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ILeslie, in the epic poem, "The
Rime of the Ancient Mariner", the main character
foolishly shoots the lucky albatross, and his enraged
shipmates hang the dead creature around his neck as
punishment. Sounds like poetic
license, but lots of men today seem to do just about the same
thing every morning.
Have you forgotten how fun ties can
be, and what a lift a great tie can give your whole
appearance? Ties are really the
most expressive part of a man's wardrobe, and if you're not
taking advantage of that, you're missing the
boat. So get the albatross off your neck and
step into something more creative!
See you soon,
Ed and Mary Longanecker
Iris City
Cleaners and Laundering Company
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Quote of the
Week
"I have a hankering to go back to the
Orient and discard my necktie. Neckties strangle clear
thinking." -- Lin
Yutang | |
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Let's face it -- there are a lot of
boring (if not flat ugly) ties in this world. And that's a shame, since the necktie is really
the only expressive garment you can wear when you're dressing
for success. Sure, you can go wild and wear a
dark-colored shirt or some flashy socks, but the tie is the
centerpiece of male fashion creativity.
So, how are your ties looking these
days? Can you remember which one you wore last? (It's no fair
if you wear the same one all the time!) Spice up your image and have a little fashion
fun. | |
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What is your neck saying?
People learn at a very early age to
read visual cues that other people display (whether they
realize it or not). What is that bit of silk saying to
everyone around you at the office?
Themed
Ties
There are ties for almost every
theme you can think of, and you can enjoy wearing them because
they nearly always get a smile out of people. For
example:
- Holiday ties (no, they don't
have to light up and play obnoxious tinny music to qualify.)
Not just Christmas and Hanukkah and Easter, but
Thanksgiving, Valentines Day, St. Patrick's Day, your
birthday....
- Patriotic ties.
- Professional ties, with
graphics that relate to what you do, whether you're a
teacher, a doctor, a lawyer, a stockbroker, a musician, a
fireman -- you get the idea.
- Hobby ties. Perhaps you love
sports or music or traveling or fishing or even curling up
with a good book. There are ties out there for you.
- College ties, with sports
teams or school colors on them.
- Animal ties with beautiful
graphics that are sure conversation-starters.
The ties pictured above right
are from the website Neal's
Ties. Check it out. Oh, and the
bowtie at the top? It's made of beautiful wood! Light-weight,
beautiful, never needs drycleaning. See more on Wooden
Bowties
website. | |
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Professional "T-shirt"
You don't have to wait for the
weekends to proclaim your message. You can use a tasteful tie
to do it, too. Some non-profit organizations sell ties that
help boost their visibility. Other
ties just give you the ability to share a good visual
joke, or lift yourself above the ranks of the boringly
noosed.
The ties at left are all from the
website Wild
Ties. There are many
sites on the internet that offer ties for
sale, and this one has everything from Art
Ties to Polka Dots, NonProfit Ties, Sports Ties, Floral Ties
and yes, even solid colors. Another good source of silk or
polyester ties in different themed categories is NothingButNeckties.
This is the place to get ties for the basketball nut, computer
geek, horse enthusiast, photographer, new dad, and so
on.
Ties don't have to be shaped like a
wide arrow, either. The guitar tie in the display above is a
great example. Other "shape" ties are also
available.
Selecting
a Good Tie
Ties
are not the simple adornment they appear. If
not properly cut from the fabric at an angle (called "on the
bias") they can end up pulling or hanging crookedly. The best
ties are properly cut, lined with enough material to give the
tie weight (to keep it in place) and should hold their shape
when tied -- not just on the rack. Trying on the tie is the best gauge of this, of
course.
Read
about "Assessing
the Value and Quality of a Tie" (from SharpGrooming) and
learn how to tell a hand-made tie from one that is
mass-produced, and how to evaluate a tie before you
buy.
Tie
Care
- Silk
requires professional care. If you spill on
it, bring it to us. Don't mess with trying to soak out the
stain or steam it or any of the other advice you might find
on the internet. The sooner we get it, the more
likely we can completely remove the stain.
- Even
"washable" ties will look better with professional
finishing.
- Ties
should be stored on hangers of some sort, not left tied in
the knot. Leaving it tied may make for quick
putting on, but you'll have crumpled the fabric just below
the knot -- where it will be most noticeable.
- Remove a tie by reversing the process you used
to put it on. Don't just yank one end to
untie it. This can stretch and distort the tie, causing it
to hang improperly the next time.
If only it
was useful!
That's the cry of many a tie
wearer. After all, the tie doesn't hold up anything (like a
belt or suspenders). It doesn't keep things together (like a
lace or zipper). It just... hangs there, waiting for any
passing stain.
Just
for fun, check out the Half
Bakery site (where all half-baked ideas
go to roost) and see what people have come up with to turn the
humble decorative tie into a truly indispensable item. Ideas
include:
- The CPU Usage Tie and Tie Clip
(imagined by a computer guy, of course) that would
immediately inform any co-worker how hard the wearer is`
thinking -- so that petty conversation can be forestalled
until less "CPU activity" is noted.
- The
Swiss Army Tie -- packed full of great
tools!
- The
Perishable Paper Tie.
- The "Watch My Rage" Tie -- think
of it as a mood ring that gets the point across a whole lot
better.
You can chime in and comment on the
ideas, or post a few yourself.
In any
case, looking seriously good at work doesn't have to mean
having a boring albatross around your neck.
Bring the fun back into your fashion by adding a few ties that
express your personality and make you stand out as more
creative than the guys with the real "snoozer nooses" down the
hall. It's really "knot"
difficult! | |
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Leslie, we are enormously
appreciative of the opportunity to share our weekly
newsletters with you. We feel that much of the content
is valuable for anyone who purchases fine clothing and is
interested in their preservations and cleaning. Click on the
dancing pencil to the left if your would like to send
this and future newsletters to a friend and he will take care
of all the rest.
Thanks a million, Ed and Mary
The
Iris City Cleaners Connection is a weekly news
letter dedicated to the interest of fine garment care,
restoration, and conservation. It is published in Mt
Pleasant, Iowa by Iris City Cleaners and is an extension of
our services described in www.iriscitycleaners.com
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Watch that Tie!
Especially for Leslie
or someone
close
Don't you hate looking down and
seeing stains on your tie... right before a big meeting? While
we can't do anything to improve your table manners, we can
make your ties less likely to stain. Have $10 in regular drycleaning done and
we'll clean a tie and apply water repellant to it so it stays
clean longer. (Include first page of this newsletter with
your order. Offer expires Oct. 15, 2005. Cannot be combined
with other
offers.) | |
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