Saturday, April 04, 2009

Going Neck And Neck

This Race Is Sure To End In A Tie

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON


Yes, they're my ties. Yes, I have a fondness for striped ties. No, I don't only wear striped ties - I have others as well. Yes, I wear a tie and suit to work.

And yes, a lot of my ties are chosen by Mrs Authorblog and the Authorbloglets.

Even when I was in boarding school at St Joseph's College, North Point, Darjeeling, we had to wear striped ties seven days a week. We had no problem with that, as the weather in the Himalayan town, famous for its schools and it tea gardens, was always cold.

Down on the plains, in the sweltering Indian summer, it would have been an uncomfortable imposition to wear a tie to school every day. But up in Darjeeling, nestled among the mountains, it was never a problem.


On normal class days, we wore dark grey suits with our striped house ties. Each house was named after one of the Jesuits from the school's early days and I was in Fallon house, with a proud eagle as its symbol and with a house tie that was resplendent in dark blue, light blue and burgundy.

On Saturdays we wore the North Point school tie with our dark blue blazers and light grey slacks and on Sundays we wore the same tie with our dark blue suits.

And what colour was the school tie? Light blue stripes on a dark blue background - so it's easy to see why I still have striped ties in my wardrobe. And yes, I still have a North Point tie.


Visit TNChick's Photo Hunt. Today's theme: "Striped''.

43 comments:

Unknown said...

You have quite a selection there, I especially like the blue one in the middle of the second picture.

marcia@joyismygoal said...

Stripes, Stripes, stripes,I think these shots are fun making uncommon shots out of common things is art

Shadow said...

aaaah, ties, what memories... of hubby, young and impressionable, wearing suits and ties to work. but that was then. things have changed.

Cheffie-Mom said...

You have a great collection of ties. It's fun to see everyday objects turned into works of art!

lime said...

stripes are nice but i am also a fan of the cheeky cartoon ties.

Sniffles and Smiles said...

Oh, so beautiful...I thought at first glance I was looking at signal or yachting flags...and expected from your post title something along those lines...you fooled me! Beautiful! As always

aims said...

The Man's boss has made Monday 'Tie Day'. I'm thinking some of The Man's ties had an influence in that decision (he's often the only one on the IT team wearing one)

The Quintessential Magpie said...

I've always been fascinated with ties. When Fred tries to give his away, I always try to absond with them. I keep telling myself I will make a quilt or some other thing of beauty from them one day. Then, somehow, it doesn't happen. Maybe someday...

Sheila :-)

Charles Gramlich said...

Egads, man. Don't show me these evil things.

ArtistUnplugged said...

These are very lovely. I'm surprised you aren't really tired of the stripes but it appears you find them endearing. You do not own even one polka dot or plaid....it is so stylish?

imac said...

Davids TIEd up for a while.
He's getting TIEred.lol.

But he always comes up with a winner of a post.

Anonymous said...

Love the ties and the pictures! My husband loves ties, but the liking of ties hasn't been passed onto our boys...yet! :)

What About The Girl? said...

Ah school uniform! In High school, ours was white & blue. In college, black & white. I never get tired of these colours! No, they are not striped skirts or blouses.
No, I didn't have to wear ties.
Yes, at work I wear a lot of blacks, greys and whites. No, it's not work uniform. And no, they are not stripes.
You have a very nice collection of ties there.I like ties..they create that polished look in men, I think.
No, I personally don't find women wearing ties appealing.

Anonymous said...

Well stripe me pink!

Cath said...

Ties can tell such a lot of tales about the wearer and their personality. From flamboyant to plaid to outrageous - a tie for every man!

Nessa said...

The Jesuits were consistently the best sermonists I ever heard.

Annie said...

A great collection of ties there David. Love the stripes.

I still have all my Dad's ties. Can't get rid of them...waiting to work out what I can make out of them!!!
Thanks for the mention on POTD ..wondered why I had so many visitors!

Eddie Bluelights said...

Were you ever 'tied' to one tie in particular, David. Or did you not ti(r)e of any of them. They are all very nice & great photos as always.

Euro Tailors said...

Every man need to have at least one tailored suit!Euro Tailors

Elizabeth Bradley said...

I love the play on words in your titles. And men still look good in a suit and tie, although not so many wear them any longer.

Kevin Musgrove said...

I think I need to start attending Ties Anonymous meetings. It started when I bought a hand-painted tie in an art shop in Devon and then... I'd be ashamed to say out loud how much I paid for the tie I bought last week.

Our old school tie was coloured after the pattern of the coral snake. We never cared to ask why, just in case.

Maggie May said...

I would have thought that after being forced to wear striped ties all through your youth, you might have gone for spots or something!
I can see you take your love of colour right through to your ties, David! Lovely colours & I specially like the blue & green.
Striped ties make great photos.

Voyager said...

Thank you so much for putting me in your "POTD". I am honoured.
I was also intrigued by your coment on my blog that you are setting a novel in the Muskokas. How on earth does a guy who grew up in India, and now lives in the Antipodes, end up using Muskoka? Intriguing!
As for your school uniform, I can relate. I too had to wear a tie every day, no matter how hot the weather, while in boarding school in Kenya. A dull, crap-brown tie to match the ugly crap-brown tunic which could not be a millimeter above our kneecaps.
V.

Lee said...

Stripes are very practical when matching colors to suits and shirts. And they look crisp and controlled, probably a good image to present. I like the first picture the best.

Cheers!

Ananda girl said...

I love the way men look in suits and ties. Sadly everyone here is into casual. Blah! Nice collection.

Mojo said...

I can't count the number of ties I own, nor remember the last time I wore one. I wear them only under duress, but there was quite a bit of duress for several years there, which meant quiet a lot of tie-wearing.

Actually I wish I'd thought of this. I could have done a whole chronology of the history of American neckwear since I probably still have every single tie I've ever owned as an adult. Given the cyclical nature of fashion, at least some of them are bound to be in style at any given tie-m.

(Okay, I'll stop.)

goes without saying that this is a photographically brilliant series. You've never to my knowledge done anything less.

CJ said...

Funny, I was also thinking about doing ties, especially the ones I designed myself, but I opted for a different pic for photo hunter this week. I've been thinking of taking all of my husband's old ties (which he never wears anymore) and making a vest, or maybe a quilt, from them.

katherine. said...

my father allowed me to pick out which tie he would where....

you have some nice ones there!

mrsnesbitt said...

Good idea, the wife chosing! I chose all Jon's.

jams o donnell said...

Nice take on the theme. I don't have that many striped ties adly

I see taht you were taught by jesuits. I went to a school called Campion,, no prizes for guessing the order that established it!

Hilary said...

So colourful. Knot bad... knot bad at all! ;)

Sarge Charlie said...

g'day david, "neck to neck, a race to the end of a tie" that is funny

Lene said...

Wow! There you have a great collection for every occasion :) The color of my tie...? Well, I had a pink one once - in leather :)

Have a lovley day :)

annalarssonphotography said...

What a collection of ties! :)
Great take for this week's theme!

My post is up too!
Have a great weekend!

Liz Hinds said...

You really do like stripey ties!

Liz Hinds said...

David, thanks for your comment. No, my mum died when I was 18, but I do have loads of photos from the time she spent in Egypt and the letters she wrote home. I have always said that one day - one day! - I will go through them, put them in order and try to make something of them. Who knows?

Cindy said...

That's a lot of stripes for sure! If I had tried this one, I would have only been able to find one lonely tie. Hubby has only one, and if he wears it, someone's either getting married or buried.
sun stripes

i beati said...

most interesting

bingskee said...

striped ties, safer than anythin..

Mira said...

Great colors and will never get out of fashion ;-) Here's mine too http://www.mirasblog.com/2009/04/photo-hunt-12-stripes.html

Daryl said...

I am tied up in knots trying to pick a fav

kayerj said...

quite the collection!

stan said...

I like a cool striped tie to go with a black/grey shirt.