Necktie Knots

Did you know that there are multiple types of necktie knots you can wear to change up the look of your ties for different occasions?

There are a few different necktie knots:

• Windsor Knot: This one is a wide, triangular knot and used often for formal occasions. If your shirt has a wide collar opening, this one is a great one to learn.
• Four-in-Hand: This necktie knot is the easiest to learn, but it's not symmetrical. It goes best with shirts with narrow collars.
• Half Windsor: This one is appropriate for your business wardrobe and most other occasions, as well. It's symmetrical, which makes it more versatile than the four-in-hand knot.
• Pratt/Shelby Knott: This is just your average knot. It's average in size and versatile enough to go with most collars. It, too, is symmetrical.
• Bow Tie Knot: This one is more difficult to learn because there is a more ornate shape to get right. Luckily for those who don't enjoy tying this type of knot, it's mainly used for very formal events (i.e. weddings, upscale parties, and so on).

Want to learn how to tie the necktie knots listed above? Here's a guide, based on a right-hander's perspective:

Drape the tie around your neck with the wider end dangling very low on your right. Take the right side over the left side right at collar-level. Take the wide end through the loop as if you're tying a shoe, then take it to the left so that the wide side is still on the left. Then take the wide end behind the narrow one so that it's on the right.

Take the wide side through the middle of the loop again, bringing the wide end to the front. After that, you'll take the wide side and pull it through the back of the loop, draping it in the center and down through the loop. Tighten it up and then hold onto the narrow end as you move the knot into place.

Again, start with the wide side on your right. Take the right side over the left side, crossing the ends of the tie in front of your upper chest. Loop the wide end back to the right side by going behind the narrow end. Take it back to the other side, looping across the narrow end once again. Take the wide end through the loop that's around your neck, tucking it down through the smaller front loop. Pull the narrow end slightly while you slide the knot up into place with your other hand.

Start with the wide end on your right side, then cross it over the narrow end. Loop the wide end back around the back of the narrow end so that the wide end is on the right side again. Flip the wide end up and center it, then tuck it through the knot and pull it to the left side. Cross the wide end in front of the knot again to the right and then up through the loop around your neck. Once it's through that loop, tuck it back through the smaller loop in front. Tighten the knot and move it up toward the neck until it's firmly in place.

As always, the wide end is on your right, but start off with the tie inside out. You usually start by crossing the wide side over the narrow one, but this time is different, so take the narrow end across the wide side, then flip the wide end straight up over the front so that the tip is pointing toward the ceiling. Take it through the loop around your neck and to the left, then wrap it across the front of the knot again so that the wide end is horizontal, tip facing right. Take it back through the neck loop in the center, then through the knot in front. Tighten and place the knot.

To tie this necktie knot, make one end a bit longer than the other when the tie is draped around your neck. Take the longer piece across the shorter one and through the neck loop, as if you're beginning to tie a shoe. Take the dangling shorter end and fold it in half so that it's horizontal, then take the longer end across the middle of that. Fold the longer end just as you did the shorter one and insert it through the loop at the back of the shorter end. To tighten it, be sure to grab both ends and then tug gently.

You may be just learning to tie your necktie knot of choice and not feel comfortable branching out on a regular work morning. There's no need to make yourself late for a meeting. Choosing one knot to wear to work on a regular basis is fine. Just take time at night or on the weekends to play around with your necktie knots. With a few practice sessions, you'll be confident enough that your knot looks the way that it should and you'll be ready to wear it out of the house for work or a formal event.

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