A named neckline · one sweater in this range has it
Funnel Neck Sweaters for Men
“Funnel neck” is a specification, not a marketing word, and it describes something you can check with your hands. This page sets out what the collar actually does, how it differs from a mock neck, a turtleneck and a crew, and why adding a quarter zip to one turns a single sweater into three necklines.
A funnel neck is a collar that stands straight up from the shoulders and does not fold over. It is cut wider than the neck, so it stands away from the throat in a column instead of gripping it — the flare is where the name comes from. It is not a turtleneck, which is tall enough to fold back on itself. It is not a mock neck, which stands but sits tight against the throat. One sweater in this range has one: the Men's Quarter Zip Cashmere Sweater, $120, whose catalogue neckline is listed literally as funnel neck.
The funnel neck we make
Men's Quarter Zip Cashmere Sweater
- Ribbed funnel neck with a quarter zip. Open it flat or close it to the chin.
- 100% Grade A Himalayan cashmere, 12–16 micron, Chyangra goat fibre.
- Knitted in our Pokhara workshop, Nepal.
- One free size — 65 · 50 · 60 cm laid flat. One colourway.
Checkout is on yeshelpinghand.com, our parent workshop. This site has no cart of its own.
Full photography, care and the complete size discussion are on the Men's Quarter Zip Cashmere Sweater page.
What a funnel neck actually is
Every neckline is a decision about two things: how high the fabric rises above the collarbone, and whether it touches the neck. Almost all the confusion between funnel, mock, turtle and crew comes from people describing height and ignoring contact.
A funnel neck rises — usually a few centimetres of rib — and then stops, without folding. Because it is cut on a wider circumference than the neck it sits inside, it leans outwards rather than hugging inwards. You can put two fingers between the collar and your throat. That gap is the defining feature and the reason the neckline exists: it gives you the warmth of a standing collar without the sensation of something closed around your neck, which is the specific thing most men who dislike turtlenecks are actually objecting to.
The trade is that a funnel neck holds its shape rather than draping. It is structural. A soft, loosely knitted funnel collapses into a shapeless cowl, which is why they are almost always ribbed, and why the rib is worth looking at before you buy one.
Funnel neck vs mock neck vs turtleneck vs crew
Two questions separate all four: does the collar stand up, and does it touch your throat. Everything else follows from the answers.
| Funnel neck | Mock neck | Turtleneck | Crew neck | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collar stands up | Yes | Yes, shorter | Yes, tallest | No — a flat band |
| Folds over | No — too short to fold | No | Yes, and is meant to | No |
| Touches the throat | No — stands away | Yes, close | Yes, all round | Only at the base |
| Adjustable | Yes, with a zip | No | Only by unfolding | No |
| Room for a scarf | Yes | No | No | Yes, outside it |
| Over a stiff shirt collar | Not designed for it | No | No | Yes — sits flat over it |
| Warmth at the throat | High | High | Highest | Medium |
| Under a sport coat | Bulky at the neck | Workable | A deliberate look | Cleanest |
| In this range | Yes — $120 | No | No | Yes — $155 |
We do not make a mock neck or a turtleneck and are not going to imply otherwise. Three sweaters is the whole range.
Why the quarter zip changes how a funnel neck wears
A funnel neck on its own is a fixed shape. Put a zip down the front of it and the collar becomes the one adjustable part of the garment — which is the whole argument for this sweater, and the reason a quarter zip and a funnel neck are so often the same product.
| Zipped to the top | The collar closes into a full standing column. This is the warmest configuration we make at the throat — warmer than the crew neck, and far warmer than the V-neck. It also covers a shirt collar entirely, so the sweater reads as a standalone piece. |
|---|---|
| Half open | The collar splits into two short lapels that fall outward. The visual result is a shallow V — softer than a proper V-neck, and it will frame a shirt collar instead of pushing it up. |
| Fully open | The funnel lies flat around the shoulders and behaves like a wide crew with an open placket. This is the version to wear indoors. |
That is not a styling theory. The workshop's own description of this sweater says the ribbed funnel neck and zip are there to be layered “zipped up for extra warmth or open for a relaxed look”, and it is the single most consistent thing reviewers say about quarter-zip cashmere across the category: warm without bulk drew nine mentions in the competing products we sampled, nine of them positive and none negative.
It is also the answer to a very common problem. If you want more warmth at the neck than a crew gives you but a turtleneck makes you feel closed in, a zipped funnel is the neckline that solves both at once, because you can undo it in a warm room instead of taking the sweater off.
Specification
| Neckline | Ribbed funnel neck |
|---|---|
| Closure | Quarter zip, down the front of the collar |
| Composition | 100% cashmere |
| Grade | Grade A Himalayan |
| Fibre diameter | 12–16 micron |
| Breed | Chyangra (Nepali cashmere goat) |
| Origin | Mustang, Manang & Dolpo · above 3,000 m |
| Construction | Knitted in our Pokhara workshop |
| Made in | Pokhara, Nepal |
| Colourways | 1 — Muted Grey-Blue #6B6D7A |
| Collar height | To be confirmed from the workshop |
| Zip length | To be confirmed from the workshop |
| Ply | To be confirmed from the workshop |
| Weight (GSM) | To be confirmed from the workshop |
Collar height is the number that would settle every question on this page, and we do not have it yet. It is marked unconfirmed rather than estimated, because a funnel neck is defined by exactly that measurement.
One size, and it will not fit everyone
| Funnel neck (free size) | 65 · 50 · 60 cm |
|---|---|
| S (crew & V-neck) | 64 · 48 · 60 cm |
| M (crew & V-neck) | 66 · 50 · 62 cm |
| L (crew & V-neck) | 68 · 52 · 64 cm |
| XL (crew & V-neck) | 70 · 54 · 66 cm |
| 2XL (crew & V-neck) | 73 · 56 · 68 cm |
Length · chest · sleeve, garment laid flat, in centimetres.
Read across: the 50 cm chest is a medium, the 65 cm body sits between small and medium, and the 60 cm sleeve is the shortest we make. If you wear L, XL or 2XL in our other two sweaters, this one will not fit you, and there is no larger size to order. That is the real cost of a free-size garment and it is worth saying before you scroll to the button.
If the free size rules it out, the two necklines that run S to 2XL are the Men's Crew Neck Cashmere Sweater and the Men's V-Neck Cashmere Sweater, both $155.
Who a funnel neck suits, and where it does not work
It works if
- You want throat warmth without a turtleneck. The standing collar does the same job; the gap means it never feels like it is holding onto you.
- You wear an overcoat. A funnel neck under a coat covers the gap a scarf would otherwise fill, and looks deliberate rather than improvised.
- You want one sweater that changes through the day. Zipped outside, half open at a desk, fully open in a warm room.
- You have found crew necks slightly cold at the neck and V-necks colder still.
It does not work if
- You need to wear it under a sport coat or blazer. The standing collar sits exactly where the jacket collar wants to be. A crew neck cashmere sweater is the cleaner line there.
- You wear a shirt and tie under your knitwear. That is a V-neck job and always has been.
- You wear L and above. Free size, one size, no exceptions.
- You want a colour. There is one colourway. That is not restraint, it is a small workshop.
If you are choosing between the two full-size necklines rather than the zip, that comparison has its own page: V-Neck vs Crew Neck: Which Cashmere Sweater?
Questions about funnel necks
What is a funnel neck sweater?
A sweater whose collar stands straight up from the shoulders and does not fold over. It is cut wider than the neck, so it stands away from the throat in a column rather than gripping it — that flare is where the name comes from. Funnel necks are usually finished in rib, and are often paired with a zip.
What is the difference between a funnel neck and a mock neck?
Contact with the throat. A mock neck is cut close and sits against the neck all the way round, like the bottom half of a turtleneck with nothing to fold. A funnel neck is cut wide and stands off the neck, leaving a gap you can put a scarf or a shirt collar into. Both stand up; only the mock touches you.
Is a funnel neck the same as a turtleneck?
No. A turtleneck is tall enough to fold back on itself and is meant to be folded. A funnel neck is short enough that it cannot fold, so it stays as a single standing column. If a collar folds over, it is a turtleneck; if it stands and touches the throat, it is a mock; if it stands and does not, it is a funnel.
Can you wear a funnel neck sweater under a jacket?
You can, but it is the least good of the three necklines we make for it. The standing collar adds bulk exactly where a jacket's own collar sits, so the two compete. A crew neck gives a cleaner line under a sport coat. A funnel neck is at its best under an overcoat, or with no jacket at all.
Does the funnel neck sweater come in different sizes?
No. It is made in one free size only — 65 cm long, 50 cm across the chest, 60 cm sleeve, measured flat. That is a medium chest with a small's sleeve. If you wear L, XL or 2XL in an ordinary sweater it will not fit you, and there is no larger size to order.
Why does the quarter zip change how a funnel neck wears?
Because it is the only part of the collar you can move. Zipped to the top the funnel closes into a full standing collar and is the warmest thing we make at the throat. Half open it splits into two short lapels and reads as a shallow V. Fully open it lies flat and behaves like a wide crew. One garment, three necklines.