The Evolution of the Old School Tie

It's well documented that in 1880, the rowing clubis believed to have created the first sporting
at Oxford University's Exeter College, inventedcolours. They designed a flag of black, bright,
the first designer silk ties. After an emotional winorange-red, and gold, symbolizing "out of
over their rivals, they celebrated by removingdarkness, through fire, into light." Blazers, caps,
their ribbon hat bands from their boater hats andand ties were eventually created in these colours.
tying them, four-in-hand around their necks. WhenIt took another one hundred and twenty years
they ordered a set of ties, with the colours frombefore the tie saw any significant change. In the
their hatbands, they had accidentally created the1920's a pioneering Paris fashion designer Jean
modern school tie. Schools, clubs, and athletic tiesPatou invented the designer silk ties. He made silk
appeared in abundance. Some schools hadties from women's clothing material. Targeted
different ties for various grades, levels oftowards women purchasers, his expensive ties
achievement, and for graduates. Thanks towere highly successful. In fact in America three
historians and their method of accurateout of four ties are bought buy women.
documentation all the original college colours areJesse Langsdorf an American tailor discovered
still available from archived samples and replicatethat by cutting the tie on the bias of the cloth,
ties can be made to order.the tie would be much more resilient and long-
The four in hand knot used to tie their hatwearing. Cut slightly off bias, the tie would pull
ribbons, which later became one of the mostoff-centre and fall crookedly, but if cut at exactly
popular ways to tie a tie has its own unique origin.45 degrees, the aprons of the tie would drape
Coachman who lead a team of two horses enelegantly, straight down from the knot. He also
route would take the four reins, two for eachconstructed his ties using three different pieces of
horse, and tie them in particular fashion acrosssilk (the blade, the gusset and the under end)
their hand , thus four reins in hand, or, four insewn together. He patented his idea and sold it to
hand. Later the knot and the phrase thethe world.
coachman used were adapted to neckwear. TwoThroughout the ages the striped tie has remained
unrelated occurrences made contribution to aa favourite style of men who don't want to step
style that survives in tact to this day. Andoutside a conventional framework. Didn't some
interestingly both working class and upper classone once say "style is constant, fashion comes
made equal contribution, the coachman's phraseand goes"?
and the university student boating hat band.So maybe the next time you knot your favourite
Let's not leave Cambridge University out of thedesigner silk ties four in hand around your neck,
race; they also played a part in establishing anyou'll appreciate its colourful history. A word of
everlasting style, albeit forty five years after thewarning, when tieing the knot, don't' think too hard
first Oxford school tie. A Cricket Club, founded byabout the coachman pulling tight on the reins, 'four
a group of Cambridge University students in 1845in hand', you might choke yourself.