Matching Neckties

The necktie is the piece of clothing that will add more color and character to your suit and tie look. Carefully choosing the right necktie that matches patterns and colors of your other pieces of clothing is only part of the art to matching neckties. Besides matching ties to your shirt and suit, you should have a look at your color profile (what colors look good with your complexion), as well as the occasion you are dressing for. If all three are considered, you will create the perfect outfit.

THe first step to consider when matching clothing are the patterns and colors for each item. The key here is to create a non-boring look, that is unique, but nevertheless harmonizes well together.Both colors and patterns must be considered when matching a necktie to shirt and suit. 

Colors

Creating a unique and exciting look doesn't mean to dress like a parrot by any means. Before wildy choosing colors that might look well on each clothign item on an individual basis, it is important to choose colors that harmonize. To do this pick colors that are in the same family, and are closelty related. This does not mean that you should only dress in shades of blue. Doing this would look a littel strange and/or boring. What related color families means is to choose colors that have some of the same base colors in them. As you might know, colors are made from three main colors: Magenta (red), Cyan (blue), and Yellow.

You don;t have to be a color expert to match your clothing. As a little trick, place your clothign over a chiar or on your bed, and see how the colors look together before putting any clotiong item on. Doing this will allow you to quickly compare different colors.

Combining patterns

Now that you have an idea about matching colors, have a look at the patterns. Choosing different patterns in your clothing is a great way to add more style. If you are a daily suit and tie wearer, than chances are that sooner or later you will get bored with the same old dark gray suit, and white shirt look - the look that 90% of your office will wear to work each day.

To combine different patterns make sure that the patterns vary in size and shape. What you want to avoid is wearing patterns that look too similar. A fine pin striped suit, striped dress shirt, and striped tie will just not look right. In fact it might be quite irritating to the eye.

When matching different patterns, don't overdo it (unless you have become an expert at this). If you like to wear a patterned dress shirt, then keep the suit in solid color. A great look would be a solid charcoal gray suit, a checkered dress shirt in white and light blue, and navy blue necktie with fine light blue dots or motifs.

Again, as a simple trick, lay your clothes on the bed first before putting them on. Start with the largest piece of clothing (your suit), then the dress shirt, and finally the tie.

Matching Other accessories:

Besides suit, shirt, and tie, other accessories should be matched carefully. Shoes, belts, and cufflinks are a good example. As a general rule match your shoes to your belt color, and cufflinks to your belt buckle. As a little tip, brown shoes (and belt) will look best with navy blue, tan, and olive colored suits.

Besides having a look at the colors and patterns of each clothing item, you should have a look at your complexion. They key to match clothing is not to find clothes that look good together, but they must also look good on you.

When matching clothing to your type, you must consider your color profile. As a general rule exports speak of two different types of profiles:

Low Contrast Color Profile

Low contrast color profile people are those that have a low contrast between hair and skin color. A light hair color and pale skin combination is a perfect example.

If you have a low color contrast then choose suit, shirt and ties that are not to overpowering. Wearing a too powerful tie will take the attention away from your face and towards your body. The attention should always be on your face, and your clothing should never distract from it. If you like bright colored ties (popular in the spring and summer) combine them with shirts that minimize the color contrast. A bright red tie should be combined with a gray or pale blue shirt instead of white for example.

High Contrast Profile

If you have a high color contrast between skin tone and hair color, then you can dress more boldly. A perfect example are men with dark skin tones and dark hair. If this is you then feel free to show more contrast between light and dark color shades in your clothing. A black suit, white dress shirt, and bright red tie will work well for you (a terrible combination for low-contrast profile men). 

Think about the occasion you are dressing for. Different occasions have different dress code, and choosing the right suit, shirt and necktie must be considered.

The most formal attire, also called black tie attire, requires a tux, white tuxedo shirt, and a black bow tie. As a general rule, darker suits, and white dress shirts are considered more formal. For business attire it is quite acceptable to change shirt colors, as well as wear different color suits. As far as neckties are concerned solid color ties in black, silver and white are most formal, while ties with more patterns such as popular striped neckties have a more "business feel".

A final thing to consider is what fabrics are combined with what colors in what season of the year. Heaver fabrics belong into the winter, and winter clothing pieces are matched with classic winter necktie colors such as brown, burgundy, gray, dark blues, and olive.

In the summer lighter fabrics are appropriate. Such light fabrics are matched with warm necktie colors such as pink, light greens, light yellows, baby blue, and peach-orange to name a few.