How to Wear an Ascot: 4 Tips for Styling Ascots

An ascot, also known as a hanker-tie, is a neckband with wide-pointed wings. Wearers wrap an ascot around the neck, fasten it with a tie clip or pin, or tie it in various ways. Traditionally, ascots are silk scarves, pale in color, and feature subtle patterns.

Before the necktie and bow tie became ubiquitous forms of neckpieces, the ascot was the go-to neckband for menswear at formal events. The ascot got its name from the men’s fashion sported at the Ascot Racecourse, a thoroughbred horse race originating in 1700s England. This race’s climactic event was known as the Royal Ascot, which was as much a fashion event as it was a sporting one.

In the nineteenth century, businessmen and politicians would wear an ascot tie with their morning dress. Today, the accessory is fashionable for formal wear at weddings, galas, and other dressy events for people of all genders.

The cravat or day cravat is a precursor to the ascot. During the Thirty Years’ War, Croatian mercenaries wore neck scarves, and the French adopted the style. “Cravat” is now a catch-all French word for neckwear, including the ascot.

Ascots can be worn over the shirt and tend to be more formal, as men traditionally wore them with morning coats. On the other hand, traditional cravats may be less formal and are tucked into the shirt. Today, ascots are seen at daytime weddings in more subdued hues, while cravats can be more colorful to add character to a business casual ensemble.

Follow these steps to learn how to tie an ascot:

1. 1. Drape the ascot around your neck. As with tying a tie, you’ll want to have the longer end on your dominant hand’s side.
2. 2. Cross and loop. Bring the longer end of the ascot up, over, and across the shorter end. Loop it up, then pull through to make a knot.
3. 3. Adjust the length. Pull at each side to adjust the length of each end to a comfortable fit.
4. 4. Tuck into your shirt. Place the longer end’s flap over the shorter one and tuck them in together into your dress shirt.
5. 5. Play with tightness of the knot. You can tie a tighter ascot or keep it playful and flowy by exposing more of the fabric at your shirt collar.
6. 6. Add a pin. If you want to enhance your outfit, you can use a bespoke tie pin to keep the ascot fabric in place.

Learn the proper way to wear this elegant type of necktie so your silk ascot makes an appropriate splash:

1. 1. Know when to wear paisley. Traditionally, ascots were made in gray and olive hues for formalwear, but today they are made in various patterns. To make a bolder statement with a paisley or patterned ascot, be sure to wear it with a solid-color suit or blazer; otherwise, too many clashing patterns will make your ensemble garish.
2. 2. Follow dress codes. For white tie, black tie, or tuxedo affairs, the ascot may not always be appropriate—tuxedos imply a black bow tie. You can have fun with a plain or colorful ascot to enhance your outfit for business casual looks or wedding invites that do not specify a dress code.
3. 3. Complement your pocket square. If you wear an ascot and a pocket square, the accessories do not have to have the same pattern. Differing materials and colors can bring attention to your neckerchief and your pocket’s piece of fabric.
4. 4. Try out a casual ascot. Ascots are not exclusive to formal events. Like a fashionable bandana, ascots can be worn around your neck when wearing a button-down tucked into pleated high-waisted pants, for example.

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