When it comes to fashion, there are no hard and firm rules. Who says you can’t put brown polka dots with pink stripes?
Isn’t it interesting that there is usually one young woman who breaks all the fashion rules but always looks stunning? Or maybe it’s that confident man wearing a bow tie who makes a fashion statement by just walking into the room. He’s a trendsetter, and he makes no apologies about it.
One such trendsetter is Carolyn Wright, the owner of Bling Bow Ties. She creates unique designer bow tie fashions that changes a suit from humdrum to wow.
While she was yet in elementary school, Wright discovered the joy of sewing. She continued perfecting her developing talent and even started making her own clothes in high school.
Little did she know then that her passion for sewing would years later lead her to become a bow tie designer. Today, Wright designs bow ties for some of the area’s most debonair men. Men who create their own style. Or as Wright would say, men who have bling.
Detroit Wedding Day had the honor to meet with this up-and-coming bow tie designer. You may not know her name, but after seeing her designs, you won’t forget her stunning collection.
What is Bling Bow Ties?
So, what exactly is Bling Bow Ties? As Wright so eloquently described it, it is men’s bow tie bling with a woman’s touch. Bling Bow Ties offers its customers one of a kind ties. The company has an e-commerce store that displays a gallery of designs.
Meet the Designer
“I’m actually an accounting clerk for a law firm, but I have been sewing since I was 13 years old. I started making my own clothes when I got to high school,” said Wright.
When asked why she started making bow ties, she said that she got the inspiration after watching brides on their wedding day.
“The idea was based on how the bride has her never-ending catwalk down the runway to be side by side with her soon to be husband. The bride has all the bling and all eyes on her, as she walks down the aisle. Everyone is captivated by her beauty, her gown. When her groom salutes her and they turn around to walk back up the aisle together, he is supposed to have some bling, too! The Bride and Groom, Husband and Wife! Lights, cameras, action, and bring on the bling!”
What does bling mean to her?
When most people think of bling, they think of diamonds and other shimmering accessories, however, Wright takes the concept of bling to another level.
Wright stated, “Bling to me is neck bling on a man. Bling along the collar. You have to have all the parts. The haircut. The shave. The neck symbolizes where the bling should be,” Wright said.
In other words, a well put together man is a man who embodies bling according to Wright; especially a man who takes time to adorn himself with a fashionable bow tie.
“A lot of people think of a gold chain as bling. What I’m talking about is when a man has on a suit or tux, or just a sports coat with a white shirt. The shirt collar replaces the gold chain and leaves just enough space to nestle in a bow tie.”
Wright started Bling Bow Ties in December of 2016 but did not actually start selling the ties until the spring of the following year. Since that time, she has cranked out hundreds of bow ties in different shapes and fashions.
“I just keep coming up with all of these ideas. Everything that I have on the website is one-of-a-kind. There are over 500 designs on the website. The Lord just keeps blessing me with these designs.”
This is quite an accomplishment for any entrepreneur but especially for this ambitious designer, because in addition to designing ties, she also works a full-time job and cares for her mother.
As with any gifted artist, there comes a time when coming up with new design concepts are difficult. This, however, does not discourage Wright. She finds inspiration everywhere, which ultimately leads her closer to her next big design unveiling.
Wright said, “I have sewing machines everywhere in the house. I can look at the sewing machine and get ideas. Also, I draw a lot. I actually draw sketches of the bow ties and deep them in a binder until it’s time to bring them to life.”
The Groom’s Party
By all accounts, Wright is a very talented designer with a keen eye for fashion. She is not limited by tradition. As a result, when she is designing for a wedding party, she is able to create one of a kind bow ties for each man while still having them be perfectly coordinated together.
She recounted a recent customer who hired her to make an assortment of bow ties for a wedding.
Wright stated, “the groom specified that he wanted a hound’s tooth pattern. Their colors were orange, white, and navy blue. He then wanted suspenders and cufflinks. He wanted a solid orange for his groomsmen and an orange bow tie with a little navy added for the best man. Then the bride wanted her dad to have a different pattern but the same colors. She also wanted her four hosts to have different bow ties with matching suspenders.”
After creating a unified collection for this wedding party, in all, there were seven beautiful variations. She later said that the couple was extremely pleased with her work and designs.
As luck would have it, the couple’s request to include the suspenders and cufflinks actually influenced Wright to expand her fashion line to include these accessories.
When asked if it was challenging to come up with so many different designs, Wright responded, “I like the challenge.”
She said that the most difficult part of the project is not coming up with a variety of designs, but rather it’s finding fabrics in various styles and colors to meet the needs of her clients. Once locating the perfect fabric, Wright can generally have the bow ties designed, sewn, and packaged within two weeks.
What to expect
Not only does Wright designs ties but she also creates coordinating pocket squares, suspenders, and cufflinks to boot. She will, in the near future, design cummberbunds to match the bow ties. However, most of her bow tie sets consist of a pocket square and a bow tie. On average, clients can expect to pay $30 for a bow tie and pocket square set depending on the fabric and style.
Producing a quality product is very important to Wright. She shared that when she includes rhinestone or other add-ons in her designs, she hand-stitches the items directly to the fabric, as opposed to using the common practice of gluing items to the fabric. Taking these extra steps improves the quality of the product.
“When I go on other websites for bow ties, I see a lot of them that have glued on rhinestone. If you hug someone or if you are dancing, those stones come off. Mine are sewn on. They don’t come off unless you pull them off.”
She continued, “I put a lot of labor into each tie. I want them to be done right. I want them to be durable. I don’t want to just throw something together. They are not mass produced. Each one is individually hand-sewn.”
Before Wright decided to launch into her own online store she was no stranger to the bow tie business. In fact, she was the seamstress for her husbands’ bow tie store.
Over the years, she amused herself by playing a friendly game of competition with her husband. They both would challenge each other to see which one of them could come up with the most creative bow tie designs. This spirited game helped fuel her passion and nudged her to pursue her own design collection.
“I wasn’t expecting the bow tie business to take off the way it did. It’s just a hobby for me. I was looking for something to do when I eventually retire. I wanted to see if I had a niche.”
With hundreds of designs on the website, the bow ties are divided into different style and color categories. The site lists whimsical themes such as handsome, swaggering, odd couples, and red tape, and cut the mustard, in addition to many other themes. In fact, there are twenty-one different categories to select.
Favorite Tie
When asked what was her favorite style of bow tie, not surprising Wright said that her two favorite styles of bow ties are located in the Handsome and The Odd Couples categories. The odd couples category can best be described as bow ties that are designed using two (or more) fabrics that are not typically put together. The handsome collection, however, is a more conservative assortment of patterns, skillfully paired with a range of fourteen or Wright’s most used solid color fabrics.
It is not unusual for couples to hire Wright to address their fashion needs. Some couples commission her to create a special look for the man that complements his partner’s attire.
She recalled a project for a client who wanted his navy-blue suit to compliment his wife’s hot pink dress. So, what was her solution? Wright designed a navy-blue, hot pink, and white bow tie set that perfectly paired the couple together. Having a custom bow tie set is a wonderful alternative for couples who like to complement each other’s wardrobe without actually dressing alike. Moreover, adding a new bow tie set breathes new life into an old outfit.
Looking to the Future
So, what is next for this busy designer? Two words, diversification and branding. As mentioned before, Wright has over five hundred designs in her fashion design portfolio, but she plans to further expand her collection by introducing new color options into some of her current designs. She is also looking forward to having her designs worn by some of the area’s fashion trendsetters and influencers.
Advice to Newlyweds
During the interview, we asked Wright to give one word of advice to newlyweds. Wright, who is a mother and wife of twenty years, gave this word of advice.
“You have to respect each other. That’s the main thing. My wedding vows did not say love, honor, and obey. My pastor asked us to love, honor, and respect each other. Respect is what keeps us together.”
“You have to respect each other. That’s the main thing. My wedding vows did not say love, honor, and obey. My pastor asked us to love, honor, and respect each other. Respect is what keeps us together.”
To learn more about Bling Bow Ties and see the entire collection of bow tie designs visit www.blingbowties.com or read more about the business at https://detroitweddingday.com/galleriny/bling-bow-ties.
