Cloth & pattern
Country ties explained
Game birds, Labradors, horses, fishing flies and shotgun cartridges — what makes a country tie, and how to wear one with tweed, at a shoot, at the races and in town.
The country tie is a very British thing: a small motif from the field, the river or the farm, repeated on a dark or earthy ground. Worn well, it says where a man would rather be without his having to mention it.
What makes a country tie
A country tie carries a motif from country life, usually small and evenly spaced on a ground of wine, bottle green, navy, mustard or gold. From across a room it reads as a neat pattern; close to, it is a pheasant.
The subjects are the things country people care about: pheasants, grouse, partridge, woodcock and ducks; Labradors and hounds; horses and jockeys; fishing flies; shotgun cartridges; and tractors, hares and stags for the farm and the hill.
Silk, wool or knitted
Silk country ties have a soft sheen and carry fine detail — the barring on a pheasant’s tail, the colours of a jockey’s silks. They go to town as easily as to the country, and they are the choice for a country wedding or a day at the races.
Wool-rich ties are matt and soft, with the texture tweed asks for; a plain one in moss green or navy is the quiet partner for a busy check shirt. Knitted ties can’t carry a picture, so wear one plain and let a tie bar or cufflinks carry the theme.
With tweed and check shirts
Tweed and a country tie are made for each other. Pick out a colour in the cloth — the green, rust or mustard fleck — and choose a tie on a ground of that colour: standing pheasants on green with a green-flecked tweed, flying pheasants on gold with a brown one.
With a check shirt, keep the check small and the motif well spaced, so the two read at different scales. A plain cream or pale blue shirt will calm the busiest country tie. With a plain suit in town, choose a tie on a navy or wine ground; mustard and gold grounds belong with tweed.
Where to wear one
At a shoot, a country tie with a tweed jacket, a check shirt and breeks or cords is the traditional kit, and on many shoots a tie is still the custom, at least for lunch. The host sets the tone, so ask if you’re unsure; there is more in what to wear to a shoot.
At the races, a tie with jockeys, saddles or the final furlong is a nod to the day. Some premier enclosures ask men for a jacket and tie, so check the racecourse’s own dress code before you go, and see what to wear to the races.
At a country wedding, a silk country tie suits a guest — game birds on a wine or gold ground photograph well — though the groom and his party usually dress alike in something plainer.
On market day, at the county show or the point-to-point, a country tie under a tweed jacket, or a country cravat with an open collar, is as smart as anyone needs to be. In town, a small motif on navy or wine passes in the office, and gives a dull meeting something to talk about.
Choosing one as a present
Choose the motif for the man, not the outfit: cartridges for the man who shoots, a black Labrador for the man whose dog sleeps on the bed, fishing flies for the man who would rather be on the river. It shows you were paying attention.
If you don’t know his subject, game birds are the broad church of the countryside. A boxed tie and cufflink set is the safe choice for a man who has everything else; more ideas in gifts for the countryman.
Cufflinks, braces and tie bars
The same motifs come on smaller pieces. Country cufflinks — shotgun cartridges, pheasants, fishing flies — need a double-cuff shirt, so they come out for the shoot dinner and the country wedding rather than the peg.
Braces keep cords and breeks where they belong through a long day on foot. Country braces with pheasants, Labradors or red tractors go under a tweed waistcoat, where only the family will see them.
A pheasant or shotgun tie bar with a plain wool tie does the work of a country tie in one small piece.
Questions
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What is a country tie?
A tie with a motif from country life — game birds, dogs, horses, fishing flies or shotgun cartridges — usually small and repeated on a dark or earthy ground. It is worn with tweed and country clothes, and at shoots, the races and country weddings.
Do you wear a tie to a shoot?
On many shoots, yes, and a country tie with a tweed jacket and a check shirt is the tradition. The host sets the tone, so ask if you’re unsure.
Can you wear a country tie in town?
Yes. A small motif on a navy or wine ground reads as a neat pattern at a distance, so a pheasant or cartridge tie passes in the office.
What shirt goes with a country tie?
A small check, a plain cream or a pale blue shirt. Keep the check smaller than the motif so the two read at different scales.
Related
4 min readWhat to wear to a shootTweed, a shirt and tie, and a tie that tucks in. The shooting field keeps its traditions, and most of them happen to be practical.
5 min readGifts for the countrymanHe would rather be outside. Give him something that says so — the bird he shoots, the dog at his feet, the course he never misses.
5 min readWhat to wear to the racesEvery racecourse, and often every enclosure, sets its own dress code. Learn the general rule, read the course’s own, and dress a little above it.