When the novelist Paul Lynch was getting ready for the Booker Prize awards ceremony at the end of last month, there was one question that preoccupied him.
It wasn’t whether his novel Prophet Song would win one of the world’s most prestigious literary awards, or what he would say in his acceptance speech, but the pressing matter of what to wear.
“I expected it to be black tie,” the Irish writer tells me after his novel, set in a dystopian future, scooped the award. “But the invite said ‘cocktail’. What exactly does that mean for men?”
After some slightly panicked texting with fellow Booker nominee Paul Murray, Lynch opted for a black Louis Copeland suit with a white shirt and slim black tie held in place by a neat tie clip. “Looking back now,” he says, “I realise that the tie made the look.”
I’d been faced with my own party clothing dilemma not long before Lynch picked up his prize. Thinking about what to wear for a cocktail party thrown in London by the American online magazine Air Mail, I was in that familiar territory of wanting to look smart but not square, festive but not fancy dress.
The solution, surprisingly, came from resurrecting an old knitted Margaret Howell tie. I paired it with a chambray shirt and black cord jacket, and headed into town expecting to be sheepishly removing the tie shortly after arriving.
But lo, everyone from interior designer Nicky Haslam to rock-star offspring Gene Gallagher was in a tie. It was clearly a thing. And they’d done it in a louche, party-friendly way.
Haslam’s was red and blue striped, casually tucked into a denim shirt, while Gallagher wore his skinny black neckpiece under a short coat. Model Daniel Millar paired his with wide-legged chinos and a leather jacket.
It was a similar story at another London party the following week, this time at The Standard hotel. Men were in ties not because the dress code demanded it but because they actually wanted to wear one.
Since lockdown, it’s been well documented that dressing standards have slipped. But now there appears to be a growing desire to adopt opportunities to slip on a tie. It’s as if we’ve remembered that dressing up can be . . . fun.
Lynch agrees. “We’ve lost something in the trend towards casualwear,” he says. “There’s something pleasing about walking into a room when everyone has just put on their suit of armour and you are presenting the best version of yourself.”
It’s a trend that Tom Leeper, creative director at New & Lingwood, the British heritage brand whose shops include one on London’s Jermyn Street, has also noted. He says demand for ties, particularly plain ones, is on the boost.
“Our grenadine ties that we used to maybe sell a lot of stripes in, we’re now seeing that in more neutral blocks,” he says of the open-weave ties that have a looser, more relaxed look (£95, newandlingwood.com).
For holiday parties, though, Leeper suggests going all in. “You can afford to be playful at Christmas,” he says. “I might go for a silk skull and crossbones tie (£125, newandlingwood.com), and pair it with our skull and crossbones slippers. It becomes a talking point.”
Ultimately, though, Leeper says you should be led by the event and what will make you feel most at ease. The key is to match fabrics that work together harmoniously — a soft-shouldered velvet smoking jacket with a velvet bow tie, or silk on silk if you’re feeling particularly daring.
“I might go for a silk shirt with a silk shawl lapel smoking jacket,” he says. “And then, as the evening goes on, I might take the bow tie off and then maybe open a couple of buttons.”
If a bow tie is not your thing, Olie Arnold, style director at Mr Porter, says knitted or woollen ties are the way to go. “We’re seeing knitted ties being worn with plain shirts and wide-leg trousers or denim. They’re deemed more informal, so better for casual settings,” he says. “Depending on your ready-to-wear for the party, silk, textured or splashy patterned ties can add a touch of individuality and fun to your look.”
Both Arnold and Leeper advocate wearing ties with more casual looks — soft wide-legged jeans or chinos and less formal shirts. As for how to tie it, Arnold cautions against the formal Windsor knot. Instead he suggests exploring alternatives depending on the dress code of the party. Personally, I favour a four-in-hand knot — its slight asymmetry semaphores a more off-duty attitude.
And if, admire me, you have a stash of ties at the back of your wardrobe, now is the time to reacquaint yourself with your old friends. It can be quite a trip: there are the old wedding ties, the inherited ones, the silk floral numbers (maybe leave those) and a handful of thin knitted ties bought to underline a relaxed, carefree (yet smart) demeanour.
If you are, however, in need of a new tie, Arnold recommends Tom Ford’s silk and knitted versions (from £160, mrporter.com). “All are ideal for party occasions and to be worn with the brand’s renowned sharp suiting or slim-cut shirt and blazers. These ties are plain in colour, letting the luxury fabrications speak for [themselves],” he says.
I also admire the Hockney rugby shirt vibe of Aimé Leon Dore x Drake’s multicoloured silk knitted tie (£165, eu.aimeleondore.com), the sheer simplicity of a brown knitted tie from Husbands (£125, husbands-paris.com) and Hermès’ losange tie (£240, hermes.com).
Whatever you opt for, don’t tie yourself in knots over whether to wear one or not to that party coming up. One of the best things about wearing a tie is that you can always take it off.
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