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Your mom was right: you should be wearing a scarf. From a practical perspective, the best men’s scarves will help to keep the cold from infiltrating the confines of your winter coat, and will double as a helpful face covering when freezing winds are singeing your T-zone. More importantly, though, they’ll just plain look good, which is no small thing when the weather gets so dreadful your outfit options are limited to heavy-duty parkas and dump truck-sized snow boots. (And frankly, the aesthetic value alone should be all the reason you need to invest in one now, before temperatures really start hitting subarctic lows.) To help you find just the right scarf to add some much-needed pizzazz to your fall and winter fits, we surveyed dozens of the finest neck warmers from budget-friendly mall chains, age-old British brands, and everything in between. Here are the best men’s scarves to knot up pronto.
Look, we understand that $430 is a lot for a scarf. But you’re here for the best, right? And Begg & Co., the 154-year-old Scottish wool savants, unabashedly make the best. Their scarves are all of the things a great scarf should be: knit from rich and densely woven cashmere, which keeps things as balmy as a late June afternoon and feels suppler than a Persian kitten against your skin; enough surface area to fold and wrap in any manner you wish; available in a wider array of colors and patterns than you’d find in the Met; and, not for nothing, the exact right number and length of tassels. We’re particularly fond of this color-blocked indigo muffler, which has all the versatility of navy blue in a way more striking package.
On the most brutal winter days, when it feels like you’re stepping into a snow cone machine cranked to the max—you might feel wary of subjecting your precious pure cashmere to such punishing conditions. Fair enough. In those instances, a burly cable-knit scarf—the kind a 1950s dock worker might wear—is the way to go. Ralph Lauren’s version injects a healthy dollop of nylon for a pitch perfect blend of hardy utilitarianism and grade-A comfort.
You know that stupid soft blanket you keep on the couch, the one you cocoon in for repeat-viewings of Scrubs? Ever wish you could just wrap that whole thing (minus a stray Thai takeout stain or two) around your neck and then head outside to face the day? Apparently, so did Loewe designer Jonathan Anderson. Crafted using plenty of real-deal mohair, this is as fuzziest, most enveloping thing this side of a Snuggie that you can reasonably wear in public. The fact that it’s enveloped in attractive, painterly navy-and-gray stripes doesn’t hurt, either.
Looking to get the maximum amount of warmth from the least amount of scarf? Nanamica designed this puffer jacket for your neck to be as compact and efficient as a Japanese sedan. The specially-treated Kodenshi down traps warmth like nobody’s business, and the press stud closure holds it all in place despite its minimal length.
Ever since Uniqlo started incorporating cashmere into its repertoire of winter-ready gear, the days of shelling out top dollar for a quality piece of the fabric have been numbered. The Japanese patron saint of perfectly-executed basics now utilizes the ultra-luxe material in a slew of cold weather accessories, like beanies and scarves. At just $50 a pop full-price, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better coziness-to-dollar ratio anywhere on the market.
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