Black Tie

Most of the ‘formal’ events in America are Black Tie events. For a black tie event, the gentleman should wear the traditional black tuxedo with a formal white shirt and a black bow tie and cummerbund. The folds of the cummerbund should face upward.

If he is wearing a shirt that has the little pointed collar, the points should be on the outside of his tie. If he is wearing a shirt that has a regular collar, the bow tie should be on the outside of his collar.

Recently, there have been some innovations to the traditional look of the tuxedo attire. Bow ties and cummerbunds in various colors or patterns are often worn. Some gentlemen prefer not to wear a tie at all but prefer to wear a black button at their necks. These are interesting looks and acceptable for all but the most traditional occasions.

The lady who is going to accompany a gentleman to a black tie event may wear either a long or a short evening gown. If she wears gloves, she should remove them when she sits down to eat her meal.

Recently, my husband and I went to the opening of the Lyric Opera in Chicago. Since we were going to the party after the opera, we chose to dress in formal attire. Dale wore his tuxedo with the traditional black bow tie and cummerbund.

I wore a long, very formal gown with a train. Since my dress was strapless, I chose to wear my long white gloves and to carry my white fox boa not only for an elegant effect, but also to help keep me a little warm on the September evening when the Lyric Opera event was held in Chicago.

For another Black Tie event we attended, I wore a long black, strapless gown with black gloves. I carried my black fox boa and kept it flung over my shoulder during the cocktail party to create a glamorous, ‘30’s type of look.