Job Interview Dress

Often when you need to learn how to tie a tie it is because you have to show up for a job interview in the near future. To help you along and get the most out of your tie knot I put together this page.

At a formal job interview, one of the things you want to project is confidence. This is best accomplished if you use the thick, wide and triangular Windsor Knot to tie your tie.

However, while the tie knot is a very important aspect of your job interview attire, your overall appearance counts as well. Hence, it is important to understand what makes up your entire conservative job interview dress that is still the standard in most corporations.

The following list should give you a good idea of how to dress for a job interview:

• Suit: A conservative, two-piece dark grey or a dark blue business suit would be the ideal suit to wear on the day of your job interview.
• Shirt: A white, long-sleeved dress shirt that is neatly pressed and has a good fit is recommendable.
• Tie: Go for a plain colored, non-distracting, conservative dark blue or dark red necktie made of 100% pure silk.
• Tie accessories: A classic silver tie bar ensures that your tie is held in place during the interview. Without one, you often end up adjusting your tie several times during the interview, which will make you look nervous.
• Shoes: Clean and polished conservative dress shoes, black lace-ups if possible, would be your best choice.
• Socks: Dark socks, black if possible, would be ideally suited.
• Belt: The belt should match the color of your shoes, so go with a black one if possible
• Hair: Make sure that you get a well-groomed hairstyle before the interview. Be aware that short always fares best in interviews.
• Beard: A beard needs to be shaved off.
• Mustache: Mustaches are a possible negative, but if you must, then at least make sure it is neat and trimmed.
• Fingernails: Ensure that they are clean and trimmed.
• Rings: Wedding or college rings are generally acceptable but other rings are not.
• Earrings & piercings: Both earrings and visible body piercings should be taken out on the day of the interview.
• Body odor & fresh breath: Make sure that you do not smell badly and chew some gum before the interview, yet never during the interview.
• Perfume & cologne: Keep perfume and cologne to a minimum.
• Briefcase: Take along a briefcase with a notepad and a pen for any notes you may have to take during or after the interview.
   TIESinghania says the knot is the most important part of the tie. The most easy and popular is the four-in-hand or Windsor. Keep the pattern simple. Don’t wear the same colour tie and shirt.
  
  SHIRT¼ inch of the shirt should show at the collar while standing, and ¼ inch at the cuff.
  
  SOCKSUnless you’re a Michael Jackson-standard dancer, no white. Socks should be one shade lighter or darker than your pants and reach mid-calf.
  
  JacketShahpurwala warns that if the jacket isn’t perfect, it will ride back, and if it’s too tight, the shirt will pull down and hurt your neck.
  
  ButtoningTom Ford says, “Men should always have their jackets buttoned. It is the easiest way to sharpen the silhouette and lose 10 pounds.” Shahpurwala differs — he suggests keeping one button unbuttoned while standing and unbuttoning all buttons when you sit.
  
  PANTShould flow smoothly down the legs, with no bulges. Not too tight at the crotch. Must rest gently at the top of the shoe.
  
  ShoesBlack goes well with black and grey suits; brown is good for navy suits.
  
  Basics
  The best suits are bespoke, custom-made for you. Shahpurwala says, “The suit needs to fit you like a glove.” While it is the most expensive option, bespoke is cheaper in India than in the West.  Slightly cheaper: Made-to-measure, where you can pick a suit off the rack and get it altered for you. And, of course, international designers, like Zegna, Valentino, or Ford, make amazing off-the-rack suits.
  Jackets are made in three ways:
  
  Fused: The cheapest option.
  Semi-fused (half-canvassed): Half-stitched, has two layers.
  Sartorial (canvassed): Made entirely by hand, the most comfortable and most expensive. Has a middle floating layer that you can find by pinching the suit. “The construction is essential to ensure an elegant draping,” Zegna says.
  
  Styles
  Contemporary A more fitted look, usually with shorter jackets. Cotton, linen, silk or satin, and in a wide range of colours. Best for the more daring soul moving away from the classic.
  
  Mix it up a bit: Go for the classic cut, but with more modern fabrics and colours. Or tone down the formality with a bright tank-top instead of a shirt.
  If you’re comfortable in a skirt, a timeless A-line or a pencil skirt works best.
  If you plan to buy suits every season, indulge in passing trends like pleated skirts.
  
  Classic Jacket with padded shoulders and pockets; a straight fit, over formal shirt and trousers. Typically black, blue or grey wool. Works best if you’re a recent suit convert, or if you have no clue what the person you’re going to meet is like.
  The Windsor Knot is a thick, wide and triangular tie knot that projects confidence. It would therefore be your knot of choice for presentations, job interviews, courtroom appearances etc. It is best suited for spread collar shirts and it's actually quite easy to do.
  While just about everyone can use this tie knot to tie his tie, it looks especially well on men with longer necks as its wide form shortens the perceived height of the neck a little bit.
  To tie the Windsor Knot, select a necktie of your choice and stand in front of a mirror. Then simply follow the steps below:
  
  

  	1) Start with the wide end ("W") of your necktie on the right, extending about 12 inches below the narrow end ("N") on the left.
  	2) Then cross the wide end over the narrow end.
  	3) Bring the wide end up through the loop between the collar and your tie.
  	4) Then bring the wide end back down.
  	5) Pull the wide end underneath the narrow end and to the right, back through the loop and to the right again so that the wide end is inside out.
  	6) Bring the wide end across the front from right to left.
  	7) Then pull the wide end up through the loop again.
  	8) Bring the wide end down through the knot in front.
  	9) And -- using both hands -- tighten the knot carefully and draw it up to the collar.