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In 2024, plenty of purists will insist, with much tsk-tsking, that the rules of black tie attire have changed. They're wrong—or, at least, not entirely right. How people dress in response to a black tie invitation might have changed, but the rules themselves remain largely immovable. “If you get an invite to something that says ‘black tie’, you’re under pretty strict orders to wear a tuxedo and a bow tie,” says Jake Mueser, the founder of New York City-based J. Mueser Bespoke. “It doesn’t mean just wear a suit and a black tie.”
While there’s a degree of wiggle room within those parameters, the overarching guidelines are actually fairly simple. Traditional black tie means a black tuxedo (or one in midnight blue—more on that shortly), a black bow tie, a white tuxedo shirt (more on that shortly, too), and black patent leather dress shoes. Cummerbunds and waistcoats are optional, though we're bullish on the former and bearish on the latter. Sure, there are variations within each of those categories, but the foundations are the same. (FWIW, black tie isn’t even the most formal echelon of formal attire, white tie is—but unless you’re British royalty, you’re probably not going to have to worry about it.)
Five Key Components of an Elite Black Tie Fit
- The Ultra-Classic Tux: J.Crew Ludlow Italian Wool Shawl Collar Tuxedo, $815
- The Pleated Tuxedo Shirt: Todd Snyder x Hamilton Pleated Tuxedo Shirt, $398
- The Silky Bow Tie: Drake's Batwing Bow Tie, $145
- The Retro-Cool Cummerbund: Banana Republic Silk Cummerbund, $75
- The Shiny Black Shoes: George Cleverly Merlin Whole-Cut Patent-Leather Shoes, $895
It's also worth remembering that black tie is actually democratic in nature. “One of the beautiful things about black tie, especially in this day and age, is that all the men in attendance share the experience,” says Mark Cho, founder of The Armoury, a haberdashery with locations in Hong Kong and New York. “It’s not about sticking out—it’s about looking like part of a group that has come together in celebration of something, be it a wedding, a ceremony, a grand party, and so on.”
Despite evolving formalwear norms and the relaxing of dress codes across the board, Cho says, black tie still means wearing a tuxedo—and he hopes it stays that way “till the end of time.” Consider this your head-to-toe guide to nailing the look from here on out.
The Tuxedo
First, a little history: What we now know as “black tie” dates back to one fateful day in 1885 when England’s King Edward VI swapped his traditional tail coat for a blue silk smoking jacket and matching trousers, sparking a sartorial revolution in the process. Edward’s new suit was made by Savile Row’s Henry Poole & Co., which had a loyal following across the pond at a tony private club in Tuxedo Park, N.Y. Club members there soon began sporting their own tail-less suits, giving the garment its name: the tuxedo.
Little has changed about the traditional tuxedo since. In 2024, tuxedo jackets should be black or midnight blue—which is actually the more formal option, since midnight blue looks darker than black under artificial light—and are traditionally made from barathea wool, part of the satin group of weaves, favored for its elegant drape and matte appearance. Tuxedo jackets also come crafted from velvet or mohair—a soft yarn made from the hair of Angora goats—or wool-mohair blends, but no matter what they're made of they should be dark, handsome, and reflect light in interesting ways.
Traditional tuxedo jackets are defined by their silk lapels, which can be notch, peak, or, most commonly, shawl—the latter two of which look especially killer in double-breasted form, though single-breasted is more conventional. The trousers should, of course, match the jacket. They should also be formal, pressed, and straight in the leg, and are often designed with a line of satin fabric running down their exterior.
The Tuxedo Shirt
First, and most importantly: the shirt you wear with a tuxedo shouldn't be the same as the one you wear to work. The closest relative of that 9-to-5 standby—and least formal option because of it—is made of a light pique cotton or heavier twill with a “hidden” placket that folds over to conceal the buttons.
The more classic tuxedo shirt comes equipped with a pique bib sewn onto the front, usually made from a stiffer fabric and woven with a diamond pattern. (Marcella bibs are especially popular because the cotton is thick, starchy, and decidedly swanky.) These shirts can be buttoned with or without stud fasteners—we'll get to those later—and worn with or without a cummerbund.
The third option incorporates a pleated bib, which can vary in fabric, pattern, and texture. If you're going custom (and even if you're not), feel free to experiment a little. “We’ve done them in linen, diamond patterns,” Meuser says. “Mills will have books devoted to these fabrics, so there are a lot of options.”
Almost all of the above will feature a spread or wing collar—the latter is the most formal but can skew a little Edwardian—and French cuffs. Oh, and to the extent that you're thinking about it (and really, you should be): black studs look best with a cummerbund, white studs with a waistcoat.
The Bow Tie
With all due respect to Bill Nye, breaking out a tux is the only time it's appropriate to wear a bow tie; don't bungle it. Your bow tie should be black—the dress code isn't called floral-printed-teal tie, is it?—and come in one of three forms. The butterfly is the most recognizable, with a flat end and a lot of surface area; the diamond point has a similar mid-section to the butterfly but with distinct points on each wing; and the more contemporary batwing has a straight, narrow, rectangular shape.
Where you can experiment is with size. (When in doubt, go bigger than you'd think.) But make sure you take the rest of your outfit into account, Mueser says, including your jacket lapels and shirt collar. “If you have a jacket with a four-inch wide lapel and a big wide spread collar, you probably want to compliment that with a nice, wide, generous bow tie that brings continuity.”
And fellas—tie the damn thing yourself. It'll never be perfect, but it'll be all the better for the extra idiosyncrasy.
The Shoes
You know that white shirt you bought expressly to wear with your tuxedo? Now apply the same logic to your shoes. You can get away with rocking regular cap-toes in a pinch, but the platonic black tie shoe is so much more—or, rather, so much less. It should be sleek, slim, and largely unadorned, save for a dainty bow by the vamp in the case of patent leather opera pumps, or menswear-favorite Belgian loafers.
“Simple black cap-toes are something that most people already have and if clean and well-polished, make for a very good option,” Cho says. “Black patent leather shoes are even better since the material can provide a rich, deep black. Black slipper-like shoes such as Belgian loafers or Baudoin & Lange Sagans in leather or velvet [also work]." Cho especially likes black suede wholecuts, or shoes cut from a single piece of leather, for their comfort.
While you're at it, slide into a pair of thick black dress socks—nobody wants to see a milky calf poking out from beneath your hosiery when you sit down.
The Finishing Touches
For a while there, cummerbunds seemed all-but-destined to go the way of the dodo (or, y'know, the necktie), a relic of formal events past doomed to antiquity. But as GQ's own Yang-Yi Goh wrote last year, in an impassioned ode to the pleated waist sash: why?! If you're ready to heed his cry, kudos—just make sure you choose the right one. Satin lapels? Satin cummerbund. (The pleats should always face upwards.)
If your shirt has French cuffs, you'll need cufflinks. When in doubt, go minimal—brass balls are a hackneyed euphemism but they look great appended to the end of your shirt sleeve, and mother of pearl is, quite literally, always cool. You don’t need to make a statement; it's probably not your day, and the whole idea is to blend in with the crowd, not stand out from it.
