awesome tie knots - melrose, michael

5/23/2018 Awesome Tie Knots - Melrose, Michael

1/73


2/73

Table of Contents

DisclaimerThe Really Boring History Part: Whe

Neckties & Knots Come From

Patterns& Knots: When & How To U

the Right KnotThe Windsor Knot

The Windsor Illustrated

Tying the Windsor, Step BStep

Tips for Tying the Windsor

The Eldredge Knot

The Eldredge IllustratedThe Eldredge Knot, Step B

Step

Tips to keep in mind


3/73

The Ediety Knot (AKA, Th

Merovingian Knot)

The Ediety Illustrated

The Ediety Knot, Step By SteTips for Tying the Ediety Kn

The Trinity Knot

The Trinity Illustrated

The Trinity Knot, Step B

Step

Tips to Keep In Mind Wh

Tying the TrinityThe Atlantic Knot

The Atlantic Illustrated

The Atlantic Knot, Step B

StepTips to Keep in Mind for th

Atlantic Knot

The Han Knot (AKA, The Cape Knot)


4/73

The Han Illustrated

Tying the Han/Cape Kno

Step By Step

Tips for the Han/Cape KnotVideo Resources


5/73

isclaimer

o part of this book may be reproduce

distributed, or transmitted in any form

by any means, including photocopyin

recording, or other electronic

mechanical methods, without pri

written permission from the publisheexcept in the case of brief quotatio

embodied in critical review and certa

other noncommercial uses permitted b

copyright law. For permission requestplease contact the publisher.

-

2013 by Michael Melrose

awesometieknots.com / All righ

reserved
http://www.awesometieknots.com/


6/73

Visit AwesomeTieKnots.com for mo

information and to subscribe
http://www.awesometieknots.com/


7/73

The Really Boring Histor

Part: Where Neckties &

Knots Come From

The modern necktie is actually pret

old.

Let me bore you with a bit of histo

before we get into the real meat of thbook, the knots. (If you want to skip

knots right now, tap here. I don't blam

ou because history is reeeaaallboring.)

Mercenary Beginnings


8/73

What we call the "necktie" can be trace

way back to 1618, when it was worn b

mercenaries in the Thirty Years War -

was called the "cravat" and immediatecaught the eye of the more styli

population in Paris (no surprises ther

and spread around Europe.

In the 1600s men wore cravats made o

of lace, and it took them ages to tie an

arrange a cravatjust right. Eventual

through the 1700s cravats gave way to

variation called the "Stock" which had

high, stiff collar - again, originally frothe military where the stiff nature of th

Stock reminded soldiers they had

keep their chins up and look proper.


9/73

But the cravat was not gone forever, an

through the 1800s it made a resurgen

as fashionistas coming back to Englan

from Italy brought it back with them

and those heros of style being what th

always have been, several books wepublished on the various ways to t

our cravat.

It was also around this time th

someone (cmon, someone awesom

coined the word "tie" in connection wi

the cravat. And it stuck.

Into the Modern Age


10/73

'Round about 1860-ish the mode

necktie as we know it today was bor

The Industrial Revolution was in fu

swing and men wanted a fashionabstyle that didn't take long to put on, cou

be worn comfortably all day (Neckti

comfortable? Well, when you're comin

from the stiff, high collars of th

1820s), and didn't loosen or untie

ou worked and went about yo

business on those newfangled steaengines.

eckties as we know and love/hate thetoday basically go back this period. Th

first knots people tied were simp

affairs, as were the neckties themselve

straight, thin, and usually black. Th


11/73

common tie knot from this period was b

today's standards pretty bland.

In 1926, a man named Jesse Langdo

(one of the few true heros of the neckti

invented a way of making ties by cuttin

them 'on the bias', or against the grain the fabric, and then stitching the t

together in three segments - this was

true revelation because it gave the t

some elasticity and also made fall

straight and flat from the knot rather th

twisting. By the time the 20's we

finished, the necktie was being madwith the inner lining and stitching we s

today. The 'slip stitch' was starting to b

used in the tie at this point also, whi

was another great milestone - it allowe


12/73

the fabric to move with the seams rath

than stretch or even tear.

I'll spare you the small, period sty

changes that have happened since th

20's, but will say that hand painted tie

vests, and waistlines all influenced homen wore a tie through the 30s and u

to the 50s. Through the 60's fashio

designers began to use bolder an

brighter colors, and it was at this poi

also that clothiers began selling shirt/t

combos for the guys who didn't want

bother trying to match them themselveand/or didnt have a lady friend aroun

to help them out.


13/73

The 80's made ties super skinny, b

thankfully this didn't last because using

skinny tie really limits your choice of t

knots. But the 90's widened them oagain and brought the full array of t

knots back into play.

owadays, basically anything go

when it comes to neckties. You can wea

our football team around your neck,

our favorites Looney Toons guy, or g

old school and wear the Briti

regimental stripes - basically, anythin

ou want to wear can be worn if yohave the chutzpa to pull it o

Sometimes more chutzpa is required f

a certain tie, so be sure and vary eith

the amount of chutzpa or the style of t


14/73

to make it work best.

All this history aside, let me say thbefore we move on: The tradition

styles like paisleys, stripes, and solid

are absolutely the best choice wh

you start tying unique knots. Twhole point of tying a cool knot

because it's cool, so you want people

notice it. Wearing a Marvin the Martiadesign makes people look at the Martia

not the knot, so save that tie for pok

night.

Some tie patterns work better with som

knots rather than others. Which patter

work best with which knots? Turn th


15/73

page and we'll dig into that...


16/73

Patterns & Knots: When &

How To Use the Right Knot

Basically, the bolder the pattern on th

tie the simpler the tie knot should be, an

vice versa, the simpler the pattern thmore complex a knot you can get aw

with.

Its not a hard and fast rule though, and

ou really like complex knots like Th

Eldredge then by all means tie

whenever you feel like tying it. Socieisnt going to demonize you if you pair

fancy knot with a really detailed or bo

patterned tie - youll always be mo


17/73

awesome than, say, Richard Simmon

because Richard Simmons never wore

tie in the first place. It works best th

way but its no big deal whichever knou use with whichever tie you choose

But if you want the knot to stand oukeep it in mind as you pick out a tie an

tie the knot. People look at the bolde

thing first - its why companies spenbillions of dollars every year o

marketing. Its just how the human ey

works, and it works that way for tie

too.

If you have more detail in your knot th

thats where people are going to loo


18/73

and a detailed or bold tie pattern

going to detract from the attention peop

would otherwise give the knot.

Also, complex tie knots have more fol

and flips, which can get lost on a tie th

has a pattern with a lot of detail. Soliabsolutely work the best for the

complex knots because you can easi

see the folds of the knot itself.

Use this handy dandy chart to make th

most of both your ties and your tie knot


19/73

As long as you remember the delicat

ballerina-like balance between knot an

pattern youll be a stunner. Im jokin

about the ballerina part.

The guiding principle is: Complex kn

with simple tie. Simple knot wi

complex tie. Done.


20/73

One more thing to keep in mind wh

ou tie these knots: As with any tie t

knot, you want the front of the tie to fa

basically halfway down your be

buckle. You wont have it exact eac

time, but aim for the belt buckle anoull hit it most of the time. The on

knot where this doesnt apply is th

Ediety Knot, since that can easily win

up being much shorter at both the widand thin ends (for this reason, only we

the Ediety Knot when you have a vest

suit to cover the bottom of the tie.)

ow, the whole reason you got th

book: Prepare to meet the awesomest t


21/73

knots in the world.


22/73

The Windsor Knot

The Windsor is actually a fairly commo


23/73

knot, at least in name (including th

variations of Half and Full Windsor

but it can be a lot more complicated th

it needs to be with so many instructiofor it online - and with a lot of peop

teaching variations of the knot, or ev

passing off the Half Windsor as th

regular or Full Windsor (the Ha

Windsor skips one of the last loops an

can look a bit lopsided and uneven

Learning to properly tie the Windswill help you out quite a bit with th

Ediety Knot later on.

The Windsor is sometimes called th

Double or Full Windsor and its one

the most enduring knots. It got its nam

in Great Britain, supposedly named f


24/73

the Duke of Windsor. It is also th

ONLY knot used by all personnel in th

Royal Air Force in black tie uniform

because its such a dressy and formlooking knot. By contrast, Ian Flemin

wrote that James Bond never trusted

man who wore a Windsor... but what d

he know?

The reason the Windsor is so enduring

because its so symmetrical. Theres n

off-balance look to the knot - its ve

even, balanced, and full.

The Windsor Illustrated


25/73


26/73

Tying the Windsor, Step By Step

1. Put the tie around your neck with th

wide end to your right side. Its

normal-tied knot, so you need plen

of length on the wide end. The th

end, in fact, basically only needs to b

long enough to stabilize the kn(about six inches long is fine).

2. Pass the wide end of the tie over ththin end and around the back, passin

behind the knot and up through t

neck. Bring the wide end back dow

front to the left side.

3. Pass the wide end around back fro


27/73

left to right.

4. From Step 3, bring the wide end uover the front on the right side an

down through neck in the back.

5. Bring the wide end from Step

around the front of the tie from left

right.

6. Bring the wide part up through th

neck from behind and over the front

the knot.

7. Pass the wide end through that fro


28/73

loop you made in Step 5.

8. Tighten the knot up, center it on yoneck, and fold the collar down. Done

Tips for Tying the Windsor1. In Step 4, you can easily adjust th

knot to be more symmetrical. Yo

want the knot to be even on bosides, and this is a key point in tyin

the knot where you can make a slig

correction without getting to the en

and having to untie everything.

2. Unlike the other knots in this boo

you tie the Windsor with the wide en


29/73

of the tie. Which means you don

adjust the wide end at the beginnin

and then tie the knot around it with th

thin end. Its a little tricky at first get the length just right (about halfw

down your belt buckle), but a litt

practice will let you know how mu

length you need.

3. Keep in mind that with thicker kno

thicker fabric ties REALLY can g

bulky. Ive tied this knot with thin an

medium ties, which work best. Th

really heavy ties tend to have troubwith twisting fabric (which can ru

the tie) and the end result is a real

bulky tie knot. The more bulk yo

have in a knot, the more unbalanced


30/73

can look.


31/73

The Eldredge Knot

The Eldredge and the Ediety (which


32/73

up next) are the two most complex kno

in this book - so reserve them for yo

simple pattern or solid ties to get th

most bang out of them.

The Eldredge is a thin-tied knot - whi

means you hold the wide end of the twhere you want it to sit and then use th

thin end to go through the motions

actually tying the knot.

The Eldredge Illustrated


33/73


34/73

The Eldredge Knot, Step By Step

The Eldredge looks fantastic when it

well tied, and surprisingly its not th

complicated to do - its a very easy kn

to learn.

1. Adjust the front of the tie (wide en

on the left side a couple inches abov

where you want it to sit, which is

the belt buckle.

2. Using the thin end of the tie, cro

over the front from right to left, anthen come back behind from left

right.


35/73

3. Bring the thin end up the front over th

right side of the knot and pass it dow

behind through the neck.

4. Pull the thin end off to the bottom le

of the knot and wrap it around th

front of the knot. The tricky part is adone - from now on, youll just b

passing the thin end back and for

until you have the herringbone effe

of the knot.

5. From Step 4, bring the thin end ubehind the knot through the neck an

pass it over to the right side.


36/73

6. Bring the thin end behind the kn

from right to left, and bring it up ov

the front of the knot, tuckin

underneath that loop on the front yomade in Step 5 (its like making

simple knot within the knot). Tight

it up a bit so everything lays flat.

7. Again, bring the thin end around th

back to the front right of the ti

looping around the right neck part

the tie, and pull it back down behin

the knot.

8. Bring the thin end down behind th

knot to left side, and like in Step 6, u

over the front of the knot but aga


37/73

passing it underneath the topmost loo

- the one you just made in Step

Again, its like a simple knot-withi

a-knot. Tighten it down again so thknot lays flat.

9. Adjust the front of the tie, bringing thknot up to your neck and make su

its centered.

10. Holding the thin end wrapped u

alongside your neck, fold the coll

down so everythings hiddunderneath.


38/73

Tips to keep in mind

1. Adjust the wide end of the tie a litt

higher than you want it to be. This

because once the knot is done and yo

tighten the knot up to your neck th

front of the tie will lengthen. I give

a couple inches, but it depends owhere you tie the knot (close to yo

neck or several inches away). Pl

around with which feels best an

youll get to know how to adjust thtie at the beginning to have it end u

where you want.

2. Some have experimented wi

wrapping the short end down throu

the last loop on the back of the tie an


39/73

letting the thin end hang behind th

wide end, like a normal or regul

tie knot. I dont recommend th

because it gives the tie a somewhlopsided appearance on that last pa

through the knot.

3. Youll have to tie this knot a fe

times to get the finished leng

correct. Thats the biggest issue wi

the knot. After a few times, you

have a pretty good idea of where yo

need to hold the wide end as you sta

the knot. Its higher than you think first!

4. The Eldredge does not work we


40/73

with a striped tie! Thats because th

stripes wind up going in all differe

directions and the detail of the kn

gets lost. For best results, use a plasolid tie.


41/73

The Ediety Knot (AKA, Th

Merovingian Knot)


42/73

The Eldredge and the Ediety are th

most stunning knots you can tie - bo

will leave the viewer with no idea ho

ou tied them, only that you must bewizard for knowing how to do it.

The Ediety is somewhat mocomplicated than the Eldredge, simp

because it can be tied two ways:

1. You can tie the Full Windsobackwards, then loosen the knot (b

dont untie it), take the tie off, flip

over, put it back on, and tighten it up

2. You can tie the knot as a whole new

knot in itself - no flipping - which

the correct way Ill be showing you.


43/73

The first method might work very well

ou already are very familiar with th

Windsor. Just flip the tie when you

done and voila! Ediety Knot! But in m

opinion its best to keep each kn

separate and learn the Ediety Knot as

knot in its own right. However, withat in mind, even when you tie th

Ediety with the second method its st

the basic moves of the Windsor so

should come quite naturally for you oure familiar with that knot.

The Ediety Illustrated


44/73


45/73

The Ediety Knot, Step By Step

The fact that youre aiming for the litt

end to wind up on the front of the kn

can confuse some guys because it flies

the face of everything you know about t

knots. Just keep following the step

check the illustrations, use the referenlinks to the video if you need to, an

keep going. Youll get it fine with a litt

practice.

1. Put the tie around your neck with th

wide end to your right, and give

PLENTY of length because this kneats just as much fabric as the Fu

Windsor.


46/73

2. Bring the wide end to the left und

the thin end.

3. Bring it up over the front and th

down through the neck, pulling it ba

to the left side.

4. Bring the wide end from left to rig

across the front of the tie. This is th

part that makes that little mini-knot the Ediety.

5. Bring it behind the knot on the righup through the neck and back down

the front on the right side.


47/73

6. Bring the wide end around the back

the know from right to left.

7. Put the wide end up over the front

the knot and down through the nec

put pass it through that back loop yo

just made in Step 6.

8. Tighten the knot up, center it goo

and youre all set!

Tips for Tying the Ediety Knot

1 . Be sure and give yourself PLENT

(hey, theres that word in all cap

again!) of length on the wide end

the knot since theres so many mov


48/73

in this knot. Leave it longer than yo

think youll need, but within reaso

As with all these knots, after a fe

times practicing it youll have nailed down like a pro.

2. Be aware before that when you wethis knotyou need to wear either

vest or a blazer/suit coat. Th

reason is because the bottom end the tie dont look pretty.. The sho

end can wind up being longer th

the wide end, or the tie can be real

short on both ends and look molike a bib. Wearing a vest or blaz

hides the bottom ends of the tie so n

one sees them - all they see is th


49/73

awesome knot itself.

3 . A tie clip works great with this kn- clip the tie (both wide and thin

ends) to your shirt, but pull them up

smidgeon so the tie is a bit puffy

up near the knot. Doing this makeslook more cravat.


50/73

The Trinity Knot

Like the Eldredge and the Ediety kno


51/73

the Trinity is an eye catcher. Unlik

those two knots, the Trinity isnt a tigh

knot. You need to keep things a litt

looser than youre used to if you wathe knot to work right.

The Trinity Illustrated


52/73


53/73

The Trinity Knot, Step By Step

Remember: Dont tighten down the kn

with each move like you do on other t

knots. Let the fabric fold more or less o

its own to add the volume to the kn

that it needs in order to look best.

1. With the thin end of the tie hangin

down on the right side, bring it to th

left side over the wide end.

2. Now the thin end goes up behin

through the neck, and bring it down the left.

3. Bring the thin end around the back


54/73

the knot to the right side, then up ov

the front and down through the neck.

4. Now heres where the knot star

taking shape: From Step 3, bring th

thin end loosely around the front fro

left to right, and up through neck frobehind the knot.

5. Carry the thin end over the top of thknot but tuck it through the loose fro

loop you made in Step 4, keeping th

loop loose also.

6. After passing the thin end through th

loose loop from Step 4, bring


55/73

around behind the knot from left

right, and pass it over the top of th

knot through the loose loop #2 yo

made in Step 5.

7. Adjust the knot as needed to give

the Trinity shape, and tuck the thin enup under the collar with the neck ban

of the tie, and fold the collar down.

Tips to Keep In Mind When Tying th

1 . Try and save this knot for yo

thicker ties. And by thicker I meaties that are a heavier material. Th

reason is that the Trinity needs to b

tied a bit looser than normal kno


56/73

and the heavier fabric lets the kn

stay loose but still have body. Th

fabric ties dont work well for th

Trinity because they twist andimple in the knot itself, which rui

the look of the knot altogether.

2 . As with other thin-tied knots, adju

the wide end of the tie up higher th

normal as you start tying the knot -couple inches higher than normal is

good starting point if you want th

finished tie to fall to your be

buckle. Practice and patience wteach you exactly where to adjust th

wide end of the tie as you start th

knot.


57/73

3 . Remember to tie the last three loo

of the knot loosely - the Trinity need

the loops to have some volume

them. If you over tighten the knot, yo

will get dimples on the three loops

the front, which ruins the look of thknot.

4 . The Trinity can work with stripeties pretty good - but dependin

whether you tie it left or right hande

means you get either a pinwhe

effect (stripes go out from the cent

of the knot) or a triangle effe

(stripes go around the cente

Experiment with both and see whi


58/73

one you like!


59/73

The Atlantic Knot

The Atlantic Knot is hands-down th


60/73

simplest knot youll learn in this boo

but it works great with a heavy fabric t

and works wonders when youre in

hurry and need something sharp anunusual.

Like the Eldredge and the Trinity knotthe Atlantic is a thin-tied knot, meanin

that just as with those two knots yo

have to adjust the wide end of the t

before you begin tying the knot. T

same as with the Trinity and Eldredg

keep it a couple inches above where yo

want it to fall, which is usually at thbelt buckle. As you tighten the knot th

wide end, or front, of the tie w

lengthen.


61/73

The Atlantic Illustrated


62/73

The Atlantic Knot, Step By Step

1. With the wide end of the tie aroun

your neck on your right, adjust it

couple inches above where you wa

it to hang once its all tied.

2. Wrap the thin end over the top fro

left to right and up through the ne

from behind the knot, bringing it dow

on the opposite side on the left.

3. Bring the thin end around behind th

knot from left to right.

4. Bring the thin end up over the front th

knot and down through the nec


63/73

passing through that loop you made

Step 3.

5. Cinch the knot up to your neck, an

center it before you fold the coll

down.

Tips to Keep in Mind for the Atlantic

1. Tie the knot relatively loosely. Thknot doesnt eat as much of the tie

the others, so the thin end of the t

may end up falling lower than th

wide end (not something you wantTying the knot loosely adds a bit mo

volume to the knot, making it loo

more substantial, and it also uses u


64/73

more of the length of the tie so yo

can counter this problem.


65/73

The Han Knot (AKA, Th

Cape Knot)


66/73

From the best I can tell, the Han w

first tied by a stylish gentleman name

Henry Hu (the link to the original vide

he posted on YouTube is in thResources chapter). Hu himself states h

isnt aware if its been tied before, b

gives the name Han for the knot. It

since made a surge in popularity o

various websites, where its bein

called the Cape knot - whichever nam

is correct I dont know but Cape is thmore popular name. Both are relative

new knots.

The Han, according Mr. Hu, w

originally the result of trying to tie Th

Ediety Knot and getting it slightly wron

However, the result is still a very uniqu


67/73

and cool knot - so lets tie it up right an

give it a proper place in the world of t

knots.

The knot got the name Cape because

look like the knot has a little cap

behind it - A gentleman named AleKrasny supplied this name. Its a co

effect.

The Han Illustrated


68/73


69/73

Tying the Han/Cape Knot, Step By S

1. Place the tie around your neck, wi

the thin end on your right side. Adju

the wide end of the tie a couple inch

above where you want it to fall wh

the knot is finished. This is a thin-tie

knot, so youll be tying the knot withe thin end of the tie.

2. Bring the thin end over the top of thknot to your left, and then up behin

through the neck.

3. Bring the thin end down to your rig

side and pass it behind the knot to th

left side, but continue around the fro


70/73

of the knot back to the right side (yo

just made a 180 degree loop aroun

the knot).

4. Pass the thin end up behind the kn

through the neck, and bring it down

the front on right side again.

5. Bring the thin end around the back

the left side, then up and over the knand down through the neck.

6. Pass the thin end through that last looon the back (the back loop you mad

in the beginning of Step 5.


71/73

7. Tighten up the knot and center it o

your neck. Fold the collar down an

youre all set to go!

Tips for the Han/Cape Knot

1. This knot doesnt work well with

striped tie. As with the Eldredge kno

the stripes confuse the detail of th

knot and the wow factor is almo

completely lost. By all means tie wistripes if for your own enjoyment b

dont expect many people to notice

you do.


72/73

Video Resources

Atlantic Video How-to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=x_fudDEG30o

Ediety Video How-to


v=qFdk-IT2cmg

Eldredge Video How-to


v=EhqBCryhsHQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhqBCryhsHQhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFdk-IT2cmghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_fudDEG30o


73/73

Han/Cape Video How-to


v=gUVBQ00iwTI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA

n2xkYX6s

Full Windsor Video How-to


v=a1oKs8fvYQg

Trinity Video How-to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qLAcNwDbk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yqLAcNwDbkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1oKs8fvYQghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA-n2xkYX6shttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUVBQ00iwTI

awesome tie knots - melrose, michael

Documents