Tie Designer Charles Alexander Chats Men's Neckwear

Charles Alexander is only 30 years old, but he has already established himself as the neckwear designer for men wanting a little elegance. Regis Philbin wore his ties on his talk show LIVE! with Regis and Kelly and Alexander's ties will soon become the New York Knicks' official neckwear.

"I started out making smart made to order ties for me and my friends. I used a tailor in New York's Fashion District," Alexander says, who lives in Soho because "if you're a designer, you have to be here. There's so much inspiration."

His ties quickly became popular. "As I started getting more and more orders, I moved production to a mill in England and Charles Alexander neckwear was born. We're on our sixth collection and our customer base is growing everyday."

What is your inspiration for the designs?
I try to create designs that go with what men wear. I tend to lean toward purples and blues because I find that men look great in these colors. Nowadays so many designers focus on being "different" and "unique" they lose sight if that fact that their pieces are supposed to be wearable. Charles Alexander neckwear been around since 2008 and we specialize in handmade English neckwear. We work with a mill in England that mills our silk exclusively for us. We are in four stores right now - two in New York, one in Australia and one in Canada - but we primarily sell online. Our tailors in England have been constructing handmade neckwear for over 50 years. Our entire line is completely handmade and of the highest quality.

How do the fabrics feel?
Flawless. Our silk is milled in England by hand exclusively for us. I personally inspect every piece by hand before we hand off the silk to our tailors to build the tie. Our silk is so well constructed it's virtually snag-less.

What male icons do you imagine wearing your ties and why?
Prince Charles. He is one of the best dressers on the planet and I think my ties would be right up his alley.

Why do you love ties most of all accessories?
I've always loved ties. When I was a kid I used to marvel at my father's ties. I would look at the construction and wonder how it was put together. Ties are the most important accessory because it pulls an outfit together. You can turn one suit into many different looks just by changing the tie. This cannot be said about any other accessory.

How can a man change his look with one tie?
A suit without a tie just looks funny. A man just looks naked without it, that's why ties will always be around.

What style is good for young men? Older gentlemen?
I find that my younger customers (myself included) prefer dotted ties, while my older customers prefer stripes. At the end of the day any style is right as long as you can make it work.

What advice do you have for a man who doesn't know about ties?
Start slow and keep it simple! Don't try to get the fanciest, most trendy tie you can find. Get something basic that compliments you existing wardrobe. Get something with a basic pattern and stay away from red. Once you know the rules, and you start building your fashion IQ then you can Start to get fancy.

Choose one tie to wear. A wedding?
Whatever makes your future bride happy.

Work?
My Burgundy Pindot Eastbury tie.

Drinking with friends?
My Navy Brockwell tie.

To impress a date?
Just wearing a tie to a date will show her how important she is to you.

HEY YOU!
You can learn more about Charles Alexander's ties at caneckwear.com and follow yours truly, Richárde, on Twitter at @justricharde!