The most powerful reason to want to be 30 Rock’s Jack Donaghy is in season seven of winter one, which is played beautifully by Alec Baldwin. When she learns that the event is not for months yet, she exasperately asks comedy writer Liz Lemon ( Tina Fey ) why he is changing into a tuxedo in his office, adding to the burden of making jokes for a speech that she assumes is being given by Donaghy that night. ” It’s after 6pm”, he replies. ” What am I, a farmer”?
Alas, most of us mere mortals don’t get to dinner suit up with anywhere near that regularity. However, even if you just wear black ties once every blue sun, you still need to be a black belt in this most fancy of circumstances. Given that there are a good chance that the occasion will be extremely specific, such as a wedding, awards, or a high-stakes poker match between a criminal financier and tear-duct sufferer. Whatever it is, you’ll want to win it.
Black Tie’s past
According to experts studying eveningwear, tails were worn to dinner as a way of expressing black link clothes. The storied Savile Row tailor who created the dinner jacket, Simon Cundey, managing producer of, claims that you were expected to wear for attire to dinner every evening. ( Cundey is the great- grandson of Poole’s cousin and business partner, also called Simon. ) In order to have a breath in the drawing room, you would exchange your tailcoat for a tobacco jacket, and you would then succumb out of regard for the women.
In 1865, the Prince of Wales, after King Edward VII, desired a gown to match the more relaxed surroundings of Sandringham House, which was “really a sort of getaway tower” in Norfolk, England. He would frequently be dining by himself, so he didn’t have to spread his tails every time he sat down, says Cundey, “because he wanted something a little more casual and easier to wear.” He and Poole proposed cutting off the tails and lowering the front, creating a “dining lounge jacket” ( dissertation lounge jacket ). And” casual” in the same way as a “getaway castle”.
The bird suit was eventually purchased by Poole-buying Tuxedo Club members in New York. Hence the name is an Americanism, although Cundey uses it blindly.
What Black Tie Means Now
Given that black tie event dress code is now viewed as sleepwear, which is ironic and a sign of humanity’s declining fashionable standards, it is humorous. Your tuxedo will likely be airbrushed less frequently than your dinner jacket, unless you’re a Bullingdon Club student at Oxford University. If you even possess a tuxedo. Cundey goes on to say that” the best chance people have today to truly make an effort and look intelligent” and that is fantastic.
Over the years, the tight definition of black tie has become less restrictive, with the availability of an endless range of colors and styles. But while black tie doesn’t have to be black ( and technically shouldn’t – see below ), any urge to stand out should be tempered by a regard for uniformity. ” Mutual appreciation and elegance are what makes a dark tie function”, says Cundey. ” It’s like at a golf team: when the people all wear their corresponding shirts, it looks very bright. But when they wear unique colors, it looks like a caddyshack”.
In essence, a black tie event is a group where you don elegant attire, not a fancy dress party.
The New Black Tie Rules
Support Your Bases
” The number one issue is that if you’re wearing a jacket, then it should include your skirts ‘ group seam”, says Cundey. Nothing is worse than having the shirt and trousers cut very low, so you end up with the band seam or shirt visible.
If your dinner suit doesn’t include a third piece, you might now understand the purpose of the seemingly pointless cummerbund, if only you keep your opera tickets.
Do ‘t Always Bet On Black
A midnight orange dinner jacket may appear outré in this day and age, but it’s more generally appropriate. Plus, it gets lighter when the sun goes down.
” Midnight blue turns really black, while black can really convert more of a dusty grey, especially wool mixes”, says Cundey. ” Midnight orange usually appears richer and darker.” ( Menswear fact: Black black tie only started to become popular after Queen Victoria began to mourn Prince Albert after his death in 1861.)
Match Your Metals
Your black connect- appropriate watches isn’t the only technology that will involve synchronisation. The key is to marriage your studs, see and. Oh, and your marriage band.
” Do n’t mix gold and silver”, warns Cundey. If you’re wearing dark ebony pins with silver on the situation, or a view with a gold case, you’re also going to want to use mother of pearl rivets with metal.
Play A Team Game
Withhold the unique flair unless your invitation says “black tie creative” or “ballon d’Or.”
” What makes a meal fit is the slice and match”, says Cundey. It comes down to the percentage, the harmony, and putting together of the entire ensemble to achieve perfection. I don’t think a tux needs to be flamboyant. You’ll look like a group leader with a crimson facing and mid-blue silk. You might as well bring a horn to breakfast.
Love It In Velvet
The tobacco coat favorite is leaving the drawing room. Cundey also mentions the range of designs that can work in a more conventional equipment as well as being “advantageous for less formal occasions, and more fun” as with concoction attire.
” For instance, you can have about a ‘ dress suit ‘: switch- one fronted with a blanket neck in a facing of silk instead of silk”, he says. ” Then it goes the other way where you can have all the attire and the frogging, but in evening blue so it’s really understated”.
Provide Hollywood A Complete
To paraphrase Vesper Lynd ( Eva Green ) in Casino Royale: there are jackets, and there are dinner jackets. A black link is different from a dark suit. Or a dark link. There’s nothing worse than to see lads flaunting around in an evening coat while everyone else is sporting black tie, says Cundey. Aside from a noticeable trouser band seam, naturally.
A meal suit jacket will typically be made of a bright material like satin, grosgrain, or faille, while the trousers will typically include ribbon down the leg.
Key Your Easterly
Some people like to showcase their waistcoats, but you should tie them up unless you are seated and if there are two ( which there should be ), as with any tailored suit.
The Prince of Wales is said to have invented this custom, though it was incapacitated. Legend has it that he couldn’t do his waistcoat up all the way after overindulging, so as to flatter – or not offend – him, his companions undid theirs.
Break With Tradition
You’re not a figure in Downton Abbey, it goes without saying. Since 1865, fashion has advanced, and we now live in a world where Pharrell can pull off shorts while Ralph Lauren is set a supper jacket with jeans.
Rules in the esoteric design are intended to be broken, but there is a time and place. Make sure you arrive there at the appropriate moment before you “disrupt.”
Black Tie: The Key Pieces
The Dinner Suit
Poole’s unique dinner coat dish was a three- part, button- one front ( two buttons with the bottom left undone ) design with a peak lapel. ” It gives you that elevation, that upright feel”, says Cundey.
Before Poole switched to wool barathea, which has contrasting corded silk, which is more matte and looks blacker than shiny satin, was used in the first incarnations.
Jetted pockets ( a narrow slit similar to an inside breast pocket ) and the unvented back ( although slits are now common ) further simplified the silhouette. Poole goes so far as to not attach hip pockets to the pants that there is a cigar compartment at the bottom right of the jacket.
The Shirt
” At Poole, we recommend a Marcella pique- fronted shirt]a texture that resembles the dimples of a golf ball], fastened with studs”, says Cundey, who is” not a great fan” of ( perfectly passable ) pleated versions.
A turndown collar rather than “wings,” which are customarily worn for tailcoats, will also be present on a point black tie shirt. ” Often you’ll see people try and make it look like an Edwardian thing by wearing a wing- collar shirt with a dinner suit, which]in my opinion ] doesn’t really work”.
, not buttons. In a wardrobe crisis, you could get away with an ordinary white shirt, but you’ll still look significantly less glamorous.
The Bow Tie
is practically impossible when you’re following line- drawn illustrations, but surprisingly simple when watching a quaint video tutorial by a southern gentleman’s outfitter. You can then display your newly discovered knowledge by untie it at the end of the evening, just before reaching into your hidden cigar pocket.
Find one that isn’t too perfect if you want to pre-tie it; the slight unevenness will make other people think you’ve tied it yourself. Also, make sure it’s the size you’ve specified for your jacket’s lapels, shirt collar, and head.
The Shoes
Your clodhopping office footwear might just about work, but it won’t look the absolute business. Your shoes should have a finer line than a regular pair of lace-up or Oxford, says Cundey. ” They should be more of a pump or a low- cut dress shoe: sleeker”. Not’ sneaker’.
Some claim that wet-look patent leather is only intended for tails, but black tie doesn’t leave a black mark. Velvet slippers are another viable if impractical alternative, although traditionally they were reserved for’ at home ‘ invitations, and according to Debrett’s, “more often found in the country”. A pair can be tucked away at your castle.
The Watch
In the opening sequence of Goldfinger, Sean Connery almost looks out of place with his white dinner jacket, which he wears with his fake duck on his head. ” For me, wearing a sports watch with black tie”, says Cundey. You want the Cartiers or LeCoultres, because those things are much more sophisticated than the big old Omega.
However, the DNA of the timepiece should be a slim profile, classic-minimal design, and a matching black leather strap.
The Do’s And Don’ts Of Black Tie Attire For Men
Do: Add Some Colour
Be it in your bow tie, pocket square or cummerbund. Even without going all-Eggsy in Kingsman 2, it’s possible to opt for a burgundy or dark green dinner jacket.
Don’t: Expand Your Palette
When in doubt, always heed Debrett’s:” A matching tie and cummerbund in a non- conventional shade ( pastels rather than burgundy and black ) should be treated with caution”.
Do: Brace Yourself
If you’re wondering why or why, they smooth your trousers, elongate your legs, and help prevent that obnoxious shirt from sticking out.
Don’t: Belt Up
” A tux should never have a belt”, says Cundey. ” Even if it’s fashionable with some celebrity or whatever”. The trousers shouldn’t have loops, come to that.
Do: Throw On A Shawl
Like velvet, the shawl collar originated on smoking jackets, and is on the casual side when compared to a peak version. And also like velvet, it’s an acceptable way to stick your neck out sartorially.
Don’t: Take It Up A Notch
Many (untraditional ) dinner jackets have lapels like those on traditional suits. However, if the occasion is a personal or professional highlight, then rise up.
Do: Apply A Top Coat
That’s to say, a tailored wool overcoat, in a dark colour. Anything more casual will ruin your mood when you enter or leave.
Don’t: Sock It To Them
As long as it’s black, you can wear any hue of hosiery. No novelty socks. Or bow ties. Or shirts. Or cufflinks. Or novelty anything. Ever.
Do: Time It Right
Traditional black tie is only permitted after six o’clock. ( The clue’s in the alternative name ‘ eveningwear’. ) White jackets are for warmer climes, not the day.
Don’t: Watch The Clock
The fashion police won’t be called if the event starts before 6pm, according to the majority of attendees. For instance, Kanye West and George Clooney both tied the knot in a black tie during the day.
Do: Opt In
‘ Black tie optional ‘ is misleading. Your hosts will be wearing it, and they’ll probably want you to, but they won’t have to make you do it. Take the hint.
Don’t: Cop Out
When you can nail a dress code, why fudge it? As Cundey says,” It’s better to be overdressed than underdressed”. Having your own dinner suit is helpful.
Do: Buy
Once tailored, a dinner suit will fit like a glove (velvet or otherwise ), look more expensive than whatever it cost, and pay for itself after a couple of wears.
Don’t: Rent
Unless you’re never, ever going to wear it again, then hiring a DJ is a false economy. And if it’s a special occasion, you want to look – and feel – right.