Black tie, white tie shenanigans

Black tie, white tie, tuxedos, these words bring formal to mind. They are used as dress codes for special events and over the years have evolved into different fashion styles. But where did these originate from and what’s a smoking jacket?  Join me on this podcast as I dig into some research and share my experiences with formal wear including tailoring across countries.

Transcript

Episode 111: Black tie, white tie shenanigans

Hello Everyone, and welcome to the podcast of the Ordinary Maverick. This is Ajey, your host, an ordinary Maverick sharing real life thoughts and experiences and Maverick tips. If you haven’t hit the subscribe button yet, please do so, and you’ll not miss another episode.

Fellow Mavericks, we’ve hit the six months mark for 2023. The year is just whizzing by. And I have to say 2023 is turning out to be the year when it seems everyone is catching up post pandemic. Ha ha…the amount of travel, holiday plans, weddings, social events that are happening …it’s quite something. I am sure everyone’s calendars are quite full!

Well, 2020 and 2021 both had the pandemic challenge and then in 2022, there was cautiousness..should we? Or shouldn’t we? Shall we plan a big holiday and travel? Or just wait and see what happens…and then of course, the first travel that everyone wanted to do was to family and near and dear ones. So its in 2023 that we’re stepping out and spreading our wings once again.

Well, what can I say? We’re halfway through this year and I’ve already been to 4 continents and some of them more than once! Well, I did say this podcast was all about experiences, right? And shenanigans – used in the context of being silly or high spirited behaviour…hmmm..I like that…high spirits is key to ‘living’ a life…and I mean ‘living’ in bold…not just living…but LIVING.

And so it is with black tie, white tie formal events. Let’s not forget the fun, the high spirits as we get all caught up with the dressing and the look. Well, recently, I received an invite that had a dress code…it said ‘Black tie’. And that got me thinking….where did this originate? And of course, it triggered my memories of such events over the years across different countries. And the amazing tailoring encounters for these moments and the skills one sees that are pretty unique to that country.

Am sure I’ve wetted your appetite…ha ha.

Well, let’s start at the beginning. Where did this phrase come from? Well, when someone says black tie event, you immediately think of formals. And it is a semi formal Western dress code for evening events with origins in the British and American conventions in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often called the dinner suit or dinner jacket. And in American English, the equivalent term will be tuxedo or tux in short. It’s generally a black, or midnight blue or white two or three piece suit, has jacket lapels in satin sometimes and worn with a dress shirt, cuff links and a black bow tie. Sometimes, you also have an evening waistcoat or a cummerbund. And then for women, it’s an evening gown or any other fashionable dress.

Did some research and as recorded in history the first dinner jacket can be traced back to 1865 to the Prince of Wales, and later King Edward the VII. And then slowly variations to this came about, like the lounge jacket and the informal smoking jacket. Yes, you heard it right, the smoking jacket – it was an informal men’s style of lounge jacket that was originally intended for tobacco smoking. It came about in the 1850s and had a shawl collar, turn up cuffs, with button fastenings or a tie belt. And generally made from velvet and/or silk. It was tailored in bright colors and had large buttons. It was kind of a short ‘robe de chambre’ made of beautiful soft velvet, cashmere, merino or flannel. Later this evolved to a dinner jacket. However, the smoking jacket was meant to be worn while smoking in private and to protect clothes from ash and smoke, while also allowing men to have one more fashionable outfit in their wardrobes. Sometimes, after dinner, a gentleman would wear a smoking jacket and retreat to a smoking room. This became quite popular in the 20th century and many wearers persisted, famous ones are Cary Grant, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra. Slowly, these smoking jackets went down in popularity from the 1950s but some people still wear it and now there are versions of this design available in formal wear.

And then there’s white tie, so confusing, right? Black tie, white tie, tux, ha ha…well, who ever said that fashion was easy!

Now white tie is also known as full evening dress, or a dress suit and it’s considered to be the most formal in traditional evening western dress code. It’s origins can be traced back to the end of the 18th century and it consists of a black tail coat worn over a white dress shirt with a starched or pique bib, a white waistcoat and a white bow tie worn around a standing wing collar. And this is matched with mid or high waisted black trousers with galon – which is a braid of trim consisting of two silk stripes to conceal the outer seams of the trousers and to complete the outfit one wears court shoes. Slowly the white tie ensemble became less frequent as the shorter dinner jacket or tuxedo took its place and this became more used as a full evening dress and the black tie with black bow ties and waistcoats became more popular as semi formal dresses.

In the 20th century, the white tie tends to be reserved for the most formal evening occasions like state dinners and formal balls like the Vienna opera ball in Austria, the Nobel prize banquet in Stockholm and some others as well as sometimes used in events in traditional European universities and colleges.

And now about the tuxedo, or tux as it’s often called. How did this name come? One may imagine that it’s some fancy name but you know what …It’s from a village called Tuxedo Park in New York State. James Brown Potter brought the evening dress to this part of the world in 1886 and he was introduced to the garment by the Prince of Wales. And from then on it was called the tuxedo or tux in short. It traditionally had a white jacket and was paired with its own unique trousers and accessories and the entire suit is called a tux. 

Whew! Quite a bit of a fashion lesson there, right? Well, Mavericks we may be but who doesn’t like a bit of fashion now and again?  I’ve been privileged to be invited to some formal black tie events over the years and each one of them carries some memories.

There are the black tie events at wedding celebrations. And this takes on a whole different meaning if you’re a guest and attending as a friend, or a close family member or then the groom himself! Over the years, I’ve attended weddings in all those categories..including my own and in all of them there’s a black tie, a formal suit and even a tux memory. 

And then there are the formal events, one of these was during the time we lived in Nigeria. Every year there was the US Marine Ball, a formal event, black tie, evening suit types. It was fun dressing up and both my wife and I enjoyed these evenings with great company and music and food and just such a fun event in Abuja. Sitting in the big banquet hall decorated beautifully and surrounded by folks in stunning evening formal wear one could be just about anywhere in the world. Fashion is another one of those things that pulls the common thread across continents, countries and culture. There’s a certain sense of familiarity and camaraderie in dressing up within a theme and with everyone in black tie and formals, it builds the atmosphere and ambience like perhaps nothing else will. 

It's similar to sitting in the special box for watching a cricket match. You know the members only special VIP box. There too one has to go in formal wear, no shorts and T shirts allowed. Although I must admit, while it’s fun and special to be in that area and get the VIP treatment, I quite prefer the stands or the grass where one can scream and drink beer and go crazy with fellow cricket fans.

Now across all these different ensembles and being properly attired for the occasion, the most important person is….well no guesses there….it’s your tailor!

Yes, having the right tailor who gives you the right cut, the right look, and uses the fabric for the most natural fall and and flow is a tall feat indeed. It’s not easy to find the tailoring services that meets all the check boxes. And for someone who is a bit particular or as my family would say, fussy and specific on details, it’s definitely not easy! But yet again, I feel privileged and a bit humbled having had the pleasure and advantage of getting my suits tailored and fitted by the most amazing skilled set of hands in different parts of the world.

Again tailoring is a unique experience across countries. Starting with India, and my wedding formal suit…I recall the excitement of going to one of the top tailors at the time and getting measured for the most important suit…the one I would wear for our wedding reception. The fabric was a lovely silk steel grey from Singapore, soft and just right for a nice suit. I went for several fittings until the suit sat just right…and to the day it remains one of my fav suits (well, being my wedding reception one did have something to do with it too!). and then there was the tailor in Nigeria…just amazing skills there…and of course the sort of royal treatment – coming home, being measured in the morning and the suit stitched and ready and delivered to the house by evening! Quite something, eh…. That was Nigeria. Such a beautiful and unique country. 

And then there was my most recent experience in Bangladesh. Absolutely top notch stitching. Must admit…we went a bit crazy. Took out all the fabric we had, including one fabric that was a gift from my wedding….almost 3 decades back and yes, got these all tailored into near to perfect suits. I have quite a collection now and there’s a fun beat in my heart when I receive an invite that gives me an opportunity to take some of these out from my wardrobe. See the high spirits! So Fellow Mavericks, as you attend these black tie and formal events, apart from the fun of dressing up, and the suave, cool look…you need to live up to the ‘Maverick’ name and spirit, do remember one of the components of the Maverick formula, Fall forward. This is what we do, we embrace the experience fully and join the Maverick shenanigans! Keep up the high spirits, folks and send in your comments and experiences of black tie events at  ‘theordinarymaverick@gmail.com’ and follow me on Instagram #theordinarymaverick.  I love hearing from you. This is Ajey, signing off and wishing you have an amazing day and a super amazing year! Keep well. 

This podcast series was put together as a team effort from the Bhardwaj family.  Concept, design, title, researchers and reviewers: Ajey, Sanjana, Avantika and Niharika Bhardwaj; Script– Sanjana; Cover design – Niharika. All rights reserved.