you can't call it a costume if you wear it every (other) day

From Tacky Ties 10 24 08

From Tacky Ties 10 24 08

This week's ties were scrounged from a theater collection by Gabriella Guilfoil, who has a keen eye for tacky.

the year starts anew

Today's tacky tie, compliments of Erika Longino, is a series of coats, jackets, and parkas of various dispositions and colorations. A Gap tie. Yes, Gap is responsible for fashion flubs, too.

the ugliest tie in existence

Yes, my dogmatism is warranted.

Thanks to senior Megan Haughton, who, like me, is a savvy Goodwill shopper.

compare and contrast

versatility

It suggests fish scales, pheasant feathers, origami birds, Toblerone chocolates, or blowfish spines. It is all those, and more.

the ugliest tie in the world

It's a bold claim, but I'm the sort of tie aficionado with the bad taste and the breadth of neckwear experience to make it.

through the looking glass

A world of phantasms, mysteries, and delights. And Dacron.

genuinely ugly

That's how several students independently described it. They must, of consequence, be right.

so everybody put your best suit or dress on

So this is the new year. In silk.

Tickle Me Elmo is ready for his close-up

A few of my tacky ties are silk. Only a few.

Happy Cartoon Day, one day late.

aesthetics and semantics

The first effort must have tripped out the camera, but its blurriness is still appealing. It's probably how it appears to the unprepared eye.



The second effort gives the requisite detail. Pinstripe plaid on pistachio. (Yes, the milky green color is called "pistachio," at least if my in-house fashionistas are trustworthy.)

the sweet smell of decay

Orange and blue blossoms with dead brown leaves. The circle of life has its bumpy stretches.

petrochemical bliss

Almost a decade ago, as a power-hungry college student, I served as a senator in student government, eventually working my way to a vice presidency. (It helps to run unopposed.) We met each Tuesday, and, on top of Robert's, followed one rule: you had to wear a tie to vote. To comply with the rule, I pillaged the local Goodwill of its seventies-era tie collection, fifty cents a pop. This is one of the original crew.

The tie is 100% sweet crude. The glare is the sun's envy.