Why It Is Called Black Tie: The Name, the Bow Tie, the Myths

The dress code is called black tie because the black bow tie is the easy visual marker that separates it from white tie, the grander level above it. The name is shorthand for an invitation card. It does not mean the bow tie is the only thing you need to think about.

The name was coined to tell it apart from white tie

Before the dinner jacket appeared in Britain in the 1860s, a formal evening had one option: a tailcoat with a white bow tie. Once a shorter, easier jacket became acceptable for dinners with less ceremony, hosts needed a way to say which level they meant. The colour of the bow tie was the simplest thing to print on a card.

So "white tie" names the tailcoat outfit, and "black tie" names the dinner jacket outfit. One detail stands in for the whole ensemble, the way we name a football team by its shirt colour.

"Tuxedo" is a separate story. It is the American name for the dinner jacket, linked to the Tuxedo Park club in New York in 1886. In practice a tuxedo is the usual way to meet a black tie request, but the two words are not strictly the same thing.

A black bow tie is the rule; another colour is a variation

The standard is clear: a black bow tie in satin or grosgrain, tied by hand, matching the lapel facing. That is where the name comes from.

Other colours have their place, but as deliberate variations.

• A midnight blue bow tie with a midnight blue tuxedo usually looks harmonious and is hard to call wrong.
• A velvet or burgundy bow tie is more readily accepted at "creative black tie" evenings and stylish weddings.
• Patterned or bright bow ties belong where the invitation allows them, because at that point the name "black tie" no longer applies literally.

In other words, a non-black bow tie does not break the rules everywhere, but it changes the mood of the outfit, and at a serious gala people still expect black.

Black tie is a full set of rules, not just a bow tie

An invitation that says black tie quietly asks for the whole ensemble.

• A black or midnight blue tuxedo with satin or grosgrain facing.
• Trousers in the same cloth with a satin stripe down the leg.
• A white shirt with a pleated or piqué front, cufflinks and studs.
• A waistcoat or cummerbund covering the waistband.
• Patent leather shoes or opera pumps, with black socks.

Each piece is covered in our guide to what makes a correct tuxedo. What matters is that the pieces agree with one another; one wrong item can pull the whole outfit off balance.

Common misunderstandings that come from the name

"Black tie means wearing a black necktie." It does not. Black tie refers to the bow tie, not a long necktie. A long black tie is for everyday wear or funerals and cannot replace the bow tie at a gala. We compare the two in bow tie or necktie with a tuxedo.

"A black suit is enough." It is not. A black business suit has notch lapels, ordinary buttons and plain trousers. Black tie calls for the details of formal wear.

"A black bow tie alone makes it black tie." A black bow tie with an ordinary suit still misses the dress code.

"Black tie means everything is black." No. The shirt must be white, and midnight blue is accepted.

"Black tie is the most formal level possible." Also no. White tie is higher, though much rarer. Black tie is the very common level for evening galas.

How Mon Amie can help

If you have received a black tie invitation for the first time and want to be certain of every detail, look at our dress code page to compare the levels, then come to the showroom so a consultant can put the whole outfit together correctly. Book a fitting at Mon Amie before the event so there is time for adjustments.