Blessed be the tie that blinds

When it came to fashion, my dad used to believe if you held on to something long enough, it would come back in style.

Cuffs went out, then they became popular again. Double-breasted jackets? Just wait. They’ll be back. Button-down collars go in out and out of vogue. Penny loafers come and go. Saddle Oxfords will one day ride again.

I feel that way about ties. Twenty years ago, ties were as plain as brown-paper wrapper. Most of the time they were solid. Occasionally, you might get a striped or check pattern. That’s about as flamboyant as it would get.

Then, a few years back, ties were sassy and fun. They were colorful and creative. Men got bold. They dared to make a statement.

To paraphrase an old church hymn, blessed be the tie that blinds.

I thought about this the other day when I wore my “leaf” tie. It’s a pattern of fall leaves – a pretty combination of brown, red and blue. I can only wear this during the autumn months. It was one of the first creative ties I owned, and I bought it in the mid-1980s at the big outlet mall near Valdosta.

That was my first real venture into fancy tie fashion. I got so many compliments on that tie (still do) that I got even more brave and daring.

There was a time when I had almost every one of the popular “Save the Children” ties. These were ties with drawings by children of everything from playgrounds to school buses to Fourth of July celebrations. One of the most unusual was a tie with an ice cream cone stacked high with scoops of different flavors. It was very colorful against a solid red background.

The most unique tie in my wardrobe was one that was designed like a pencil with the point at the bottom of the tie. It was quite catchy and colorful.

Every time I wore these ties, I got lots of comments, especially from women. I think women take notice of the way men dress a lot more than men do. I could wear plain khaki pants and white shirt with a navy blazer, but if I wore an eye-catching tie it would add energy to the entire outfit.

Of course, ties have turned back to being more conservative in recent years. I’ve given a lot of those ties – once my signature wardrobe – to charity.

But I’m hanging on to a few, like the leaf tie. I kept almost all my Christmas ties, which include a variety of Santas. Those ties are a lot of fun, and I can only wear them for one month out of the year.

I figure "wild'' ties will come back in style eventually, just like Dad always said.