How to tie a TIE

The basic idea is that tie knots can be described as a sequence of five different possible moves, although not all moves can follow each other. These are summarized as follows. All diagrams are as the tie would appear were you wearing it and looking in a mirror.

• L: left; C: centre; R: right; these must change every move.
• i: into the diagram; o: out of the diagram; these must alternate.
• T: through the loop just made.

With this shorthand, traditional and new knots can be compactly expressed, as below. Note that any knot that begins with an o move must start with the tie turned inside out around the neck.