Currently, I can't afford to sink any money on a $70+ top-of-the-line, "quality" designer/artisan tie, so I hunted around for a better bargain. Came upon this.The tie's design is cool: contrasting neon-white and jet-black stripes make it stand out in any crowd; skinny from top to bottom so it doesn't look too old-fashioned and stuffy.It's perfect for a young person who's forced to attend a semi-formal event, but who doesn't want to completely surrender that bold & rebellious spirit.However, the material has a definite "cheap" look and feel to it. It's a little too glossy/shiny and is very thin and light, like it's made of nylon or plastic, or is coated with wax. Almost looks like a Halloween costume accessory. Again, this is okay for semi-formal wear, but I wouldn't recommend it for, say, a job interview for example. The tie simply fails to achieve or even approach that "professional" look that's ideal in that setting.But maybe that's just me.Maybe my tie is still too new and a little bit of "breaking-in" will remove some of that sheen. Time will tell. (I think a vest or a jacket is practically a MUST with this tie, which is what I'm missing.)The reason for the 3 instead of 4 or 5 stars is that I bought this believing it would be a more versatile addition to my wardrobe than it turned out to be. (i.e. its look "clashes" too much with most of my shirts, it's a bit too skinny where I prefer "narrow" - around 2.75in is my ideal width - and, again, it doesn't seem like it'd be appropriate for all functions)Still, not a bad tie.---The tie obviously gets wider from end-to-end so when the description says the tie is 2" wide, what it's actually referring to is the widest part of the tie (i.e. at the tip), which is indeed 2" wide. I was new to ties once, too, and these are the kinds of things I was confused by so, just puttin' it out there! :)