For The Love Of The Turtleneck

Designer Halston. Photographer unknown. Probably 1970s.

So I have read, heard and seen turtlenecks are back. I greatly approve of the recycling of the turtleneck back into fashion. I love turtlenecks and have worn them off and on since the late 1980s.

For the last decade or so I haven not worn one because I didn't own any and they were impossible to find. Then much to my delight they came back into style. I will admit that turtlenecks have been much maligned and some people absolutely detest them. Some people identify them with the beatniks of the 1950s and poetry readings. Others associate them with boring English professors that are too concerned with books than fashion.

I think that the turtleneck has gotten an unfair bad reputation and I find them chic and sophisticated. I associate them with the glamorous 1970s. Just look at the photo of Halston above, was he a beatnik or a nerd? He was anything but. Some people might dislike or be uncomfortable with how a turtleneck gathers closely around the neck. Some people say they feel choked by them, but I suspect they are wearing one that is too tight fitting. I like my turtlenecks to be just slightly loose. The fabric around the neck does not bother me because I so often wear scarfs in the fall, winter and into the cool spells of spring.

Some just are not going to like the look and feel of turtlenecks and that is understandable because they do take getting accustomed to if you have never worn one. I am not one to follow fashion trends all that closely, but I have been waiting a long time for turtlenecks to return to stores so that I could again get my hands on some.

So back last November I finally bought some turtlenecks and I have been happily wearing them when it has been cold enough. Hooray for the return of the turtleneck because I adore them.

Donna Summer's I Feel Love from that wonderful decade that was the 1970s.