Commonly referred to as a necktab and authorized for wear in both the Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary, the Coast Guard Blue overlapping tab tie is the women’s equivalent of the traditional long necktie worn by men. It's easily recognizable because of its upside-down, V-shaped opening at the shirt collar.
Worn with all Service and Dress uniforms for which men wear neckties, the overlapping tab tie is attached by fastening it at the back of the neck, underneath the shirt collar and with the outer edges parallel to the collar’s edges. When properly attached, each side of the collar should have equal amounts of the tabs visible.
The Guard’s black tab tie, on the other hand, is designed as the equivalent of the men’s bow tie and has a crescent or semi-circular shape at the collar (female Guardsmen may in fact wear the Navy’s old-style pre-tied black bow tie in lieu of the black tab tie).