The short version
- Learn the four-in-hand. It works with every collar you own and takes fifteen seconds after a week of practice.
- The half-Windsor is not more formal. It is wider. Use it with a spread collar and a thin tie.
- You need a tie maybe four times a year. Two of those occasions probably do not need one.
Do this today
Take the one tie you own, stand in front of a mirror, and tie it five times in a row. Untie it each time. By the fifth it will be in your hands, not your head.