Raising the Bar: How to Make Your Tie Bar Work

For some reason tie bars just add a little flair to your outfit. So here are three great outfits to throw on with your tie bar.

Minimal

Tweed jacket, Uniqlo; tie, Alexander Olch; shirt, Malo; trousers, Zegna; tie bar, no label

Do the Mad Men/Thom Browne thing. White shirt, dark suit, dark slim tie, tie bar. Keep that bar horizontal – everything must be clean and simple.

Boardroom Badass

Blazer, Company of We; shirt, Ralph Lauren Purple Label; tie, Brooks Brothers vintage; tie bar, no label

Power suit and wide collar necessary, rich guy. You’re one aggressive cat in the boardroom and your outfit shows it: in a fit of fury, angle the tie bar down toward hell because that’s where you’re sending your Wall Street competitors. And while you’re at it, use that bar to anchor and puff out the top of the tie. It adds depth to your outfit, and depth make you look like a lean, mean, stock-shorting machine. But really just lean.

Havin’ Fun

Chambray shirt, Banana Republic; tie, Chipp vintage; trousers, Uniqlo; belt, vintage - no label; tie bar, no label

Your buddy’s honking outside – you’re late. Just throw on any old oxford shirt, don’t bother buttoning the top button, half-ass the tie knot, and roll up the sleeves. Grab your vest on your way out to thwart the breeze. Tie bar angle? Who cares. Having a tie bar is enough: you’re just trying to keep your tie strapped down so it doesn’t hang in the grill while you’re flipping patties at the summer beach cookout.

“Raising the Bar: How to Make Your Tie Bar Work”

1. Noah says:

   July 20, 2010 at 7:54 pm

   I’m a big fan of the tie bar, but this article doesn’t talk about the two things most guys don’t understand about tie bars: placement and proportion. I see so many guys wearing their tie bars on their upper chests, between the second and third buttons of their shirts. At this height it becomes purely affectation since it doesn’t keep your tie from swinging. Many guys will say to me that they wear it high so it can be seen over a vest or cardigan. However, if it is being worn just to be seen without function then it becomes forced and affected. A tie bar looks best and works best roughly mid chest or slightly higher. I also see many men wearing a tie bar designed to be worn at the bell of a 3″ tie on the upper part of a slim tie. I usually recommend the tie bar should be roughly 3/4 the width of the tie at the point you wear it. Oddly enough, tie bar placement and proportion is the one proportion in the whole Thom Browne aesthetic that he keeps completely traditional.

   Anyway… thought that would be helpful to add