The Recent History of Neckties

Around the 1800s, a ‘necktie’ was still called a ‘cravat’ and touching someone else’s cravat was considered a serious offence. The first reference to the word ‘necktie’ was made in a book titled Neckclothitania which explained fourteen ways in which a necktie could be tied. It was around the 1840s that the word cravat was replaced by the word necktie. In the late 1800s, the brightly colored uniforms that the British military wore till now were discarded for more subdued hues in an effort to camouflage but the neckties still sported the original colors and over a period of time, these neckties became an indispensable part of their uniform.

In the early 20^th century, Cubism and Art Deco movements inspired the first ever ‘designer neckties’ which were invented by French fashion designers and made using expensive materials. Freedom of expression was further symbolized by the widening of neckties and the use of bold and unique patterns. Just about a decade later neckties again became thinner and the decoration on them also reduced. The trend of wearing white neckties was brought into being by Warren Beatty, who wore white neckties over darker shades in the film Bonnie and Clyde. Another interesting trend was introduced by none other than Elvis Presley who gave a whole new dimension to fancy neckties when he replaced his black colored necktie with the kipper.

The very next year, the bolo necktie was made the official necktie of Arizona. It was made of braided leather and had very decorative metal tips. Around ten years later came the fad of wearing skinny leather neckties over striped shirts. By this time, experimentation with the shape and design of neckties had become a common practice and Ralph Marlin, a clothing company, even produced a necktie shaped like a fish!

Neckties today come in a vast range of colors and designs and are slightly wider than the ones worn back in the 60s but there is no set style of wearing a necktie. It’s the era of experimentation and the necktie is no exception. For a wide variety of neckties including silk neckties, do visit TheDapperTie.com. You will find all types of patterns and colors at TheDapperTie.com.