I only wear them with formal wear. I have two, and both must be tied.

When suits were the required uniform, I only wore long ties. I preferred the full Windsor knot. The tailor supplied a two inch square swatch of material from each suit. I would take the swatches with me when shopping for ties. This allowed me to match my ties to any suit I had. If I found a particularly nice tie, I would purchase two and switch wearing them, allowing the ties to last for years of use.

As a side note, the only tie I had a problem with, was one that was a gift from a foreign dignitary. His taste in colors left much to be desired. It could only be worn with a charcoal suit, which I wore with the tie the next day for my official meeting with him.