Bursting with color.

Tuesday April 8, 2008:
I had been waiting to wear this tie, but with the clock running out on options I needed to spring this selection. This was one of those selections I found at Nordtrom and took a chance. It is definitely a chance. I remember looking at it a couple different times in it's bag asking myself if I had actually just purchased it. It is one of my "crazy" ties, and perhaps I have one too many "crazy ties" but I think they all distinct. To demonstrate this fact my coworker, Dennis, asked me today if I had already worn this tie. I was totally shocked at this. Sure, this Ted Baker goes further than others to bring light into the room by bursting with olive and bright blue flowers with pink dots in the center on a dark navy field. You need to have an extra strong will to wear this tie. If I wanted to go extra flashy I'd pair it with a pink shirt and my chalk stripe suit. That is, if I wanted to also spend my day on Wall St. I have, it's awkward and does really get the looks I want. I paired it with a good textured, blue shirt so there are more options for this tie, and I will definitely explore them more this spring.

Trying to spring spring once more.

Monday April 7, 2008:
Today's inspired selection came to me in effort to comfort my soul because of the lack of spring. The selection was the inspiration of Katherine, even though she doesn't remember suggesting it. We were in the Banana Republic at 13th and F St NW and saw this shirt which was a loose graph check of blue and purple set on the bias. Sitting on a nearby table was a light green linen tie. It was her inspiration and insight that lead me to think I needed this. Oh. No, I did need this. This is the kind of push that I needed into something that is completely different. This shirt has also worked well with my solid purple tie for dressier occasions.

True Blue

Friday April 4, 2008:
Friday's tie was one that Katherine bought me for my birthday in 2004. She bought it at the Benetton in Georgetown. When I first moved here I was worried that I didn't have enough ties. No. That's a lie. I had "enough" ties then. It's just that I did not have a bright blue one. And as a Democrat, I feel as felt it was necessary. Katherine took me shopping on M Street for the first time and we walked through Benetton. After looking a lot a of maroon and fuchsia wool coats for women we made it upstairs to the men's section where I immediate felt fat amongst the European sized clothing. We selected this tie, a bright blue tie with silver stripes. The blue is in alternating patterns of basket weave and herringbone. The ties carries the label Andrew's Ties, which upon investigation has an amazing amount of variety in both color and stripes. Pretty corporate. Maybe it's my New Dem tie.

Lavender selection.

Thursday April 4, 2008:
I don't have much to say about today's selection. The tie from JCrew was purchased at the Park Meadows mall south of Denver on one of the MANY shopping trips with Katherine. The tie is a light lavender with white dots. It may be that it's not really lavender but could be considered lilac. Feel free to weigh in on that statement. Regardless of the color, in the long string of spring ties I have to wear, I picked this one. I decided to wear my herringbone suit because, as of yet, spring has yet to show itself. I paired it with my favorite white shirt. Everything looked smart, but I am not totally convinced this is my favorite of my options. Whatever my reasoning for buying the tie, it must have come down to the cost = fun equation. Yes, it was $19.99 of fun. Actually, now that I look at it, I do like this tie. Good choice today Nils.

Pink day.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008:
Today's selection was inspired by yesterday's entry regarding the balance of pink in your tie. Today's tie is a Brooks Brother's tie I bought at the outlet in Woodburn, Oregon. I was on a shopping excursion because I swore I needed a pink tie for my young collection. There is a little story here, and a slightly embarrassing one at that, that can explain the inspiration for this purchase. It goes like this: During my senior year at Colorado College we watched a lot of Will and Grace reruns on the WB (now the CW). Also on the WB was also the banal family series 7th Heaven. On one particular evening there was a spot of 7th Heaven and it showed some party and one of the characters, the young guy who marries one of the preacher's kids, was wearing this pink tie with rep stripes in a dark navy (think pink and ink) or black. Anyways, I decided at that moment 7th Heaven was going to help me let pink be OK and perhaps be a masculine tie color. It wasn't the clincher, for sure, since I had to privately try it out and then seek approval from a bona fide feminine source. Needless to say it all worked out and I am not sure as to why I really needed to share that. Oh well. I was really tired of wearing gray suits and lucky enough when I was digging in my closet I found another suit. Yes, I know. No need to tell me I'm a glutton. Remember, I am blogging about my 60 ties. I am very self aware. Anyways, it was a wool suit I bought two years ago at the Banana outlet and it is a gray with a rough texture and there is a hint of blue. I don't know if it's real, but I believe it's there.

I would also like to share Scott's selection today. I have noticed this selection before and I have to say that I am impressed by Mr. Olson2. Stripes are hard to pair together, especially when they are the same relative width. Scott's bold striped tie, and I think it's City of London, is paired with faint stripes. I really like the match here as the intensity of the shirt really does balance the tie out. Way to go Mr. Olson2.

Pink and Ink

Tuesday, April 1, 2008:
Again Spring passed on it's opportunity to show itself, but I chose to bring out another spring tie. This tie was found in the spring in 2004 languishing in the sale rack of the Banana Republic at the Cherry Creek mall in Denver. The tie cost, get this, $6.99. When I brought it up to the counter, the cute girl at the counter said, "Wow, that's a great deal." And I replied, "Yes, you have to love the pink and ink." I think my knowledge of catchy, swank fashion jive caught her off guard and thus ended conversation. Oh well. The combination of a dark navy with a light, almost candy pink is the perfect mix of masculine and feminine for spring. Obviously when you start approaching that 50/50 balance and the tie becomes more pink you need to have different conversation with yourself about what you want to pull off. The neat thing also is that the tie isn't set on the square and the dots run slightly at an angle. I wore it with a simple light blue shirt and a dark gray suit.

Come on Spring!

Monday, March 31, 2008:
Come on Spring, where are you?!? I'm trying really hard here! We changed the laws to make us think you get here earlier! But what? No? You missed your flight? Got stuck in O'Hare? I have you know, Spring, that I wore one of my spring ties for you and I saw drizzle out my door. Drizzle! WTF? With my plans to wear a light suit dashed, I chose my really formal chalk stripe suit from JCrew but in my demanding that you make an appearance I offered the bribe of my fuchsia Hickey Freeman tie. Not only is it fuchsia, but it has blue and yellow dots on it. This tie was found at Saks Off 5th Avenue on a shopping trip that yielded at least on other Ted Baker tie. This tie ties great, and I knew that when I picked it up. I saw Hickey Freeman for the first time when Katherine and I were walking down 5th Avenue in New York when we went to see The Gates in the winter of 2005. I was entranced by the stripes and colors in the window - I had never seen such pure color. However, I didn't think I could spend the money at the time on a tie then so I passed on the option. I was glad to find this tie at Saks Off 5th Avenue, especially since when I was back in New York to see friends and I went shopping at Hickey Freeman. I found that I summoned the restraint to not just buy a tie because I was in the store. The truth is not one tie really caught my eye. It was alarming for sure, but it was the correct thing to do. You can't just buy ties just because. Not even I can do that. I know, I had a moment of strength. So Spring, you should get one yourself, man up and get out here.