black tie

 

Black tie is a dress code for formal evening events, whose primary component is the dinner jacket. The jacket and matching trousers are typically called a tuxedo in the United States and Canada; they are known in Continental Europe and Japan as a smoking, a pseudo-Anglicism from earlier smoking jacket.

Black tie is today worn at a wide variety of functions, and the corresponding female attire can range from a short cocktail dress to a long evening gown, depending on fashion, local custom and the hour at which the function takes place.

Elements

Compared with the more codified white tie, black tie leaves the wearer with considerably more options in the choice of his dinner jacket and accessories. In recent years, a wide rift has opened between traditional British black tie and the more modern, or American, approaches. Many men, especially those in the United Kingdom, would consider only the traditional to be black tie at all.

The elements of a black-tie ensemble are:

• A black short coat with ribbed-silk or satin lapels
• Black trousers with a silk braid or ribbon down each leg
• A white dress shirt with a marcella or pleated front
• A black silk bow tie
• A black cummerbund or low-cut waistcoat (AmE: vest)
• Black silk socks
• Black patent leather shoes

Coat

The dinner jacket is usually made of black wool, without vents or pocket flaps, with ribbed-silk (grosgrain) or satin lapels. Traditionally, there are two styles of lapel: the peaked lapel, derived from the evening tailcoat; and the shawl lapel, reminiscent of a smoking jacket. Both can be found in single- or double-breasted form. The notched lapel, while immensely popular in the United States, is a modern innovation, and is not universally considered correct. The traditional single-breasted jacket can have one button (most traditional) or two buttons (less traditional yet still acceptable to some), but never three.

Because black often shows a greenish tinge in artificial light, dinner jackets in midnight blue were introduced by the Prince of Wales. They are occasionally seen as an alternative to black.

White dinner jackets are only worn in warm climates, and during summertime in some temperate countries. Not only are the British Isles not considered warm enough for white dinner jackets to be acceptable, but the United Kingdom frowns upon their use in general. In the United States and Canada white dinner jackets (as with most of white summer clothing, like all-white loafers, all-white seersucker, etc.) may be worn from only Memorial Day through to Labor Day.

It is normally considered very bad form to remove the jacket at any time during a function; but when temperatures and humidity make this essential to health, the highest ranking male present, for instance a member of a royal family or the guest of honour, should take the lead by standing and demonstratively removing his jacket. Others present may then follow suit. If it is known in advance that very high temperatures are expected, then Red Sea rig may be specified on the invitations, although this mode of dress is somewhat esoteric in civilian circles and tends to be confined to certain small social communities.

Waist covering and trousers

It is common to wear either a waistcoat or cummerbund (not both) with a single-breasted dinner jacket. Waistcoats should be low-cut, and usually match the jacket's lapels, though they were once commonly made in the same fabric as the rest of the suit.

Cummerbunds, which derive from military dress in British India, should always be worn with pleats facing up; they should also be the same material as the bow tie and lapels.

White waistcoats (as worn with white tie) are an alternative to the black waistcoat, but are rarely seen. There once existed a tradition, carried over from white tie, of wearing a white waistcoat with a dinner jacket when ladies were present. This, of course, has largely died out.

Trousers (pants) worn with a dinner jacket should have no turn-ups (cuffs) or belt loops, and should have a single silk braid down the edge of the legs. It is customary to wear them with braces (suspenders). In recent years, flat-front pants have crept into formalwear, sparking a debate as to the appropriateness and formality of pleats versus none.

Shirt and tie

A white cotton or linen shirt is conventional, though shirts in off-white or in silk can sometimes be seen. The shirt fronts are usually cotton marcella (as in white tie) or pleated.

Prior to the Second World War, stiff shirts and separate wing collars were usual. Nowadays, semi-stiff and non-detachable wing collars have become popular, although in the United Kingdom a classic collar (as worn with a lounge suit) is sometimes preferred.

The shirt is usually fastened with shirt studs, and the cuffs with matching cufflinks. In lieu of studs, it has become more common to wear a soft dress shirt with a concealed button placket ("fly front"). The shirt may have a placket or have a French front (no separate placket), and either style can take buttons, studs, or have a fly front. Soft dress shirts have French cuffs, while stiff shirts (as are still worn with white tie) have single cuffs.

Bow ties are usually made of silk barathea or satin. It is considered poor form to wear a pre-tied bow tie, particularly when the hook and buckle are in plain view. However, for most 'black tie' occasions, pre-tied ties are becoming increasingly common, with the former stigma attached to them decreasing in certain circles. In America hand-tied models nearly vanished in the 1980s. By the 1990s, they became so rare it was unusual to find a new one for sale, even in a tuxedo shop^{[citation needed]}. Americans of the 2000's generally give no particular stigma to either version, and would need to refer to instructions to tie one by hand.

Footwear

The most traditional formal shoes are patent-leather opera pumps (also known as court shoes) with a ribbed silk bow, as is worn with white tie. These are uncommon today. A popular alternative is the formal black leather lace-up Oxford shoe, often in patent leather, but without a toe cap or any decorative brogueing. Shoes with open lacing (Derbies in British English and bluchers in the United States) are considered too informal to wear with evening dress. An exceedingly rare alternative is the black button boot.

Hosiery should be black knee-high ribbed silk socks.

Accessories

A white handkerchief (cotton, linen or silk) may be worn in the breast pocket of the dinner jacket, and/or a boutonniere (a flower, usually white) in the buttonhole. In cold weather a dark blue or black overcoat, black gloves, and a white silk scarf may be worn for traveling.

There is no standard headgear for black tie, but if an overcoat is worn a hat such as a black homburg or trilby may be worn, and in summer a straw boater is considered acceptable. Top hats are only worn with white tie or morning dress.

Wristwatches should be thin and elegant. As an alternative, a pocketwatch may be hung from the vest.

In the past few decades it has become acceptable to wear orders and decorations with a dinner jacket at formal state events. These awards may consist of miniature medals, neck badges, breast stars, and/or sashes. The governing regulations for wear of these awards vary from country to country.

Appropriate occasions

Black tie is worn at many private and public dinners, dances, and parties, making a comprehensive list difficult because its use varies widely from region to region. At the most formal end it has taken over from white tie at many occasions where the latter would formerly have been worn, e.g. by orchestra conductors. At the most formal events court dress is worn.

Black tie is almost always worn in the evening only (after 6pm). One notable exception is that observed by the Rugby Club of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, whose members are required to don black tie at midday in preparation for their annual dinner. The daytime equivalent of black tie, the stroller, can be worn for semi-formal events during the daylight hours.

Black Tie in public perception

• Given the nature of Black Tie occasions and the social events meriting it, the dinner jacket or tuxedo is popularly considered exclusive dress; owning one is a statement of class and caste.
• Black tie dinner suits are derided as "penguin suits," since the colour scheme matches the bird's.

Corresponding forms of dress

Mess dress

In dining out formally, the armed forces officer and non-commissioned officer normally wears a mess uniform equivalent to the civilian black tie and evening dress. Stylistically, the mess uniform varies according to the wearer's regiment or corps, but usually comprises a short Eton-style coat reaching to the waist. Some include white shirts, black bow ties, and low-cut waistcoats, while others feature high collars that fasten around the neck and corresponding high-gorge waistcoats. Usually, mess uniforms are brightly-coloured (in the British Army scarlet is most common) and ornamented with gold and lace and gilt buttons, all corresponding to the colours of the regiment or corps of the wearer.

In the Royal Navy there is a distinction between "mess dress", which is worn at white tie events, and "mess undress", which is worn at black tie events. Both are worn with a black bow tie, however mess dress is worn with a white waistcoat instead of the usual colour, and may be worn with a stiff shirt and wing collar. The stiff shirt and wing collar were abolished for mess undress in the 1960s, and were made optional for mess dress in the 1990s.

Red Sea rig

In tropical areas, primarily in Western diplomatic and expatriate communities, the jacket is sometimes omitted and a cummerbund substituted. This form of black tie is known as Red Sea rig.

West coast black tie

In the United States, this term has been used to describe a formal event at which a wider variety of formal wear is acceptable. It may have originated in the Hollywood community and is now used more broadly. The four-in-hand is appropriate, as is greater variety in tie color.

Scottish Highland dress

Scottish Highland dress is often worn to black- and white tie occasions, especially at Scottish reels and céilidhs; the black tie version is more common, even at white tie occasions. Traditionally, black tie Scots Highland dress comprises:

• Black jacket — Prince Charlie, Montrose, Sheriffmuir, and Argyll are suitable
• Black waistcoat
• Kilt
• White shirt
• Black bow tie
• Black Ghillie brogues
• Kilt hose (monochrome, diced, tartan)
• Flashes
• Sporran

Traditional black tie Lowland dress comprises: black tie variant of the normal black tie, with trews worn with a normal dinner jacket or a Prince Charlie jacket; trews are often worn in summer and warm climes.

The white tie equivalent is a white bow tie or a lace jabot over a collarless shirt. Regulation Doublets, Prince Charlie, Montrose, Sheriffmuir, and Argyll jackest are suitable.

See also

• Clothing
• Formal wear and Semi-formal
• White tie
• Red Sea rig
• Morning dress
• Mess dress (Mess kit)

External links

• The Essential Black Tie Guide

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