Not what it looks like

Update 6/29/06: Chris Coleman never worked for Gene Meyer. This is according to Gene Meyer himself (see comment #2 attached to this post). Chris Coleman ties are nothing more than Gene Meyer knock-offs. My original post follows.

You will be excused for thinking this is a Gene Meyer tie. It's not, but the designer, Chris Coleman, used to work for Gene Meyer, and obviously absorbed some of his design sensibilities (even down to the polka-dotted tipping). Coleman's line of ties was produced by the Harmony Ball Company, whose primary business is cutesy figurines and home decor. They had a good thing going with these ties, though, too bad they stopped making them. Their Shakatiki vessels are pretty cool, at least.

Circle Cross

"Circle Cross" is the name of this Gene Meyer necktie design (maybe; I read that in an ebay auction listing, but those have proved to be not always accurate in their Gene Meyer information). It's plausible, at least. I had another tie of this same pattern in a different colorway a few years ago; it was my first Gene Meyer tie, and it became the first tie I sold at a handsome profit, thereby stoking my Gene Meyer addiction and also solidifying my whole "rotating tie collection" concept.

Gene Meyer does paisleys

Gene Meyer's take on paisleys is as perfect for its time (now-ish) as Christian Dior's was for its respective time (40 years ago). While I have linked to Gene Meyer's rugs and accessories before, I haven't highlighted his socks yet, so feast your eyes on these. They're pricey for socks, but still much cheaper than his ties. If anyone were to start a men's sock blog (to complement this women's sock blog), Gene Meyer socks would be a great feature.

Back to basics

It seems I've worn more Gene Meyer ties than any other brand since I began the blog in August; I must really like them! The Artcyclopedia defines Minimalism as "a form of art in which objects are stripped down to their elemental, geometric form, and presented in an impersonal manner." That holds true for most Gene Meyer ties (although some are very playful, and thus personal), including this one. I thought I had worn the most minimalist of Gene Meyer ties back in December, but today's is even moreso. The only thing that could be more minimal would be a solid-color tie, and those don't count! I think I only have two or three more Gene Meyer ties in the queue; I better start looking for more.

Shameless plug: Gene Meyer

I didn't go to work today, so I didn't wear a tie. Therefore today's entry is one I wore BTB (Before Tie Blog). Gene Meyer is arguably the most iconic (and collectible) tie designer of the last twenty years. His big, simple geometric patterns in high-contrast colors are unmistakeable (as is his signature polka-dot tipping), and are a favorite of artistic types; two sightings that spring to mind are Ryan Stiles on Whose Line Is It Anyway? (American version), and Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Director Ned Rifkin in a feature story about him in the Washington Post Magazine. Gene Meyer began his fashion career designing women's clothes for Geoffrey Beene before starting his own menswear company. I've never owned any Gene Meyer clothing other than ties, but from the pictures I've seen they are pretty flashy and probably too high-fashion for my civil service job. He has also designed a line of accessories for Acme Studios and an amazing line of rugs as well. Maybe someday I will come across one of those in a thrift store...

So what's the "shameless plug?" I am auctioning this tie on eBay right now (September 11-18). This tie is too valuable to just hang in my closet; I need the cash to fund more tie purchases!

OMG!

Guess who stopped by the tie blog yesterday? None other than Gene Meyer, tie designer extraordinaire, the tie maestro, the tiestro, if you will (though I'll understand if you won't)! He corrected a factual error on my October 22, 2005 entry; I've posted a correction there, but I will reiterate it here: Chris Coleman never worked for Gene Meyer. The similarity of his ties to Gene Meyer ties is a result of copying the style, not of having personally worked with or learned from Mr. Meyer.

Today I wore another Stradivari by Park Lane tie. It is not an original necktie made by Antonio Stradivari in Cremona, Italy, between 1680 and 1737, but is a more recent copy.

This tie represents a real labor of love. When I got it, it had a massive stain on the front. So I spent a few sessions treating it with stain remover, then I put it through three rounds in the washing machine (it's not silk), then I did some intense ironing to flatten out the lining, which had gotten all bunched up in the washer. It's still not perfect, but good enough to wear once!

I have finally gotten around to listing a new batch of ties for sale on ebay, most of them former blog features.

I dream of Gene

There's no mistaking a Gene Meyer tie. I read somewhere (an ebay auction listing, to be exact) that very few of this particular design were produced, because it was too difficult to position the screens to get the crosses so precisely aligned. That's too bad, there should be lots of these ties out there brightening up the world. Not much else to report this time; see this post for more Gene Meyer links. And I'm selling two more Gene Meyer ties on ebay this week. They can't brighten up the world from my closet, you know!

Move 'em out

'Tis the season to sell neckties, so I'm working on getting some of the high-end ties off of my racks, around my neck, onto the blog, and subsequently onto eBay. Here's another Gene Meyer tie; rather than repeating all my Gene Meyer info, here's a link to an earlier post that contains most of it. More Gene Meyer ties coming next week!

Last Wednesday: Double Your Pleasure

I started out the day with a horizontally-striped tie from Gene Meyer, who breathes new life into the striped tie milieu:


Then, after a nice lunch out with my boss, I had an afternoon meeting. I was late, but it was okay, because the meeting turned out to be a surprise farewell party from my co-workers! And everyone there, of both genders, was wearing a tie! They presented me with a fabulous University of Maryland tie, so I doffed the Gene Meyer tie and put it on:


On the ground floor of our building there is a display case full of University of Maryland merchandise, including three different neckties. This is the one I wanted! I love the turtle-shell pattern, and the Leonard-of-Paris style diagonal band (with M's in the red part), and of course Testudo, the Maryland Terrapin himself. I wish a heartfelt thanks to the third floor crew; I'll miss you guys!

Three more work days to go... Coming up tomorrow is another special tie!

Spring!!! Is!!! Here!!!

The nasty weather went away and left us with a beautiful cloudless sky and temperatures in the 60s, so I now deem it safe to break out the lightweight, bright clothing. To celebrate the advent of "actual" spring (as opposed to "calendar" spring) I wore an airy Gene Meyer tie that is full!!! of!!! exclamation!!! points!!!!! There's really nothing more I can say about it, but if you wish to peruse my previous Gene Meyer entries, please click here.

Living dangerously

When I put on this Gene Meyer satin tie this morning, I had no idea that this was the day of my office holiday potluck luncheon. So not only did I attend the luncheon without bringing anything, I had to do it without getting any food on my expensive tie! There's office daredeviltry for you! And guess what-- I made it through the meal unscathed! Granted, I didn't hot-dog it; I avoided the most saucy dishes (having a saucy dish of my own at home-- ba-dum!) and did not have a drink. For a more extreme challenge, I might try wearing a tie to Cactus Willie's next time I take the family. Not a Gene Meyer, though, that would be foolish.

The Minimal Gene

Gene Meyer returns to the tie blog after a four-year absence. The pattern is minimal, but the colors are maximal.

Definitive Gene

This tie is quintessential Gene Meyer: a very few simple shapes in a bold color scheme. I was happy to have the bluest of blue shirts (by DKNY) on hand to match the intense blue square. Suit you, Sir! Oh!

Clean Gene

There's something about stripping a design down to its most basic forms that is quite appealing, hence the lasting influence of minimalist art. Gene Meyer is a master of the minimalist necktie, without getting too minimal (i.e. a solid-color tie, which is to be avoided at all costs!). In the spirit of minimalism I will now conclude this entry.

Et in Arcadia Ego

Today's tie looks like it could be Gene Meyer's take on the diagonal brocaded ties of the 70s, though it's from Italian maker Milano. The row right in the middle that resembles an Islamic arcade takes the design one step beyond pure abstraction. This is another pre-blog favorite that I am happy to wear again at long last.

Don't try to work political unrest into promotional tweets

Kenneth Cole Reaction ("to Gene Meyer", as I have joked before, and will continue to do).

Faux-stralian

Thursday's tie, made in the US and sold under the British Allen Lolly label, seems to be an attempt at an Australian Aboriginal-style design like those produced by Jimmy Pike and Doris Gingingarra for Desert Designs. Or it could be a psychedelic pattern rendered in boardroom-friendly colors. Either way, I'd buy more if I found them.

And now for some necktie news: for aficionados of 8-bit computing, gaming, and music, there is now an "8-bit necktie" from ThinkGeek. Originally conceived as an April Fool's Joke, the delightfully lo-res cravat is now in production as something you can actually buy and wear. Eight bits is enough! (Thanks to my brother for bringing this to my attention.)

Mrs. V. and I have been watching Action!, the short-lived comedy on FX that starred Jay Mohr as a hilariously slimy movie producer, Peter Dragon. In the episode "Mr. Dragon Goes to Washington" there are some tasty textiles on display, if only briefly: in one scene a waitress sports a Gene Meyer tie, and in another Illeana Douglas appears in a Pucci shawl. Maybe one day I will figure out how to do screen grabs of .avi's and post them here.

Last Friday

I would call this striped shirt with Gene Meyer tie "going out in a blaze of glory," but I still have one more day at work, so this is just another run-of-the-mill Freaky Friday entry. You may be thinking you've seen this tie here before, that I've run out of ties and started repeating them, hoping that no one will notice. But such is not the case. While the tie I wore on October 5, 2005, has the same pattern as this one, it is a different tie, done in different colors. No repeats, ever!

Positive/Negative

Gene Meyer puts forth this tie with a woven pattern that invites much speculation. The pattern is a simple positive/negative space alternation in two shapes: the borders of one shape define the other shape, in the manner of M.C. Escher's graphical fantasies. Is there any significance to the shapes? Are they stylized ones and zeroes, an oblique reference to the computer age? Are they I's and O's, for Input/Output? They are a mutually exclusive binary system, and as such either of those theories could work. Or they could be lathe-turned wooden candlesticks. Or I'm just reading too much into a simple design. Is it significant that the dark bands are thinner than the light bands? Does anybody really know what time it is? (Positive/Negative is also a song on the second album by Positive Noise, one of the great lost bands of the 80s.)

Brazil?

Monday was a rare tieless weekday, as I worked from home and worked on my home (so we can sell it). But I'm back to my tie routine today with another unmistakable Gene Meyer tie. I doubt he had the national flag of Brazil in mind when he designed it, but there is certainly a resemblance.

My condolences to Michael Segers of Knot a Blog, who lost his father last week. It was a rough week for us tie bloggers.