Some random important stuff:
I had no idea the way I tie my ties was called four in hand… I might try tying the other ways shown here too, just for fun. But once your dad teaches you how to tie a tie and you remember that method, that’s probably the method you use your whole life.
Raising a family in Thailand // Documenting Issan food, culture, music, and people
My dad would try to teach us the windsor (his preferred), but I could never remember the thing for the life of me. When I went to a high school where I had to where a tie the other students taught me four-in-the-hand which seemed MUCH easier.
When I got my first job where I had to where a tie, someone derisively referred to four-in-the-hand as the way ‘kids tie a tie’. Mildly humiliated I decided to go with the shell knot since it seemed the most complicated and it blows people’s minds when you tell them it starts inside out.
The only issue with the shell knot for me is that my fat neck leaves me very little margin for error with that knot. Back when I wore ties all the time it didn’t matter so much since I’d have the start points on each tie memorized, but now a days it usually takes me a couple times before it’s a proper length.