# What's the stretchy tube/scarf thing called that you pull over your head & goes around your neck? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 10, 2015, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497 "2015-01-10T19:56:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/1 "2015-01-10T19:56:22Z")
I had one of these years ago and would like to get another one but cannot recall what they are called specifically. Short, stretchy tube of polyester or soft wool fabric you pull over you head and it covers you neck like a scarf. Got one originally at an Army-Navy store over 30 years ago but it is long gone. ---
**Author:** ![kbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kbear)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/2 "2015-01-10T20:05:34Z")
Hubby calls the one he wears for skiing a gator…although that’s what I call the tubes I wear over my trouser legs when walking in bad weather. The fancy knitted neck tubes are called a snood. ---
**Author:** ![Whiskey\_Dickens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9fc348/32.png) [@Whiskey\_Dickens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whiskey_Dickens)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/3 "2015-01-10T20:30:32Z")
> [@kbear](#): > > Hubby calls the one he wears for skiing a gator…although that’s what I call the tubes I wear over my trouser legs when walking in bad weather. The fancy knitted neck tubes are called a snood. Nitpick, it’s spelled “gaiter.” [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Gaiter](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Gaiter) Regarding the neck tube, I call mine the Turtle fur, after the brand name that commercialized the product. I use it like the term Kleenex. [Turtle fur](http://www.turtlefur.com/Necks/b/5441975011?ie=UTF8&title=Necks&searchSize=36) ---
**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/4 "2015-01-10T21:01:12Z")
I always called it a neck warmer when I wore one for skiing. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/5 "2015-01-10T21:02:50Z")
Balaclava. ---
**Author:** ![Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ac8455/32.png) [@Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Your_Great_Darsh_Face)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/6 "2015-01-10T21:10:31Z")
Maybe, but the definition of “balaclava” I grew up with would entail something designed to cover the head as well, and shaped accordingly - like an inverted L almost, with a neck-hole one end, a face-hole the other, and a built-in bend like the heel of a sock. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/7 "2015-01-10T21:19:39Z")
Neck warmer is the only term I’ve ever heard. As mentioned above, a balaclava is more like an open faced ski mask. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/8 "2015-01-10T21:52:35Z")
A cowl? ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/9 "2015-01-10T22:06:24Z")
> [@kbear](#): > > Hubby calls the one he wears for skiing a gator…although that’s what I call the tubes I wear over my trouser legs when walking in bad weather. The fancy knitted neck tubes are called a snood. A snood is a thing that covers your hair. You hear it all the time among Orthodox Jews, because women who don’t feel like wearing a wig, for whatever reason, may put on a snood. I own one, and a couple of head scarves, as well as a beret, because I hang out in Orthodox circles sometimes, and I don’t want to offend people. The thing you pull over your head, I’ve always called a “dickie,” although I guess most people think of a dickie as a false shirt. If you want a turtleneck, or some other kind of collar showing under whatever your top shirt is, but you don’t want to wear two shirts, you wear a dickie. However, I had a knitted cotton one as a kid that I wore for warmth over my clothes, under my coat, and my mother called it a dickie. ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/10 "2015-01-10T22:13:54Z")
This ↑ ↑ ↑ ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/11 "2015-01-10T23:20:38Z")
Military refers to it as a gaiter, but that doesn’t mean that is correct. I have always called it a neck-warmer, hubby calls it a balaclava (but he also calls sweatshirts "sweaters). ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/12 "2015-01-10T23:24:09Z")
[It’s a neck gaiter, and you can buy them at LL Bean.](http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/65592?page=adults-polartec-power-dry-neck-gaiter) Confusingly, you can buy[leg gaiters](http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/61473?feat=gaiters-SR0&page=men-s-winter-walker-gaiters&attrValue_0=Black&productId=1017269)there, too. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2015, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/13 "2015-01-10T23:27:26Z")
Back when I used to ski/snowboard, we called them a ‘turtle fur’. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/14 "2015-01-11T01:01:38Z")
I have always called it a gaiter. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/15 "2015-01-11T03:29:45Z")
Snow country here. Neck Gaiter. Regular gaiters are for you boots/shoes. Neck gaiters can double as a hat though. Big ear band. Very handy. I use the boot/shoe gaiters more often though for deep snow when plowing. I don’t ski any more though, neck gaiters where great for that. Both really help to keep you warm. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/16 "2015-01-11T03:35:23Z")
Neck gaiters and balaclavas are two different things. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/17 "2015-01-11T03:47:44Z")
Never heard it called a neck gaiter around here. We always call them neck warmers. Definitely not the same thing as a balaclava. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/18 "2015-01-11T05:18:31Z")
I call mine a “headsleeve” as I have forgotten the technical term. I love that thing. ETA: Wait, I’m talking about something different and a little longer. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/19 "2015-01-11T05:29:14Z")
You can cut your own out of a leg of an old pair of sweatpants. For cold weather motorcycle riding I put it over my head covering my face, put the helmet on and strap it, then through the visor tuck the fabric down enough to see. Works pretty good. Have to do Houdini- like breathing at stops to prevent fogging, though. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497/20 "2015-01-11T07:54:35Z")
I’ve only recently heard them referred to as “neck gaiters”. I’ve had leg gaiters but really don’t think we’re talking about the neck equivalent. They remind me of the leg warmers bunched around their ankles that many girls wore after “Flashdance” was released, so I mentally name them “neck warmers”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-stretchy-tube-scarf-thing-called-that-you-pull-over-your-head-goes-around-your-neck/709497.md?page=2)