just fair to treat them nice when they’re lying around waiting to be used.
¹ The recent fad among tweens over here, though, looks even worse than a decently tied four-in-hand: They don’t tighten the knot properly, leaving it to look half-tied. Double ugh.
Missed the edit window:
I have the impression that small asymmetrical knots like the four-in-hand is more popular on the Western bank of the pond than over here on the East bank. I’ve got no cite or data to support the impression, though. Any thoughts on that, guys (and gals)?
yeah, i’m starting it inside out. i don’t know exactly which step i’m messing up on but it’s not a huge deal. it’s just fixed with a half turn of the tie before i “make the loop” but it is wrinkling the tie something awful. anyway, i have no complaints with the windsor/2 and since it’s not costing me any tie length.
as for all the 4-in-handers who like the asymmetric look? is this the same logic as buying ripped jeans, or faded graphic t’s? or carefully disheveled hair? the look of “worn” is earned, damnit! after a long day of roughing it in your noose, it naturally slides out, and the buttons are slowly unbuttoned. you can’t just show up with a slanty tie! plus it looks like you don’t know how to tie a tie properly.
I like the four-in-hand for the same reason it was invented – I rarely button my overcoat in the winter and the wind blows the tie all over the place – but, unlike the half-Windsor I used to use – never in my face.
I never wear a tie anymore, but when I did I discovered something interesting. My dad taught me to tie a half-Windsor in junior high, and that’s what I wore for many years. Seeking a smaller knot I switched to the four-in-hand which I liked better for size, shape, and the aforementioned not-smacking-you-in-the-face characteristics. And that’s what I wore every day for years. Except only if I tied it in front of a mirror. If for whatever reason I had to re-tie the tie later in the day, when I wasn’t in front of a mirror, my hands naturally knotted up a half-Windsor. I couldn’t teach a person how to tie the half-W to save my life, but if I can’t see myself doing it, that’s what I naturally do.
–Cliffy
I prefer a bowtie, but for a long tie, I use a half Windsor.