How to use a scarf as a quick pick-me-up for your wardrobe

Published: Monday, January 03, 2011, 5:49 AM  By The Associated Press 

http://blog.syracuse.com/cny/2011/01/how_to_use_a_scarf_as_a_quick_pick-me-up_for_your_wardrobe.html

 
 

A scarf can be a wardrobe's workhorse. It adds color, style and, especially as the weather turns wintry, warmth.

Now, if you only knew how to tie the thing.

Don't go for a complicated knot, says Talbots' fashion director Tammy Vipperman. Flair largely comes from confidence, so any hesitation about tying the scarf will show, she adds, but there are plenty of easy knots that still kick up your outfit.

"If you can fold laundry and tie a basic knot, you can wear a scarf," she says.

Her tips: 

Silk square

Lay the scarf flat on a table, taking two opposite-end corners and folding them into the center, giving you two straight edges. Keep folding those outer straight edges into the center until you have, essentially, a scarf sash. Wrap it around your neck, setting up the knot slightly toward one side.

Pull the two ends into an X to tie. The key to the flattest, most flattering knot will be to cross the ends, so the outside piece is on the bottom, closest to the body, and then pulling that over the top and then down through the knot, so it will stay in place and not flap around, Vipperman says.

"Most people think this is the most intimidating scarf," she says. "But you can wear it with a cardigan, denim, a little heel -- with a necklace. Let's bust the myth right now that you can't wear a scarf and a necklace." 

The noodle

Vipperman's word for the knit scarf with built-in ruffles is the "noodle," because it stretches, bends and bounces. "You can sort of do whatever you want with it. It's a terrific base," she says.

Talbots via The Associated PressThis product image courtesy of Talbots shows their Crystal sprinkled scarf. A scarf can be a wardrobe's workhorse. It adds color, it adds style, and, especially as the weather turns increasingly wintery, it gives warmth.

You get an Elizabethan-collar effect if you keep looping it around to the bustline level, tying it loosely at the back of the neck. Go a little tighter, and you have a turtleneck.

You also can wear it long and loose, not really tying it at all. 

The wrap

This is the scarf you want with you all the time. It goes under a coat, over a coat, with a low neckline or a high one, and it's the perfect thing to keep at the office, where the temperature can go up and down, Vipperman says.

She doesn't like it to be worn perfectly, though. She prefers to fold it corner to corner to make a triangle, put it over the shoulders on a slightly uneven bent, tie it with the outside piece now coming out from under the knot and then create a one-sided bow. That gives it "flourish," she explains.

Other than the delicate silk scarves, most are tied underhanded with the end coming out the top to create volume. Scarves are a sign of personal style, and, for the most part, you want to draw attention to them, she says. 

Cashmere

The classic winter scarf with fringe at the edges is nice because it's practically flat when worn under a coat, Vipperman says. She prefers the "gentleman's fold," which really isn't a fold: The scarf goes around the neck, and the sides are flat against the body and positioned like lapels of a jacket.

An alternate is to fold the scarf in half -- so its length is two layers -- make a loop at the fold, wrap the scarf around the neck, pulling the loose end through the loop. Vipperman likes to see this look in a bright, cheerful color against a neutral-colored coat. 

The Boho

This scarf is longer, thinner and usually with fringe on the end. Because of its length, it's really the only shape you can successfully toss oh-so-casually over the shoulders. Start with the end that's going to hang in front, positioning it about midthigh. Wrap the rest of the scarf around the neck, crossing in the front and then to the back, letting the other side hang down. It'll be hanging down the same side as the piece in the front.

Vipperman, though, wants people to experiment on their own and do whatever is comfortable with their scarves -- as long as they're wearing them: "A scarf can be 'runway,' a head-to-toe basic, whatever you want. Play with them and have fun."