How can I splice the tail of my tie and have it not look terrible?

Question

I was making some clip on ties for work for me to wear on casual Fridays. I could not wear regular ties with t-shirts as that would just look odd. I picked up some second hand ties to make into clip on ties.

Fairly easy thing to do but the issue came when I had to shorten the tail of the tie. I needed to but about 5-8 inches off and sewing them back together was difficult. The fibers used in the ties are very frail especially when cut. I had to sew deeper into the tie to get it to close even a little.

The result was less than satisfactory:

^{Click image to enlarge}

What can I do to make sewing this back together by hand a cleaner venture?

Answer 1

You need to stiffen the fibres so that the thread does not tear though them while you are sewing.

Clear nail polish

I ended up buying a small container and applied in all along the edges of the tie tail. About a 1/4 inch all around.

After letting it dry it gave something for the thread to hold onto. Made it loads easier to get cleaner results.

Answer 2

To prevent (actually: to minimise) fraying, you can use zig zag scissors known as pinking shears.

And you can use non-woven interfacing. Make sure you choose a type that has a pre-glued side. You can iron it to fabric. It prevents fraying and deforming.