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Whether you need a sleek business look, elegant evening style, or casual picnic wear, a shawl can offer that extra bit of oomph to make your outfit perfect. Shawls are generally rectangular in shape and big enough to cover your shoulders and part of your arms. Unlike wraps and blanket scarves, they are not big enough to wrap around your body or shoulders more than once and certainly won’t make for an effective blanket. They are fantastic to add some warmth without needing a full-on jacket, though, and also provide an elegant way to keep warm without hiding your carefully selected outfit underneath. Although generally worn by women, men can also wear shawls. They’re suitable for all seasons and come in a variety of patterns, colors, and fabrics. To help you choose the best look to incorporate these seasonal trends and your personal style, we’ve picked out some of the leading shawls of 2024.
Comparing the Top Shawls of 2024 in Detail
Achillea Shawl — Best Overall
Key Features
- Made from woven viscose
- Available in 40 colors
- 75-inch length, including tassels, and 28-inch width
- Soft with a subtle shiny finish
With an incredible range of 40 colors, Achillea offers the perfect shawl for any occasion. Whether you need understated elegance, bright pops of casual color, or business savvy style, there is an option that will suit your needs. They are also great for changing your daytime look into evening style effortlessly. These shawls are super soft and beautifully elegant. Their light weight makes them great to wear in any season, yet the blend of tightly woven fine viscose offers plenty of warmth. They are best hand washed in cold water and dried on a flat surface.
XINQI Shawl — Runner-Up
Key Features
- 18 color options, including black, ivory, red, yellow, blue, pink, white, and lavender
- One size fits all
- Made from sheer chiffon
- Front button fastener with stitched edges
If a formal sheer shawl is what you need, there couldn’t be a more perfect accessory for your gown. These chiffon shawls are elegant with a buttoned front, allowing you to drape them over your shoulders and secure them in place if needed. They are silky soft with a natural flow and ideal for brides, proms, and other formal occasions. Plus, they pair well with short and long dresses as well as formal style ladies' pants suits. With a choice of 18 colors, you’ll be sure to find the perfect option to keep you warm without covering up your gorgeous outfit.
RIIQIICHY Shawl — Honorable Mention
Key Features
- Available in 18 color varieties
- 80-inch length, including tassels, and 28-inch width
- Folds up small enough to fit into a handbag
- Super soft feel with a slight sheen
These soft shawls are a warm and stylish addition to casual or work outfits. Pair bright colors for less formal events and opt for neutral tones for occasions that require a more formal appearance. The shawls come in a variety of colors from bright pink and blue to beige, purple, and black. The material measures 79 to 80 inches long with tassels. This ideal length offers plenty of fabric to wrap around your shoulders or use as a scarf in multiple styles. Although light, these shawls provide great warmth and are versatile enough to wear throughout each season. For the best fabric care, use a gentle cycle or hand wash and avoid harsh detergents.
Furtalk Shawl — Contender
Key Features
- Available in 24 solid colors
- 76-inch length, including tassels, and 27.6-inch width
- Soft against the skin
- Lightweight but still very warm
Furtalk’s super soft and silky shawls have a luxurious quality that feels gentle against the skin. The shawls are available in 24 solid colors and make gorgeous gifts for family, friends, bridesmaids, and work colleagues. With a 76-inch length, there is enough fabric to wrap around your shoulders and keep you warm without feeling heavy. These shawls are ideal for travel, too, as they fold up small and are easy to pop into a travel bag or purse to spruce up your outfit or provide extra warmth without lugging around extra jackets.
Sakkas Shawl — Also Consider
Key Features
- Available in 40 colors
- 72-inch length plus 3-inch tassels on each side
- 28-inch width
- Soft fabric with subtle sheen drapes elegantly
With a 78-inch length, these gorgeous shawls have been seen not only draped over shoulders and worn as scarves but even as chair tie-backs for wedding celebrations. Their subtle sheen and medium weight allow them to drape effortlessly in an elegant style and transition any outfit from casual to formal in just a few seconds. With wrinkle-free qualities, this is a great option for travel and to always have on hand in your purse. Plus, they aren’t too thin, which makes them durable for many wears throughout the seasons.
Buyer's Guide: Find The Perfect Shawl
Unlike thick woolly scarves and knitted ponchos, shawls are not seasonally specific. They can be worn at any time of the year and the material the shawl is made of will most likely determine its use. Lighter materials make the shoulder wrap great for summer evenings after sunset when it starts to cool down, while thicker knits can be worn over a turtleneck for added warmth in winter.
Since shawls generally only cover your shoulders and part of your arms and upper back, they aren’t sufficient on their own to use instead of a jacket in extremely cold temperatures. Plus, shoulder wraps come in a magnitude of varieties.
Here are some tips for choosing a high-quality shawl this season.
Choose Colors to Suit Your Complexion
Since shawls are worn close to your face, it is important to choose a color that enhances your skin tone. If you have light skin, steer away from light colors that can dull your complexion. Opt for crimson, orange, brown, jade, emerald green, and darker blue shades. Matching a shawl with the color of your eyes can make your eyes pop especially with blue and green shades.
If you have dark skin, you’ll want to opt for lighter colors. Dark shades of purple, brown, and black can hide your features while lighter colors will create a contrast.
Wearing the right color scarf for your complexion allows you to wear an outfit in colors that would otherwise not suit you. For example, if you would like to wear black for a chic, slim style, but have avoided it because black tends to make you look pale, you can now pair that cute black dress with a suitably colored shawl and look fabulous. The color next to your face is what makes a difference and will inevitably determine whether the ensemble works with your skin tone or not.
Prints and Patterns
Contrary to popular belief, there are times when pattern-on-pattern works. Just as men can successfully pair a printed tie with a striped or checked shirt, shawls with pattern designs can pair well with printed apparel. One of the best ways to do this is by layering big and small-scale patterns. Pairing a small-scale printed blouse with a large-scale patterned shawl allows the small blouse patterns to work as a neutral. Make sure to keep the colors complimentary to avoid overkill.
Brightly patterned shawls are great to jazz up plain and monochromatic outfits, while neutral colors can transform your outfit from a daytime to an evening look.
Fabric and Texture
The fabric and texture of your shawl choice are important for a number of reasons. Different fabrics offer various levels of insulation and warmth, and some materials require special washing and dry care. Most shawls should be hand washed or washed on a delicate machine cycle with a very light detergent or even shampoo. They are best dried on a flat surface after the water has been lightly squeezed out but not twisted too vigorously.
Since you are wearing the shawl around your neck and near your face, you also want to ensure that it does not cause any irritation against your skin, itchiness, or flare-up of allergies. Various wool types provide a lot of warmth but some can be chunky and itchy. Silk scarves are very elegant and great for multiple seasons. Blended materials, such as acrylic, make the fabric cost-effective, lightweight, warm, and durable, while viscose is breathable, smooth, and drapes well. All-natural cotton is less likely to cause sensitive or allergic skin reactions.
Double-Sided
Depending on how you are planning to wear the scarf, you may want to check that the design is reversible and doesn’t have a distinct front and back. This allows you to wear it with either side showing without looking like you are wearing it back-to-front.
Ways to Wear a Shawl
Traditional
Drape the fabric over your shoulders and part of your arms to keep warm or as a style accessory.
Scarf
Gather the width of the shawl to form a long scarf. Drape the scarf around your neck. Pull one side down a little to give it an uneven length in front. Wrap the long side around your neck again, bringing it back to the front. Alternatively, leave one end hanging at the back.
Headscarf
Place the shawl over your head. Drape each end across the opposite shoulder to lightly frame your face.
Other Uses
Shawls can also be used as a beach skirt or wrap. Since they fold up into a small size, they are extremely convenient to put into your bag when traveling and just drape over your shoulders during a flight or at chilly airports. Due to their softness and slight stretch quality, shawls have also been used as baby slings.
