FASHION TIPS
1. Tie Shopping For The Groom & Groomsmen2. Tie Fashion For Men Of All Sizes
3. How to Care For and Clean Your Silk Ties
4. How to Size Up and Wear Your French Cuff Shirt
5. The History of the French Cuff Shirt
6. Buying The Perfect Christmas Gifts For Him
7. Melbourne’s 2007 Spring Carnival of Colours
8. What makes the perfect modern tie look?
9. Eight easy steps on how to tie the perfect full Windsor knot
10. Looking for the perfect Father's Day gift?
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July 2008
Tie Shopping For The Groom & Groomsmen
At Distino, we have created what we believe to be an excellent range of ties specifically designed for weddings and formal occasions. We have listened to our customers and have designed magnificent silk ties that should suit all tastes. In the words of a famous Australian, we have tried to cover all the popular requests such as "the cream, the bone, the white, the off white, the ivory and the beige!".
This aside, we still consistently get enquiries with regards advice on what ties the groom and groomsmen should wear. Should they match the bridesmaids?, should they match each other?, should they all wear pocket squares? are common questions which unfortunately have no definitive answer.
Nonetheless, below we have compiled some advice with our opinions on some of the most common queries:
1. Should the groom and groomsmen's ties match the bridesmaids outfits?
Our opinion on this most common query is no! There is a place for matching dresses with ties (eg. a school formal, the races) but at a wedding we believe it all starts to look a little too much. Three to four men wearing pink ties with three to four ladies wearing the exact pink dresses becomes, dare we say 'cheesy'? You may get away with it if the colour in question is not too bold or the colours are not exactly the same but in general we would advise against it.
2. Should the groom and groomsmen's ties match?
Another common query for which we have a different opinion to the first question. The groom should definitely differentiate himself from his groomsmen but not completely. We would suggest a slightly different cut of suit, a vest, or a pocket square. All small alterations that will create an individual look. We do however believe that wearing the same colour tie, is essential.
3. Fatboys vs Cravats vs Bow Ties vs Neck Ties vs Open Neck
This completely is dependent on your personality and the look that your wedding is trying to achieve overall. Certainly bow ties are far less common these days but there is still a place for it, while the 'open neck' policy is a winner for the more casual beach style wedding. The most common options are the cravats, fatboys and standard neck ties. We have a leaning toward the fatboys or standard neck ties (only if they are a good thick quality which can create a larger knot) as we believe these two options create the best 'classical' wedding feel.
4. Are all your wedding ties available in multiple quantities?
It's often difficult to get the ties you really like and then it's even harder getting them in the multiple quantities you require. Head into a department store and you'll be hard pressed finding 3-4 ties of the same design that you like. This is why buying direcltly from Distino is another good idea. While the range of available ties do change, we do produce them in multiple quantities for this very reason. The gift boxed sets also make a great gift for your groomsmen to use again for future formal wear.
We hope that the above helps answer your questions, however should you have some more specific queries, don't hesitate to contact us at sales@distino.com.au. You can also find some high quality French cuff shirts and elegant cufflinks to match within the site.
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May 2008
Tie Fashion For Men Of All Sizes
Whilst the design of a tie should try and compliment your entire outfit including your shirt and suit, one of the factors to consider is what tie designs best compliment your body shape. It can make a difference and below you will find a few short tips on the tie designs that might best suit you:
Tall Man:
You may know by now that dressing with any clothing that has pinstripes or other vertical stripes within it will only accentuate your height. The lines and the effect that they have on the eye and the body emphasize the vertical dimension. Ties are no different and whilst vertically striped ties are not the most popular design available, they are out there (Distino has a few). It might be best if you stayed clear of these designs unless you want to look even taller than you are.
Short Man:
Naturally, the opposite (to the tall man tip) could be said for all the little guys out there. Try one of the vertically striped designs and see how it works for you. It will help to bring out the height you do have! Alternatively get yourself a pinstripe suit for the same reasoning.
Big Man:
If you’re a big man then you’ll probably want to avoid clothing that will accentuate your larger size. To do this you will need to avoid designs with heavy patterning as this will actually emphasis your width, and hence your weight. We would suggest trying solid colours or even the vertically striped designs as suggested for the short men. If you dress conservatively then the darker shades should also suit your body shape the best.
Thin Man:
As a thin man, your aim when dressing is most likely to dress to look heavier than you actually are. Checked designs in both shirts and ties are becoming more and more popular as men try and move away from the standard diagonally striped patterns. Therefore we would suggest trying some broad checked ties (or shirts) which will help to achieve a look that will fill you out.
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April 2008
How to Care For and Clean Your Silk Ties
If you're shopping with us then it's highly likely that you have either a) stained or ruined another one of your favourite ties or b) have stainted or ruined one of your less favourite ties. Whilst men of today are taking more care in what they wear and how they present themselves, many still treat their ties as bibs! In order to help you ruin a lower percentage of your ties, we have included a few tips below:
- Prevention Is Better Than Cure
Obvious yes.... practiced....no. The most common cause of damaged ties is food stains. If you are having trouble keeping your food in your mouth or just can't help dripping coffee all over your tie, then you could try using a tie pin/clip. It is a required piece of uniform for hospitality staff and will simply keep the tie as close to your shirt and out of the way as possible. The other alternative is to stop eating or drinking all together.
The other common reason for damage to your silk tie is improper handling. You should treat your ties with care. Rough finger nails and course hands can cause silk threads to pull in the tie so simply handle the tie carefully.
Storage of the ties can also be important. Ties are meant to be hung flat over a tie hanger or standard clothes hanger. The lazy men will often leave the tie still in it's perfect windsor knot and hang it as is. This is perfectly fine if you never intend on re-tieing the knot, however it can and will cause permanent creasing within the knot over time. If you consistently crease your ties, you might also consider purchasing a hand steamer for your ties or hang them in a steamed room such as the bathroom when you're showering.
When traveling you should simply roll your tie carefully and place it back in your Distino tie box.
- No Easy Cure
You can have your silk ties professionally cleaned but the term "professionally" can often be used loosely. Many dry cleaners may get the stains out of your ties but they will also press it to death and cause it to loose it's luster. Put simply.... at best it will look like it's been dry cleaned.
If you do happen to drop some of your meat pie, etc on your favourite Distino, then the best thing to do is to act quickly. Leaving the stain there for any period of time will only make things worse. Follow these steps:
1. Use an absorbent material like paper towel or a napkin. Dab the spot with the fabric (do not rub) until you can completely absorb the stain. If you are using a fabric to absorb the stain, you could also try adding some talcum powder or soda water but definitely NEVER ADD WATER as it will only spread the stain. You can also try stain remover however some of them have been known to discolour the silk.
2. Still no luck? Sprinkle some talcum powder directly onto the stain and leave it to sit for 8-12 hours and repeat the process should this not work completely. Always brush the talcum powder away carefully.
3. Meat pie still there? Go to the following page: www.distino.com.au/silk_ties.html and enjoy your shopping!
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February 2008
How to Size Up and Wear Your French Cuff Shirt
Whilst there are a number of measurements you can check before purchasing your shirt, the two most essential measurements are the girth of your neck and your sleeve length. Both require only a simple and quick measurement to help ensure that your high quality French cuff Distino shirt fits perfectly.
Below you will find our sizing chart and the steps required for making these two measurements.
From here, you probably only need to check the chest, shoulder and waist measurements if you either:
a) built like Arnold Schwarzenegger
b) built like Danny DeVito, or
c) on a serious note, you require a tight fitting shirt of a particular style (eg. contemporary or urban fit).
The Distino French cuff range are a fairly loose business fit, however please feel free to check the actual shirt measurements by placing the tape measure around your chest and waist, etc to get a feel for how the shirt will sit.
Now that you have the perfect fitting French cuff shirt, you may wish to take some consideration on the wear of the shirt:
1. Always ensure the shirt is tucked in with just enough 'hang' that it doesn't cover your belt or that you look like your about to explode.
2. Ensure the shirt is well pressed!
3. When wearing a suit or jacket, the French cuff is designed to sit just beyond the sleeve length of the jacket. Not so far that the cufflink is clearly visible but about and inch to 1/2 inch is plenty when your arms are by your side. Ultimately, the shirt cuff attracts the eye, making your arms appear long and limber. This has proved important for dancers, like Astaire, and conductors, like Bernstein. His crisp white cuffs made a baton almost unnecessary.
4. Equip your new Distino French cuff shirt with the magnificence of striking new silk tie!
Finally, should you have any queries about sizing of the Distino French cuff shirts, please feel free to contact us at sales@distino.com.au and we'll do our utmost to help with your enquiry.
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January 2008
The History of the French Cuff Shirt
The French cuff (or double cuff, as they're can be called in England) is a cuff which extends beyond the intended arm length of the shirt or dress it is fitted upon. The idea is to fold the cuff back and use cufflinks to keep the cuff in place.
The first idea of the modern dress shirt evolved during Victorian England where shirts would often employ buttons at the sleeves. While the very rich could afford custom tailor jobs, most people simply bought generic "one size fits all" dress shirts. These shirts' sleeves erred on the long side, with multiple buttons down the side so the wearer could button it at their wrist, and then fold the excess fabric back up the sleeve - thus covering the extra buttons as well.
In 1845, the French claim to the double shirt cuff was laid with Alexandre Dumas’s novel, The Count of Monte-Cristo, which describes Baron Danglars’s elegantly adorned cuffs: “...the owner of so splendid an equipage must needs be all that was admirable and enviable, more especially when they gazed on the enormous diamond that glittered in his shirt, and the red ribbon that depended from his button-hole.” It has been said that the turned-back sleeves of Dumas’s characters inspired French tailors to begin making doubled-over, or “French” cuffs. The English fashion had spread to France, where it became popular among the nobility. They therefore kept the tradition of the excess sleeve, however, in the form of the French cuff - but dropped the buttons in favor of cufflinks. The National Cuff Link Society, however, cautions that it may not be the shirt’s true origin. Regardless of which country invented it, the French cuff has remained popular for over 150 years.
Today, in the ongoing attempt to stand out in the crowd, the French cuff shirt is not just worn by the well-to-do but also by men the world over in all walks of life. Men are now taking on the tradition and grasping at it with a pair of cuffs!
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October 2007
Buying The Perfect Christmas Gifts For Him
Buying Christmas gifts for him can be time consuming and frustrating and buying online is often the easiest way. There are a number of advantages for utilising this growing shopping medium:
1. Often a few minutes on the web can give you Christmas gift ideas that you would otherwise need to spend hours looking through Shopping Centres for.
2. You can compare prices of competitors within a few clicks.
3. Generally pricing on the internet is cheaper than retail outlets.
4. You can do all your shopping from the luxury of your own home without having to look for a carpark!
5. It saves you time.
Specifically, buying a gift for him can be difficult. Do you need to buy a gift for him that is practical, well priced, gift boxed and of a high quality? Distino Of Melbourne’s silk ties and cufflinks are all magnificently presented in gift boxes creating the perfect gift for any male. From there, it’s just a matter of choosing the right colour to suit his personality and needs. Although it is a stereotype, following you will find a few tips to help you choose the perfect Distino silk tie gift set for him:
Where will he likely wear the tie?
Workplace – Go for something a little more conservative (Distino Silk Tie No.32 is a good example).
Formal Occasions – Visit the “Formal Collection” page within the Distino website and any tie set there should suit your needs. Distino No.24 is a modern, classy design and has proved very popular.
Social Outings – Be prepared to be bold whilst remembering that it is a gift. Distino No.57 is a perfect modern design which could be suited better to the younger generation.
What is his age group?
To late 20’s – Modern designs include the vertical striped ties, intricate designs (Distino No.67) and even obscure patterns (such as Distino No.70) can be popular. Modern pastel shades such as Distino No.35 are also very popular.
30’s to late 40’s – Fairly conservative designs should be your choice with this age group. We suggest Distino No.22 or No.55 as a ‘safe bet’ when it comes to buying a tie for the middle-aged man!
50’s + -Classical conservative designs such as Distino No.16 and No.1 are popular selections amongst this age group.
We hope the above guide has helped you with your tie selections. Regardless, all Distino silk tie box sets will be the perfect Christmas gift for any male at any occasion.
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September 2007
Melbourne’s 2007 Spring Carnival of Colours
With another Spring Racing Carnival in Melbourne approaching so too is another season of colour and another opportunity for men to actually give greater thought about what they wear. The Spring season is an excuse for men to ‘show off’, wear bright colours and actually compete with the women in order to ‘stand out in the crowd’.
Distino hope to help the men of Melbourne achieve this goal of standing out in the 2007 season by advising them on the colours that might work well for them this year.
Like every year, bright and bold colours are important but the particular colours of the seasons do change. You need to be extra bold this season with bright fluorescents, yellows and reds being dominant colours this season. The perfect tie for Spring Racing this season is therefore the Orange & Blue Distino No.49 silk tie. Not only will this silk tie ‘stand out from the crowd’ but it will also fit comfortably with the bright fluorescents that the ladies will be wearing.
Sometimes it is more important for the men's ties to match their ladies and often you will have no choice in this. If this is the case with you, then Distino have a wide range of tie colours to match every lady's dress.
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August 2007
What makes the perfect modern tie look?
The problem with fashion is that there are no rules; only opinions usually derived from our experiences of what we believe should look good and fashionable. The 'opinions' of our label is what you will find here and whilst fashion changes, so may our 'opinions'. All this said, the following is a guide to what Distino currently believe makes the perfect modern tie look.
The 10 tie fashion rules to swear by:
1. Learn to tie the perfect Windsor knot (see 'how to tie the perfect windsor knot') as it is clearly the most important step in creating the perfect tie look. Almost any tie will look good if tied correctly.....although Distino ties will look the best.
2. Whilst many men are wearing stripe ties with checked shirts and visa versa, Distino believe that this is hard to pull off and get right. Stay clear of this look......wear checked ties with subtle checked or plain shirts and striped ties with subtle striped or plain shirts. You can't go wrong with this.....for now.
3. Generally speaking, for shirts and ties to work well together you need to have some of the same colours or shades from the tie in the shirt. This rule does not apply for plain white shirts. You can get away with just about any colour tie with a plain white shirt. E.g. Don't wear your favourite purple tie with your light blue shirt....even if you're wife tells you it looks good.
4. Be bold when buying for yourself...even if you're not a bold person. Great comments will come with all Distino silk ties, although you will get even more if your tie stands out from the crowd.
5. Choose a tie by occasion. E.g. don't wear your pure white silk tie to work (it may not make it home).
6. Choose a great looking pair of cufflinks to either match the tie in colour (as with our full collection) or to match the shirt or suit patterns you plan to wear.
7. Get the length of your tie right. This comes back to tying the knot well - which will come with practice. Aim for the tip of the tie to finish just on your belt line.
8. Keep your tie in good presentable condition. Check out our tips on caring for your silk ties.
9. Store your ties carefully. As mentioned in an earlier tip, if you're lazy, keep the the knot tied and hang it over the neck of a coat hanger in the wardrobe. Your ties will be stored without creasing and you only need to tie the perfect Windsor knot once!
10. When buying a silk tie from the Distino collection as a gift, play it safe if you don't know the fashion habits of the wearer. We would suggest something along the lines of No.'s 32, 17 or 35 - blue shades or a classy green as opposed to the aquas or burnt oranges of No.'s 36 and 12.
The 10 don't do rules with your ties:
Don't....
1. Create the small & tight 'schoolboy' tie knot that boy scouts would be proud of.
2. Always believe that because your girlfriend/wife/mother chose your tie, that it is the right look for you.
3. Have your collar button undone and tie hanging low. If you're wearing a suit and tie....wear it.
4. Wear ties that you don't have shirts to match. See above.
5. Buy polyester ties.........they look like polyester.
6. Wear wool ties.........your grandfather's jumper might be the only thing that will go with it.
7. Buy thin ties. Thick ties are a better look and generally mean better quality.
8. Buy ties that are not stitched well or don't have double tie loops. The tie loops are often the first thing to fall apart on cheap ties.
9. Be soft when choosing a new tie......get something modern and different. Distino's Euro Blue design No.50 is a perfect example.
10. Buy a tie from another label....of course.
We have to reiterate that the above rules are only an opinion......it's just that in this case it is the right opinion.
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Eight easy steps on how to tie the perfect full Windsor knot
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| 1. Take only approximately 2 inches of the 'tail' of the tie on your left hand side. | 2. Lay the right hand side (the 'base' of the tie) across the front of the tail. | 3. Bring the base up under the centre and lay it across the right hand side of the tail. |
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| 4. Bring the base of the tie behind the tail of the tie and then push it through over the centre of the knot. | 5. Bring the base of the tie back under the centre once again and then tighten to the desired knot size. | 6. Bring the base of the tie horizontally across the knot and then pull it up behind the knot. |
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| 7. Pull the base of the tie through the knot and then adjust as required. | 8. Congratulations......you have completed your perfect full Windsor knot! |
Extra Tip:
Can't be bothered making a Windsor knot every day? Keep the the knot tied and hang it over the neck of a coat hanger in the wardrobe. Your ties will be stored without creasing and you only need to tie the perfect Windsor knot once! Just don't plan on untying it again as it will probably crease as the knot.
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Looking for the perfect Father's Day gift?