Scottish Cousin

How cool are these ties? Masculine, subdued, and mature. Plus, wool always makes me smile.

Although the very traditional striped-repp tie will always be in fashion, they are HUGE right now, thanks in part to the popularity of JCrew and Band of Outsiders.

In this context, you can't help but see a little striped-repp in the above plaid ties, especially the first. It's as if Polo were riffing off the popularity of the striped-repp, creating the Scottish cousin of a traditionally English tie. Very cool.

Classic

Regis Philbin ruined solid ties for me. "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" became HUGE and solid ties (especially ones with a metallic sheen) were around everyone's necks, including mine. Boo. Now everytime I see a solid tie, a little part of me dies. Thanks, Regis.

And that is why I love this monochromatic black paisley Brioni. From far away, it's just a boring black tie; but when you get up close, it's like "gotcha!" I'm not a fan of paisley, but here it looks gorgeous and sophisticated; the black on black makes the paisley less gaudy and the paisley makes the black tie less somber. Two very conventional elements in perfect harmony.