How To tie "The Nicky" (aka. Olney)
The Nicky is an elegant, symmetrical knot that is relatively easy to tie. It’s a five-move knot, which makes it slightly larger than the traditional four-in-hand, yet not as bulky as the half-Windsor, thus making it a perfect compromise. It’s very similar to the Pratt knot, with only two steps inversed, yet has a slight advantage because it doesn’t form a knot when the passive end is removed, which makes it faster and easier to untie. It has recently become my knot of choice for self-strangulation, considering that it’s the ONLY knot I can get right apart from the Windsor, which is way too large for me. I also like it because it’s not one of the mainstream tie knots, and starts out in a unique way, like the Oriental knot.
A somewhat esoteric knot, Nicky was never very popular outside of Italy. It was originally published in The Book of Ties, by Mosconi and Villarosa. Its name comes from the Italian tie shop, Nicky, where its owner, Ernesto Curami, actually printed brochures to instruct customers on how to properly tie the knot.
Several years later, in 1989, David Kelsall mistied his Pratt knot, reversing the 2nd and the 3rd step, and unintentionally discovered Nicky, which he submitted to the Sunday Telegraph in 1991. He named the tie Olney, after the town in Buckinghamshire in which he lives.
For simplicity’s sake, I chose to use the words “opposite” and “same” to signify the directions you should loop your tie. I chose to avoid “left” and “right” because of mirror use and lefties. It does not matter which side your thick end starts on, as long as your steps are consistent. “Behind” and “in front of” signify the z-coordinate, “behind” being closer to your chest and “in front of” being farther from your chest.
Step 1:
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Start out with your tie inside-out (back stitching facing outwards). Like the three popular knots, I usually start it with the thick end being slightly larger than twice the length of the thin end.
Step 2.a: Step 2.b:
/ _ \ / \
| / \ | | \\\ /// |
| / \ | | \\\_/// |
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Pull the thick end behind the thinner end and out to the opposite side. The thicker end should still be reversed, but the fold should be the right side. (Note: make sure your loop is not too loose and not too tight, and is symmetrical. Making sure each step looks nice and smooth ensures a symmetrical tie in the end.)
Step 3:
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Wrap the thicker end over to the opposite side (back to where it started from) in front of the thinner end. The thicker end should now be facing the proper way.
Step 4:
/ _ \
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| / \ |
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\________________________/
Pull the thicker end behind the thinner end, leaving a slight space, this will be the final loop.
Step 5:
/ \
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| \\ // |
| \ / |
| / \ |
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Step 6: Tuck the thicker end through the formed loop, making sure that everything stays nice and smooth in the process.
Step 7: Tighten the knot a little by pulling on the thick end, but not too much. This will make a rigid knot, yet will keep its symmetry.
Step 8: Tuck the thinner end through the tag of the thicker end to make sure they stick together.
Step 9: Choke thyself!
The 85 Ways to Tie a Tie (the book)