Top 10 Most Flattering Ways To Style Your Turtleneck

There are a few tips and styling tricks to making the turtleneck work. Click through for suggestions on the most flattering ways to wear a turtleneck.

Ahh, the turtleneck. A clothing staple that has been around since the 15th century and for good reason. THEY KEEP YOU WARM! But the turtleneck often gets a bad rap. Women with broader shoulders or ample bosoms are often discouraged from adding them to their wardrobe. And let's face it, Steve Jobs did not help the turtleneck movement. There are however a few tips and styling tricks to making the turtleneck work for almost anyone.

10 Tips to Flattering Turtlenecks

Wear a supportive (read underwire) bra. This is first and foremost the most important piece to wearing a turtleneck. The turtleneck will only accentuate the breasts and the last thing we want to accentuate is a set of sagging boobies.
Layer it under a button down. One of the tips that I often tell my well-endowed clients when shopping for shirts is to steer towards V-necks. It helps to elongate your torso while at the same time making the chest less prominent. You can cheat this look with a turtleneck simply by wearing one under a button down shirt. Keep the shirt unbuttoned all the way down to your waist and it will work just like a v-neck.
Wear your hair up. Keeping your hair up helps reduce the bulk around the neck area and can exaggerate the effect of a long swan-like nape. My favorite way to wear my hair when wearing a turtleneck is to pull it into a high ponytail. The placement should hit right at the most prominent point of the head or right at eye-level. It has the effect of lifting the face up and accentuating the cheekbones.
Keep your earrings delicate. Once again, when wearing a turtleneck you will want to eliminate the volume around your face. A delicate earring gives you just that little bit of sparkle without adding more mass to the area.
Try a front tuck. To reign in an oversized turtleneck sweater, give it a front tuck. It helps to define a waistline and give you a longer leaner line.
Go monochromatic. To create the look of a tall drink of water, try wearing the same color of your turtleneck on your lower half.
Layer another shirt underneath a loose turtleneck. By wearing a loose neck turtleneck, you can add a pop of color up around the face area to draw the eye up.
Layer it under a dress. The added layer of warmth makes dresses a viable option even during winter months.
Do a fitted turtleneck with a full skirt. For slender and full figured women alike this way of wearing a turtleneck is extremely figure flattering.
Layer, layer, layer. C'mon the point of wearing a turtleneck is to keep you warm and toasty. So, why not add some more layers while you are at it. Using a tissue weight turtleneck as your base layer will keep the bulk to a minimum. Add close-knit sweater and finally a blazer to finish the look..

A few more interesting facts about turtlenecks.

They are referred to as "Polos" in the United Kingdom and "Skivvies" in Australia.
During the 50's all existentialists donned the black turtleneck.
Later, it became the mark of a "Preppy".