A cowl neck is a

neckline The neckline is the top edge of a garment that surrounds the neck, especially from the front view. Neckline also refers to the overall line between all the layers of clothing and the neck and shoulders of a person, ignoring the unseen undergarmen ...

consisting of a loose draped fabric collar. The term can describe the neckline of a wide variety of garments, from the draped neckline of an evening gown to a raised neckline of knitwear similar to a

turtleneck A polo neck, roll-neck (United Kingdom, South Africa), turtleneck (United States, Canada), or skivvy (Australia, New Zealand, United States) is a garment—usually a sweater—with a close-fitting collar that folds over and covers the n ...

. The neckline was introduced in the 1920s by

Madeleine Vionnet Madeleine Vionnet (; June 22, 1876, Loiret, France – March 2, 1975) was a French fashion designer. Vionnet trained in London before returning to France to establish her first fashion house in Paris in 1912. Although it was forced to close in 1 ...

based on her study of ancient Grecian sculptures. The style is named for the

cowl A cowl is an item of clothing consisting of a long, hooded garment with wide sleeves, often worn by monks. Originally it may have referred simply to the hooded portion of a cloak. In contemporary usage, however, it is distinguished from a clo ...

, a feature of monastic dress that serves as both a collar and a hood.

History

20th century

Inspired by the draped garments of antiquity, Madeleine Vionnet created the cowl neckline in the 1920s using the

bias cut For woven textiles, grain refers to the orientation of the weft and warp threads. The three named grains are straight grain, cross grain, and the bias grain. In sewing, a pattern piece can be cut from fabric in any orientation, and the chosen grain ...

technique that she helped to popularize. The cowl neck enjoyed the peak of its popularity in the 1930s. Cowl neck sweaters were popular in the 1970s. Dresses of the

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

era also frequently had cowl necks. Cowl necklines were a common feature of

slip dress A slip dress is a woman's dress that closely resembles an underslip or petticoat. It is traditionally cut on the bias, with spaghetti straps. The slip dress looked like an undergarment, but was intended to be seen, and through the use of lace an ...

es made in the 1990s by designers such as

John Galliano John Charles Galliano (born 28 November 1960) is a British fashion designer from Gibraltar. He was the creative director of his eponymous label John Galliano and French fashion houses Givenchy and Dior. Since 2014, Galliano has been the creat ...

21st century

Two of the most notable garments of the early 2010s featured a cowl neckline. Lady Gaga's cowl-necked meat dress, created by

Franc Fernandez Franc Fernandez, full name Francisco C. Fernandez, is an Argentinian artist, fashion designer, and creative director based in Los Angeles and New York. His most well-known work is his meat dress design for Lady Gaga, but has also worked with sev ...

, caused a stir at the

2010 MTV Video Music Awards The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards took place on September 12, 2010 at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, honoring the best music videos from the previous year. Chelsea Handler hosted the event, the first woman in sixteen years – since the 1994 MTV ...

. At the 2011

wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton The wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton took place on Friday, 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London, England. The groom was second in the line of succession to the British throne. The couple had been in a relationship since ...

Pippa Middleton Philippa Charlotte Matthews (née Middleton; born 6 September 1983) is an English socialite, author and columnist. She is the younger sister of Catherine, Princess of Wales. Born in Reading and raised in Bucklebury, Berkshire, Middleton attende ...

attracted media attention for wearing a form-fitting dress featuring a cowl neck. Designed by Sarah Burton for

Alexander McQueen Lee Alexander McQueen CBE (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was a British fashion designer and couturier. He founded his own Alexander McQueen label in 1992, and was chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001. His achievements in fashion ...

, the dress quickly generated demand for

high street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

replicas. The cowl neck experienced a resurgence in the late 2010s as part of renewed interest in

1990s fashion Fashion in the 1990s was defined by a return to minimalist fashion, in contrast to the more elaborate and flashy trends of the 1980s. One notable shift was the mainstream adoption of tattoos, body piercings aside from ear piercing and, to a muc ...

Vivienne Westwood Dame Vivienne Isabel Westwood (née Swire; born 8 April 1941) is an English fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream. Westwood came to public notice when she m ...

has been cited as an important driver of the trend.

References

{{Reflist Fashion Necklines

History

20th century

21st century

See also

References