Turtlenecks
In the winter, turtlenecks are my go to. It’s like a thick long sleeved t shirt with a built in scarf. Sometimes I think about the symbolism of either choking, or refrained communication. But the comfort and ease gets me every time. Easy enough to throw almost anything over. A button down, a sweater and even a polo shirt (debatable).
I remember wearing them all the time when I was a kid, probably until 5-6ish. Then never again until high school. I don’t know what happened, maybe they dropped out of style and I didn’t even notice. So high school came around and I had to wear a jacket and tie every day. Well, I quickly found out one could avoid the button down and tie, by wearing a turtleneck! What do you know, they sold them at the school store, with the Gunnery crest on the neck. As I’m writing this I think I want to get one.
That’s when my experimentation really began. Through trial and error, I found out that mock turtlenecks do not count. I also found out that I couldn’t wear a button down over the turtleneck. Apparently, if you’re wearing the button down, you have to wear the tie. I had a more flamboyant button down that had bright colored stripes on the back placket (is that right? where the buttons are attached), and every button was different. I paired that unbuttoned with a non-school mock neck. Mr. Elgin would not have it. Wish I had a picture, I probably looked crazy. Especially with a braid.
Anyway, it turns out that all of those are acceptable IRL. They’re so versatile. I wear plain cotton ones lounging at home. A slim fitting black cashmere one looks great on its own or dressed up with a blazer. Casually, I leave them unfolded, but with a blazer, I turn it down. My point is, turtlenecks are great and I think you’ll agree. Very comfortable, very versatile.
It feels a little weird throwing a bunch of pictures of me up on the internet in a turtleneck, but hey, I'm a one man brand right now.
Can you tell by now that orange is my favorite color?