Vintage Collars and Wraps

Collars and wraps made of fox, lynx, or mink may not be politically correct by 21st-century standards, but in their heyday, the 1920s and '30s, they were the height of fashion. These neck- and shoulder-adorning garments are also sometimes referred to as stoles, boas, shawls, palatines, pelerines, capes, capelets, mantles, or chokers, depending on their style and shape. Collars and chokers, in particular, wrap close to the neck.

“Mantle” is a general term for a sleeveless outer garment like a cloak or a cape. Some short capes are purely ornamental, made of lace, beaded passementerie, or ruffles, intended to flutter around the shoulder. Other such capelets have fringe or ruching. Full circular capes, made in everything from tweed to velvet, were all the rage in the 1890s, but in the early 20th century, these fell out of fashion and were replace by smaller fur capes like palatines or ruffled or fur-edged pelerines.