This is a write-up I've been meaning to get out for a while now. About a month ago I got a message from Ethan Igleheart of Tie 1 on Photography. He was wondering if I could check out the quality of the bow-ties he'd been making and let him know what I thought. I gladly accepted and Ethan sent me one of the bow-ties he had made. To be honest, I didn't know what to expect at first, but I was impressed when it arrived. Ethan takes great care in packaging his bow-ties when they're sent out, and the package had a very professional appearance, including a thoughtful "How to tie a bow-tie" sheet (although I've expressed my opinion on the dubious usefulness of those before, it's a nice touch).

I unwrapped the bow-tie from the tissue and felt it with my hands. With spring coming up I requested a cotton bow-tie and the cotton has a crisp, starched feeling to it, with what feels like a thicker lining underneath to give stability. I like that because it will definitely slow down the wearing of the tie, but I expect it to wrinkle more easily. The material isn't luxurious for those used to spending much more on bow-ties, but it does the job and is good for the price (avg. $35). The craftsmanship is exceptional, much better than other bow-ties at this price, with a high stitches per inch that will keep the tie from falling apart for a long time. The one thing missing from the tie is notation to show me where to adjust the tie properly for my size, but through some slight adjustment I was able to get it  to fit me perfectly (the upshot of this is that you can adjust the bow-tie to your preference without notions of how it's "supposed" to be). Viewing the bow-ties on Ethan's website, I found a lot of the fabrics are more traditional, and all weren't for my tastes, but there are lots of options to choose from and I'm sure Ethan would do custom work if he was sent the fabric.

The thing I liked least about Ethan's bow-ties had nothing to do with the ties at all! In fact, it's the website they are on. Ethan sells both photography and bow-ties, but it felt odd that they were on the same site together and I felt that his bow-ties were good enough to feature on their own site dedicated for the purpose. As is, it took me a moment to orient myself on the site, but within moments you should figure out where the bow-ties are.

Overall, I like the quality of Ethan's bow-ties, and I'd definitely recommend them for someone that's looking for some good value on bow-ties to fill out their collection for Spring. Check out all of my photos below, including some shots I did styled with the bow-tie Ethan sent me.

If you are interested in Ethan's bow-ties, you can check them out here.

Full disclosure: While Ethan did send me a bow-tie for the review, I will be giving it away as a prize to one of my loyal readers soon.