Contemporary Black Tie: Amending Perfection
Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously
the new.
Henry David Thoreau
While many purists argue that black tie reached its evolutionary
peak by the Second World War thus rendering all subsequent adaptations
unnecessary and even detrimental, the fact is that change is
inevitable. Not only
does our perception of elegance continue to evolve but some of the
classic garments of black tie’s golden age have become virtually
extinct. On a less practical level, it is simple human nature to be
tempted by the prospect of improving perfection, particularly for each
new generation looking to make its mark.
Most attempts to reinvent black tie since the 1930s failed to better
the outfit and are now forgotten footnotes in
fashion history. To help readers avoid similar pitfalls, this section
first explains the principles required for
successful adaptation of classic black tie then examines today’s variations to
see how well they hold up to those benchmarks.
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