6 min readUpdated October 2026
Black tie has a small number of rules. Follow them and a modest dinner suit looks expensive. Ignore them and the most expensive tuxedo in the room looks like a black suit with a bow tie.
A tuxedo is not a black suit
The defining feature is contrast of texture: a matte cloth body with lapels faced in lustrous silk, either satin or grosgrain. That contrast between dull and shining is the entire effect.
A black business suit has neither, which is why it never quite passes.
Cover the waist
Black tie never shows a belt or a bare waistband. Use a cummerbund, a low-cut evening waistcoat, or a double-breasted jacket that covers it.
Trousers take side adjusters, not belt loops, and carry a single braid of silk down the outside seam matching the lapel facing.
Consider midnight blue
Under artificial light — which is the only light black tie is ever seen in — midnight blue reads deeper and richer than black. Black photographs flat; midnight blue holds its shape.
It is the traditional connoisseur choice, and most people cannot say why it looks better.
Lapels, pockets and shirt
Shawl collar or peak lapel, both faced in silk. Never a notch lapel, which belongs on a business jacket.
Pockets are jetted, with no flaps. The shirt is white with a marcella or pleated bib, worn with studs, and a hand-tied bow tie in cloth matching the lapel facing.
The mistakes to avoid
A pre-tied bow tie. A long tie. A notch lapel. A visible belt. A coloured shirt. Black shoes that are not highly polished.
Each one on its own is survivable. Together they are why most black tie photographs look wrong.
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