I’ve always thought of silk scarves as… how do I put this… well, as an older lady thing. At Neiman Marcus they are all tucked neatly into rows behind glass displays. Salvatore Ferragamo, Emilio Pucci, Hermes — not something you want to tie around your neck unless you are wearing a matching suit and Birkin bag and attending your grandaughter’s debutante ball.
However, with soft candy prints popping up from Chanel and other classic designers, I’m starting to notice them more and more on younger celebs, especially since the Alexander McQueen “skull” scarf made famous by Kate Moss and Liv Tyler. I remember reading “The Devil Wears Prada” and trying to imagine how Miranda Priestly wore her discontinued white Hermes scarves.
I’m somewhat drawn to this one by Golden Goose with the stark black and white architectural print. Such a simple accessory to add to a black tank and jeans for a casual lunch. (On sale for $99 at aloharag.com)
I’m not sure if I’d ever be brave enough to wear scarves of color, so I think I’ll start very basic. Maybe go with black and whites, and definitely longer/skinnier scarves for now. I have a short neck so I doubt I’ll ever be able to “tie” a scarf around my neck.
Do you wear silk scarves? If so, how do you dress it down, and what do you pair it with?
17 responses so far ↓
1 kng // Jul 18, 2008 at 9:47 am
silk scarves instantly make an outfit more fun- with a tank or casual button down with rolled up sleeves and worn in jeans, it just elevates a look. i also love them with my biz cas attire at work.
2 Jen // Jul 18, 2008 at 10:03 am
I’ve purchased a couple of scarves when I’ve fallen in love with their prints, but I just don’t know how to wear them, except tying them to my bag or using them as a belt. Any ideas (including pictures!) you have would be great! My scarves tend to be longer, so they might not be best tied around the neck. Thanks!
3 Martha // Jul 18, 2008 at 10:23 am
oh i wear them all the time… most of the time i wear them with a white tank or something really simple and let the scarf do all the talking.. i do all kinds. they usually tend to be long but now i am trying out smaller ones
4 Lindsay // Jul 18, 2008 at 10:37 am
I have several longer, thinner silk Missoni prints. They are all variations of the signature zig zags in super fun and bright colors. Since they are longer I usually wrap them loosely around my neck while wearing a blazer and shorts or sometimes with sleek black sheath dresses a la Audrey Hepburn. I have a Chanel chain print in an over sized square that I roll tightly and tie several times as a sort of necklace, usually with jeans and a tee.
5 pemora // Jul 18, 2008 at 12:05 pm
i usually tie mine around my waist, sort of like an obi belt. i’ve never been able to pull off the around-the-neck look.
6 Jenn // Jul 18, 2008 at 1:44 pm
i steal them from my mom and i wear them whenever! even if you just drape one around your neck without tying it, it just adds a pop of colour to any outfit. i sometimes tie them around my upper arm or just loosely knot it around my neck and let one end fall forward and the other fall back. let your instincts guide you =)
7 sarah // Jul 18, 2008 at 1:45 pm
The dangerous thing about wearing silk scarves is looking like you have no neck. I own tons of silk scarves but have always wimped out at the last moment when i want to wear them and just tie them around the handle of my handbag.
8 nadarine // Jul 18, 2008 at 4:15 pm
I acquired about 35 vintage silk scarves from my mom’s dresser in high school, plus my collection of “location scarves” (apparently, in touristy towns, at one point buying a scarf emblazoned with the name of the town and pictures of its main attractions was THE thing to do! they show up at vintage stores all the time).
I tend to fold them either kerchief-style and cover my hair with them, leaving the bangs out so I don’t look bald, or folding them into a skinny rectangle and wearing it tied as a headband.
9 SRR // Jul 19, 2008 at 12:21 am
I have a couple of beautiful vintage scarves that I tend to wear with more casual outfits. I would tie it around my neck with a square knot and let the ends fly where they may. Because the prints/colors are so bold, I love pairing the scarves with a gray t-shirt (and let the scarf do all the talking) or a brightly-colored tank top (to complement and also draw down the boldness), and then a pair of straight-legged dark jeans and pumps for a modern look.
Since my style isn’t a “classic” one, I hardly wear the scarves with more formal outfits. But the few times I did wear it for work, I’ve worn it as a belt or around the neck with a simple v-neck sweater. Sometimes I’d wear a blazer with straight-legged/skinny pants to look more preppy.
10 Mariann // Jul 19, 2008 at 7:28 am
Here in Norway silk scarves has been the big thing for a long time. It started with the palestina scarves, but last fall people started using regular silk scarves and wear them like a palestina scarve. The silk scarves had some colour and did not look like a palestina scarcve, the trend did go on all fall, winter and spring.
You fold a square scarve in two ,so its a triangle, and knot the ends in youre neck, so you have a big v (or small, depending on the size of the scarve) on youre chest.
There are also people using scarves as hair a band, that looks goood to. You can use a long or a big square if you fold it right.
I like the one around the neck, but I assosiate it a but to much with stewardesses and think its great if you work with service, but not if you are a woman who wants to be taken seriously in a man dominated work.
When I was on holiday in Rome I had one in my hair, it fell off and I put it around my wrist and that actually worked! It had much colour, you could not se a pattern, but I got comments on how good it looked
11 Dragonfly>! // Jul 19, 2008 at 8:10 am
I really like this black and white “Golden Goose” scarf you have pictured here. I think that it would be very versatile.
I have been wearing, and collecting silk scarves for years. I find them facinating, and the art work incredible.
Those little drawers you describe at Neiman Marcus make me feel like a little kid at a candy counter and they are seriously dangerous on the wallet.
I think that one can define their own style with scarves, but it all depends on how you tie the scarf. Hermes has for years given out little booklets with the purchase of their scarves, and recently they changed to these wonderful “Knotting Cards”.
There is much being said today in style articles that 2008 is the year of the scarf. That makes this scarf collector very happy.
12 Sarah // Jul 19, 2008 at 12:16 pm
I wear silk scarves on a regular basis and get complimented every time. They are a wonderful way to add pattern, color, or texture to an outfit AND are inexpensive (great vintage scarves can easily be found for $1 or less at good thrift shops). This is a wonderful way to elevate your style and to avoid being a label/brand ad – a pursuit in which I take immense pride.
13 Susanna // Jul 19, 2008 at 3:34 pm
I tie them in my hair (like a headband) and on my bag. (Although that means I have to be careful where I put my bag, since nice silk scarves really shouldn’t be washed).
Occasionally I’ll wear one around my neck, but not tied. I roll it up and wear it open around my neck.
14 savvygal (savvymode) // Jul 31, 2008 at 10:42 pm
i love to use scarf as a belt or halter tops.
15 Emma // Aug 6, 2008 at 4:21 pm
I wore a silk scarf the other day to jazz up an outfit and it was so much fun! I wore it with a simple white shirt and dark man-style jeans. I got many comments about it. So I say yes… embrace the style.
16 Emma // Aug 6, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Well to clarify a little… I wore the scarf tied around my neck in a bow… but it was small so it didn’t look cutesy bow-ish… chic and understated.
17 Maria // Aug 6, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Silk scarves have always been a source of much wonder for me. Growing up my mother had an incredible collection, which she was so kind to pass along to me when I left the nest at 18. I haven’t looked back! They’re the best way to tie your hair back, cover an impromptu love bite (how tacky!), or add a waist to an otherwise shapeless dress (the knots come open after a bit though). Most Hermes scarves come with a pretty nifty ‘tying guide’ (which you can find pretty easily online) If you’re a thrifter, check out the ‘by the pound’ shops, you can get beautiful ones for $0.60!
Leave a Comment