How To Style A Turtleneck Sweater As An Adult Man
[0:00:00] Rule number one when it comes to looking good
in a turtleneck sweater, know how to fold your collar.
Now, when it comes to folding the collar of your turtleneck, you've actually got quite
a few options.
As you can see here, I'm wearing this all natural.
Basically, no fold.
This is the scrunch look.
This is simply pulling the turtleneck collar over.
And this works when you have a turtleneck collar that isn't super long.
Now, it does have a little bit of a disheveled look, so it is the most casual of all the
turtleneck collar folds.
Next, we've got the simple fold over.
This is how we receive the turtleneck a lot of times from the store and a lot of guys
just default to this.
It's a decent look.
And what's nice about this, it's easy to match up that top of the turtleneck edge with the
bottom of the seam right here.
Just get rid of any wrinkles and a really decent look.
The only issue with this style if it's a really long turtleneck or if you've got a short neck,
it could be too long and you'll get a bit of scrunching in there.
That really just throws the look off.
To solve that issue, let me introduce you to the double fold.
So, very simply when you're folding the turtleneck, you're going to want to break it into thirds.
Right here at the top, we've got that first third that we fold over and then you're going
to fold over a second time.
It's very simple.
And what I like about this, it makes the turtleneck just a bit shorter and it stays in place better
than the single fold.
And for those of you guys that want the sleekest look, let's talk about the inside fold.
Sorry turtleneck pros, I'm giving away your secret.
This one right here is really simple.
It's a game changer for a lot of guys because they just don't think to tuck it on the inside.
But, what I love about this look, especially if you've got a really nice seam on a very
tight weave lightweight sweater, it just is a really nice work.
This doesn't work on clunky sweaters in my opinion, the heavier weight ones.
But, for lighter weight ones, it looks great.
Now, it seems a lot of guys out there especially in the comments of these videos, they say
that, you know, turtlenecks, they're not for me, they don't look good on men, it's just
not something I think a manly guy would ever try to pull off.
To those naysayers, I want to say two things, Frank Bullitt and John shaft.
Seriously, if you haven't watched Bullittt with Steve McQueen, classic movie.
But notice when he's pulling off right there on the streets of San Francisco, that turtleneck
and it looks so good.
And what's great about this is that was over 50 years ago that he was pulling off this
look, so you know what?
That means that this is a timeless classic look that you can invest in, that you could
wear today and not worry about it going out of style.
Man, I love this picture right here.
You got the grandson, you got Samuel L. Jackson.
I mean, all three of these guys right here, just looking great with the turtleneck sweater.
And, for anyone that knows the naval history, they're going to know that turtlenecks have
been around for over 200 years, favored by not only sailors, but dock workers.
Anyone that are around a cold wet harsh environment and they need to be able to keep their neck
warm, guess what?
The turtleneck did everything.
You didn't have to worry about putting a scarf on there, nothing getting caught.
This was a streamlined garment that was incredibly functional and masculine.
Also, if you're familiar with sports history in hockey, football, baseball, anytime people
are playing outdoors a rough sport, again, you want to be able to keep your neck warm
or maybe protected a bit.
The turtleneck sweater has been there.
All that being said, the turtleneck sweater does have limitations especially if you've
got a heavier set body.
And this is where I think a lot of guys are actually just wearing the wrong type of turtleneck
or they're wearing it in the wrong way.
But, first up, you know, if you've got a fit trim body, a well-fitted turtleneck whether
it's in a heavier weight material a lightweight material, it's going to look good on you because
you've simply got the body to be able to pull it off.
If you are a skinny guy, then you're going to want to go for a heavier weave.
Those type of fabrics and materials are going to look good on you.
If you have a shorter neck, you want to pay attention to turtlenecks that are too long
in the neck area.
Maybe go for that triple fold that I talked about or go for a lighter weight material.
Clunky turtlenecks can just be a little bit too much for the smaller shorter guy.
Now, for the man that's a little bit heavier, you got a little bit of extra weight around
the midsection.
You want to be careful of wearing a turtleneck by itself.
We're going to talk about this a little bit later how to layer how to actually put on
clothing that works with the turtleneck.
But, wearing a thin light colored turtleneck that fits close to the body if you've got
an extra 50 pounds around the gut area, it's just going to show that off and it doesn't
look good.
It's something you want to avoid.
In general, if you are heavier, go for darker turtlenecks, go for ones that fit well, but
you're going to want to make sure to layer them with other pieces.
Now, tied with that last point, let's talk about fit.
With a turtleneck sweater, you've got to nail the fit.
I say fit is king on this channel and that you should know the name of your tailor, take
things to get adjusted.
When it comes to sweaters, most people don't get sweaters adjusted.
They take a little bit of different type of skill.
Most tailors maybe they've got a friend that can do this type of knitting.
But, because it's knit work, it is going to be something that can be brought in, it can
be darted, but it can't be let out.
So, if a sweater is too tight, you just need to return it.
If it's not a really good fit on that turtleneck, you need to consider, again, taking it back
maybe exchanging it for a different brand that's got a better fit to your body type
or finding a different size and finding something that works for you.
So, the next rule to styling a turtleneck sweater is to find inspiration.
We live in a great time, you can go over on Pinterest, you can go to Instagram, you can
just simply go to Google and type in man turtleneck sweater and you will see so many great images.
You'll also see some bad ones.
[0:05:03] But, what you want to do here is find the
ones that inspire you that you're like, “You know, what?
I really like the look of that guy.” especially if he shares your complexion, if he shares
your build.
This is all a great sign.
And here's the thing, go ahead and rebuild mimic that look.
Try to recreate it.
You're not going to be able to recreate it exactly.
And even if you do, here's the thing is no one is going to say, “Oh, you look like
that guy that was on Instagram.”
No, no one's going to know about that picture that you took inspiration from.
All they're going to know is that, man, you're pulling off that look, you look amazing.
And that's what you're shooting for is to have a direction have an image that you're
shooting for.
And I will tell you that when it comes to picking colors, one of the best things I find
with turtleneck sweaters is to mimic your jackets, your sports jackets, your casual
jackets because these are colors that you already gravitate towards.
If nothing else, go with a charcoal gray or go with a navy blue.
Those two right there are so easy to match in most men's wardrobes and they're a great
starting place.
In addition, if you're going to go with a particular type of weave, go with the lighter
weaves.
They're just so much easier to layer than the heavier bulky sweaters, which are really
made to be worn as outerwear.
And that last point dovetails us really nicely into this next rule, which is understand the
different types of turtleneck sweaters out there.
In general, you're going to see two types.
You're going to see the chunky looser heavier more casual made for outerwear type of turtlenecks.
And then, you've got the lighter weaves, those made from maybe a cashmere or a very, you
know, a Merino wool.
These are going to be made more for layering.
And if you've got the body for it, you can wear them as outer pieces.
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Now, what about patterns, what about weaves?
What should you start off with?
Well, the easiest thing as I talked about earlier is to go with a simple solid.
I do think going with the lighter weight the closer fitting easier to layer style for pretty
much every body type is going to work looking at navy blue, charcoal gray.
Again, look to repeat colors that are already in your wardrobe.
I know for me, I gravitate towards browns, golds, maroons.
These colors already are in my wardrobe and I know that they're going to work.
They're going to be interchangeable with other pieces.
Now, occasionally you'll see turtlenecks out there with unique weaves, such as maybe like
a cable knit design.
This right here isn't going to really have various colors in it, but it is going to have
a distinctive weave, a texture to it that you're going to be able to see even from a
distance.
These sweaters are going to be more towards the heavier looser type, made to be worn as
outerwear.
They can be layered under certain circumstances, but they're going to be more casual.
These, also as well I do think they're a little bit harder to pull off, but if you already
know that you like turtlenecks, you want to try something different, then definitely check
these out.
And, specifically in and around the collar area, you are going to see sweaters out there
that have ribbing in the collar.
This, again, is going to take more particular types of fold.
Usually, the single fold over, these are going to be heavier on the outside.
And the ribbing here is an old school way of actually giving a little bit of elastic.
Before they had elastic materials, they would actually weave it in this way and it would
actually return to its original shape if washed properly.
So the idea here was to provide just a little bit of, you know, get it closer fitted to
the neck to keep the wind out.
Now, what about patterns actually in a turtleneck sweater?
So, whenever you see colors, you see variations, you see stripes going across, these in my
opinion are going to be the least versatile type of turtleneck sweaters out there and
you really should be careful.
Don't buy this as your first type of turtleneck.
Go for a solid.
You want something you can mix and match into your wardrobe.
But, again, if you've already got a collection, maybe you got ten of them, you got six of
them and you just want something a little bit different, then go for it.
You already know that you can pull the sweater type off and this will definitely set you
apart from the crowd.
And now, let's talk about the rules of styling a turtleneck sweater.
So, you've probably noticed through this one, I'm wearing a sports jacket.
It's actually a suit and I've actually got matching trousers.
[0:09:55] I wore this outfit the other day and absolutely
loved it.
It was Nutcracker weekend for my daughters and I was spending a lot of time getting in
and out of vehicles, moving around.
It was cold outside, I didn't want to wear a necktie with, you know, a dress shirt.
That was when that’s not as functional that necktie gets in the way.
And, also, it's not as warm.
And this look just really works.
So, that is something I do encourage you to embrace just the functionality of the turtleneck.
It's one of the reasons it's one of my favorite pieces of clothing in my wardrobe.
But, wearing it with a casual suit is such a great look that so many guys don't even
think of.
And, again, you're going with the lighter weight weave.
As you can tell here, I've got this gold colored turtleneck that just I already knew worked
in my wardrobe.
I've got a sports jacket like this and one other sweater and I was like, “You know
what?
This is such an easy look.”
Because you know the neck is covered up, it gives you a little bit more of a formal look
than just simply wearing like a crewneck sweater with this and really you stand out from the
crowd.
And just to hammer down on this.
Notice, I wore this maroon turtleneck right here.
I was out with my wife, again, it was the Nutcracker weekend.
These two days three performances with my daughters.
Yeah, I was the dad there for every single performance.
And I was looking good.
I felt great supporting my girls.
As you can see just had a great date night with my wife and, yeah, I thought I looked
pretty good.
What do you guys think?
Let me know down in the comments.
Now, the whole casual suit may be a little bit too formal for some of you guys, so how
can you pull it off day to day?
Again, simply wearing a heavier turtleneck sweater with dark colored denim, boom, it's
a great look, maybe even gray flannels.
This look right here it's not only going to be warmer during those colder months, but,
again, you're going to stand out from the crowd of everyone else that's just wearing
a jacket with a t-shirt and jeans.
Here you are showing up looking good.
And it's a very casual easy to put together outfit.
That being said, getting back to jackets, you don't have to go with a suit jacket.
You can go ultra casual.
We're talking jean jackets.
Yes, a jean jacket with a turtleneck right here.
This is a great look especially for a younger man.
Maybe you've got a fatigue jacket, you've got a blouson jacket, tons of different options.
Safari jackets look great with the turtleneck.
Classic look right here wearing a trench coat with a turtleneck sweater just, yeah, a really
good look.
And what I love is whenever you match the two together and you go for a bit of contrast,
especially if that turtleneck you can bring in with an interesting color.
Again, repeat what's already in your wardrobe, which you know colors you gravitate towards.
Dark green, another color I absolutely love, easy to match with my brown jackets with my
gold jacket.
I know in this example right here, I'm going back to the blazer jacket, but a blazer jacket
as you know is different than a suit combination.
A blazer jacket, you can wear with jeans.
And speaking of sport jackets, blazer jackets, sports jackets, you guys know I think that
they can cure so many things.
They build up the shoulders, they slim up the silhouette.
And, when it comes to matching and wearing them with a turtleneck, this is probably the
gold mine.
So many different options out here.
And, again, whenever I wear a turtleneck, it's pretty much with a sports jacket and
jeans.
Such an easy combination.
I'm wearing boots, so I've got traction on my feet.
But, because I know that most of my sports jackets are going to be in brown, I can just
bring in a variety of colors of different turtlenecks and they all work together.
But, again, go online look for inspiration.
Maybe you want to go with gray suits, you really like this look right here with a black
turtleneck.
Gray and black, both of these colors just really look great especially if you already
gravitate towards black shoes.
This right here is going to probably be one of the more dressed up looks especially if
you go with just a medium gray or a darker gray suit with that black.
Yeah, that nice monochromatic look is going to slim up your silhouette and just have you
looking awesome.
Another great option here is to bring in that navy turtleneck and mix it with a gray suit.
So many different shades of gray here.
But wearing it with a little bit lighter or medium gray right here or even a charcoal
gray.
This navy, again, navy is so easy.
You can dress it up, you can dress it down.
I know in my wardrobe pretty much works with any sports jacket I want to pull off.
And for a lot of guys that navy turtleneck is probably the easiest place to start.
And, gents, if you've got a coat in your collection, maybe a long coat, maybe an overcoat, maybe
a top coat, something that's got a little bit of style to it that you don't get as many
miles out of, but you want to wear more often.
Guys, look to just simply wear an easy pair of nice dark colored trousers with a turtleneck
right there.
This combination, again, it's a form of layering.
I know you're not wearing technically a jacket with this.
And if you've got the build, you can easily pull this off.
It's just an elegant look especially if you're walking about town, if you're going out with
friends you want to look and you know you're not going to probably take that coat off,
this whole combination right here just really pops and can grab attention in a very elegant
and stylish way.
Now at this point, you may be thinking footwear.
What's going to look great with the turtleneck?
Well, guys, I got you covered how to style Chelsea boots as an adult man.
I think Chelsea boots and a variety of other styles and boots look great with a turtleneck
sweater under the right circumstances.
But, I cover all that in this video right here.
Go check it out.
It's a good one, I think you'll enjoy it.
And, magically when you click that right there, you will go to the video.
I also link to it down in the description, but, guys, go check it out, solid video.
[0:14:52] End of audio