Few items attest to a well dressed man like a perfectly coordinated foulard tie & shirt combination. Repeating patterns (also know as foulard or geometric foulard patterns) can be especially hard to pull off, given that they are often busy.

Applying the cardinal rule of pattern matching is therefore of paramount importance (scale your patterns up as you go from the layer of clothing closest to your chest to that that is furthest away). Hence, a smaller patterned or micro checkered / finely striped shirt will pair perfectly with a larger proportioned geometric foulard silk tie.

The Dark Knot’s Florence Foulard Navy / Red Silk Tie pops off perfectly against this finely striped shirt, creating the perfect level of pattern contrast!

As such, patterns with sufficient spacing within them pair exquisitely against smaller scale, more subtly patterned shirts. This degree of adequate spacing creates the requisite level of contrast that leads to a well coordinated aesthetic, and ensures that the people you are speaking to, upon being impressed by your sense of dress, will speak to you while looking at you – as opposed to staring in ghastly horror at the ill informed choice of pattern matching you may have grown accustomed to in yesteryear.

Conversely, smaller patterned foulard ties work best with a solid shirt, given that the pattern spacing is held tightly together. Hence, smaller patterned foulard ties generally work best with a solid white or light blue shirt, given the versatility of these colors.

The Dark Knot’s smaller patterned Menaggio Foulard Red / Navy Silk Tie sits perfectly against this solid white dress shirt! The plain white dress shirt provides an ideal canvas for the busier geometric red foulard silk tie.

A subtle trick that works with both smaller and larger repeating patterned ties is to have the dominant color of your shirt complement or match a secondary or tertiary color in the tie. This brings together the whole ensemble perfectly, without any one color being overbearing!

Below are ten examples of geometric foulard silk ties that pair exquisitely with the shirt patterns beneath them! 

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #1

The Dark Knot’s Berkshire Abstract Navy / Turquoise Silk Tie pairs perfectly with the above shirt. The geometric foulard / floral pattern has adequate spacing within the pattern, that pops off perfectly against the micro checkered shirt beneath.

From a color standpoint, the navy & turquoise tie is the perfect complement to the lighter colored blue shirt, creating an elegant, seamless look. Additionally, the elements within the tie pattern create the perfect level of contrast with the blue shirt, with warm / cool colors creating a certain sense of harmony.

This shirt & tie combination is perfect for daily work, an important meeting / presentation or your next wedding reception!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #2

Columbia Foulard Bluish Grey Silk Tie, part of The Dark Knot’s premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Edition Collection. The pattern spacing within this geometric foulard silk tie works perfectly with the finely striped shirt, allowing it to pop off given the differential in pattern scales. The brown windowpane sports jacket and paisley pocket square cap off this look perfectly, bringing four distinct patterns into play, all with different proportions.

From a color standpoint, the darker bluish grey silk tie creates the perfect monochromatic sequence with the lighter blue dress shirt, with the brown sports jacket offering an incredibly eye pleasing, neutral look.

Whether you are dressing up for an evening out with friends or a networking event, this extremely sharp business casual look will have you looking the part and then some!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #3

The Dark Knot’s Stafford Squares Burgundy / Light Blue Silk Tie. This exquisite repeating patterned tie pairs perfectly with the solid blue shirt, given that the pattern is tightly held together. Therefore, matching it with a patterned shirt – no matter how subtle – will result in pattern clash, drawing the viewers attention away from your face and towards your ill informed pattern choices!

From a color perspective, the hotter burgundy tones balance beautifully against the lighter blue shirt. Additionally, the light blue element within the tie perfectly complements the lighter blue shirt.

Whether you are dressing for daily work, an important meeting, a presentation or your next wedding reception, this tie will ensure that you stand out above your contemporaries.

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #4

Another exquisite example of a smaller spaced foulard silk tie, set perfectly against a solid colored shirt. Given that this is a pastel colored tie, a solid white shirt makes for an ideal backdrop, given that a light blue shirt would probably lend to an overtly summery look that would be befitting of only the most warm weather inclinations – such as a beach wedding. Moreover, the pink tie contrasts stunningly well with the navy suit, offering a true balance of warm and cooler colors!

This look is perfectly balanced by a solid white cotton pocket square with light blue contrasting hand rolled edges, contrasting perfectly against the pink colored tie, while providing a seamless monochromatic tandem with the navy suit.

Whether you are dressing for daily work, a cocktail party or your next wedding reception, this shirt / tie / suit combination will undoubtedly have you standing out heads and shoulders above the rest!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #5

The Dark Knot’s Montgomery Abstract Navy / Brown Silk Tie, part of our premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Haute Collection. This larger spaced foulard silk tie pairs exquisitely against this finely striped white & blue shirt. The pattern spacing within the tie clearly contrasts with the narrow spacing between the shirt’s finer stripes.

From a color coordination standpoint, the darker navy tie offers a truly monochromatic look against the lighter blue shirt. Moreover, light blue, which is a secondary color in the tie, matches the light blue shirt, creating a seamless, elegant look!

Whether you are looking to dress for daily work, an important meeting / presentation, a cocktail party or your next wedding reception, this exquisite look will have you standing out!

Please feel free to view The Dark Knot's extensive range of Geometric Foulard Silk Ties

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #6

The Dark Knot’s Champlain Foulard Navy / Brown Silk Tie – part of our premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Edition Collection. The larger pattern spacing of this design is the perfect complement to the finely striped shirt underneath. Moreover, the even larger patterned brown windowpane sports jacket brings the ensemble together perfectly, with the floral pocket square providing the ideal finishing touch.

This tie and shirt combination works from a color coordination standpoint as well, with the navy tie popping off perfectly against the lighter blue shirt. Moreover, the brown elements within the tie are an ideal complement to the lighter brown windowpane sports jacket, creating a truly seamless, elegant & dapper look!

Whether you are dressing for a cocktail party or an evening out, this tie is bound to turn heads!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #7

This absolutely stunning look features The Dark Knot’s Fall River Foulard Pink & Grey Silk Tie. This pattern coordination works perfectly, with the larger proportioned pink & grey medallion silk tie standing out against an extremely small micro checkered shirt pattern. This ensemble is complemented by a larger windowpane suit jacket, creating the perfect progression of smaller patterned shirt, to larger scaled tie pattern to an even larger scaled suit pattern.

From a color coordination perspective, this combination works extremely well, as the light pink tie contrasts beautifully with the lighter blue shirt. The darker navy windowpane suit jacket creates the perfect monochromatic balance with the shirt, along with offering contrast with the pink colored tie. The ensemble is exquisitely capped off with a lighter pink striped cotton pocket square, providing both textural and pattern variation.

Whether you are dressing for daily work or your next wedding reception, this tie will have you looking suave & dapper!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #8

This exquisite look features The Dark Knot’s Georgetown Foulard Navy / Blue / Brown Silk Tie, part of our premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Edition Collection. The larger scaled tie stands out against this finely striped shirt, creating an adequate level of pattern proportion / scale contrast!

From a color standpoint, the navy tie sits exquisitely against the lighter blue striped shirt, creating a seamless monochromatic aesthetic, with the grey suit providing neutral balance to the whole ensemble.

Whether you are dressing for daily work, an important meeting / presentation or your next wedding reception, this ensemble will have people doing a double take!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #9

Another stunning look, featuring The Dark Knot’s Shelton Abstract Purple / Navy Silk Tie, part of our premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Edition Collection. The pattern spacing of this exquisite silk tie contrasts perfectly with the finely striped lighter blue shirt. Moreover, the self striped / solid looking grey suit and larger scaled abstract pocket square pattern bring the whole ensemble together into one seamless, cohesive unit.  

From a color standpoint, this ensemble utilizes concepts of a similar color scheme, in which colors adjacent on the color wheel are paired together. Given that purple and blue are both considered cooler colors, this shirt & tie combination is derived from a similar color scheme – helping to create a sense of familiarity and harmony! Moreover, the light blue pocket square utilizes the same principle, with the lighter blue pocket square adequately complementing the purple colored tie.

Whether you are dressing up for a cocktail party or your next wedding reception, this tie will have you dressed above your peers!

Foulard Tie & Shirt Combination #10

Featuring The Dark Knot’s Patterson Foulard Burgundy Silk Tie, part of our premium line of ultra high yarn count luxury silk ties, The Edition Collection. The pattern spacing of this design contrasts beautifully with the subtler, finely striped light grey shirt. Moreover, the paisley pocket square and solid tie bring the whole ensemble together seamlessly, with four patterns – solid, striped, geometric foulard & paisley at play here.

As highlighted throughout this article, please note how the difference in pattern proportion / scaling helps bring the whole outfit together. Larger spaced patterns are paired against smaller, subtler patterns to create a greater level of contrast, resulting in an optimal, well coordinated aesthetic!

From a color standpoint, the finely striped grey shirt and light grey jacket provide an ideal neutral backdrop for the burgundy silk tie. The entire looked is exquisitely capped off with a gold paisley pocket square.

Whether you are dressing up for daily work, an important meeting / presentation or a cocktail party, this tie will have you standing out!

And that’s a wrap for this one. We hope that you have enjoyed reading this as much as we did writing it.

 Please feel free to view The Dark Knot's extensive range of Geometric Foulard Silk Ties