{"id":144209,"date":"2021-12-16T12:27:34","date_gmt":"2021-12-16T18:27:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=144209"},"modified":"2024-06-29T12:52:21","modified_gmt":"2024-06-29T17:52:21","slug":"how-to-wear-a-turtleneck-without-looking-like-a-dweeb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/style\/clothing\/how-to-wear-a-turtleneck-without-looking-like-a-dweeb\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Wear a Turtleneck (Without Looking Like a Dweeb)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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It\u2019s a funny thing about the men\u2019s turtleneck.<\/p>\n

Most male garments which were born from the world of the working class, the military, and\/or sports, and then became the clothing choice of rebels in the mid-20th century, still retain a bit of their aura of ruggedness and edge today, even though they can be more than a century removed from their origins and have become thoroughly mainstream. Witness the fact that jeans<\/a>, leather jackets<\/a>, and t-shirts<\/a>, which were first worn by miners, aviators, and GIs before becoming the duds of rebel-without-a-cause types during the 1950’s, still evince a little coolness even now.<\/p>\n

Yet the turtleneck, which has the same sort of manly history, typically does not.<\/p>\n

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Turtlenecks as we know them today were worn by working class men starting in the latter half of the 19th century. They were particularly popular amongst dockworkers, fishermen, and sailors, for the garment\u2019s signature high-reaching, folded-over collar served a valuable functional purpose in insulating the neck from cold winds and keeping the men warm as they labored. Turtlenecks were worn by athletes of the time \u2014 whether they played baseball, football, polo, or hockey \u2014 for the very same reason.<\/p>\n

The garment really came into style in the 1950\u2019s, for the most countercultural of reasons. They were adopted as a stylish alternative to wearing a dress shirt and tie, and thus worn by those most inclined to chafe at anything either literally or metaphorically buttoned-up: artists, musicians, poets, philosophers, intellectuals. Beatniks.<\/p>\n

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The turtleneck\u2019s popularity and association with culture\u2019s edgier, more renegade-esque types continued into the 1960’s, being adopted by members of the Black Panthers, and becoming the notable sartorial choice of cinematic detectives from Steve McQueen\u2019s Frank Bullitt to Richard Roundtree\u2019s John Shaft.<\/p>\n

Yet despite this iconoclastic history, today the turtleneck is often thought of as kind of dweeby \u2014 a little twee, stodgy, effete. Why is that?<\/p>\n

Well, one can only surmise the exact cultural currents that moved the turtleneck from rugged to hip to nerdy, but it likely can be traced back to its prevalence on college campuses and amongst the beatnik scene. Once-rebellious intellectuals became aging professorial yuppies. Their personal lifestyles moved closer to the mainstream of culture, while the mainstream of culture moved closer to what was formerly considered rebellious (eschewing dress shirts and ties isn\u2019t so edgy anymore). Thus turtlenecks maintained a kind of nerdy reputation befitting its ties to academia, while academia lost some of its cool cache.<\/p>\n

A hypothesis at least.<\/p>\n

At any rate, the popularity and connotations of the male turtleneck have waxed and waned over the last half century, and today reached a status that seems to be approaching something like neutrality.<\/p>\n

In an effort to further tip the dial of the turtleneck into neutral territory, and turn an underutilized part of the male wardrobe into something more guys can reach for without hesitation, below we share how to pick a turtleneck and wear it with style.<\/p>\n

Picking a Turtleneck<\/h2>\n

The turtleneck can be a handsome, functional, and versatile garment. Donning one can dress up a pair of jeans, or dress down a suit. Soft and stretchy, turtlenecks are more comfortable than dress shirts, and yet still make you look put-together. They can read a little formal, but with a style that isn\u2019t buttoned-up. As such, they\u2019re a good look for the man who wants to come off as suave but unstuffy.<\/p>\n

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Thinner\/fitted turtlenecks (top) vs. thicker\/looser turtlenecks (bottom).<\/p><\/div>\n

The two types of turtlenecks.<\/strong> Turtleneck types can roughly be broken down into two main categories:<\/p>\n