50 Flannel Quotes Celebrating The Iconic Comfy Fabric

By Clifton Sankofa

School Leader, Language Arts Expert & Master Quote Curator

Published March 15, 2023

Get warm and snug with our flannel quotes!

You will enjoy our flannel quotes if you are a fan of soft, warm fabrics.

Tell us what you love most about flannel in the comment section.

What is flannel?

Flannel is a loosely woven fabric people enjoy using because of its soft, warm nature.

The original flannels were made of worsted yard or carded wool, but today’s flannel is made from wool, cotton, or synthetic fibers.

Check out these interesting facts about flannel below:

Flannel naturally repels water
Everyone of all genders wears flannel
In the UK, they use flannel as a word to express lies or hogwash

Flannel is sought after because of its soft characteristic.

You can thank napping for flannel’s soft nature, but we are not talking about sleep.

Achieving the signature feel requires the fabric to be brushed on both sides to raise the fine fibers that give the flannel its unique feel.

Where does flannel come from?

If we want to find the origins of flannel, we have to start in Wales during the late seventeenth century.

The Welsh are no strangers to cold weather.

Textile workers had the brilliant idea to use leftover sheep’s wool to create fabric.

The result was a flannel, a fabric that is comfortable, warm, and wicks moisture.

Flannel spread in popularity among the Welsh and eventually became the practical cloth of choice for working-class people.

Flannel fabric took little time to make it across Europe and the world.

Flannel was the cloth of choice during the Industrial Revolution.

Flannel spread in popularity in the United States; even the US military included a flannel layer in soldiers’ uniforms during World War I.

The resurgence of flannel

With roots in Wales in seventeenth-century farming communities, one wouldn’t think that flannel would become the face of a musical movement from the nineties.

In the early nineties, the grunge movement formed, and flannel became the staple of grunge fashion.

Again, in the two thousand, flannel became a fashion statement for the hipster movement.

Today, a variety of people love flannel, from musicians to outdoor adventures, laborers, and those who just want to be comfy on the couch.

To learn more, check out our flannel quotes below.

You will also enjoy our article on blanket quotes.

Short flannel quotes about keeping warm and being nostalgic

For many people, flannel brings back fond childhood memories.

1. “I’m awake in nothing but his flannel.” — Gavrielle

2. “So stay warm in that flannel that I left on your bed.” — The Cardboard Swords

3. “The only pair of trousers a guy needs are grey flannel.” — Nick Wooster

4. “Cutoff flannel and a mullet. That’s what I’m rolling with.” — Morgan Wallen

5. “I’d love to get pajamas. Good, nice and warm flannel ones.” — Charlize Theron

6. “Flannel shirts, denim, Converse, a guitar, messy hair? That’s literally me.” — Alessia Cara

7. “I’m happy to be at home with the kids, in my flannel pajamas; that’s a treat.” — Patsy Kensit

8. “Flannel shirts, denim, Converse, a guitar, messy hair? That’s literally me.” — Alessia Cara

9. “I made early choices in life, even about cloth; I liked flannel and not polyester.” — Patti Smith

10. “I yearn for the halcyon days of the man in the gray flannel suit because at least that guy had some flair.” — Rumaan Alam

Rocking flannel quotes about classic American fashion

Flannel has been popular since its inception; people love to spice up their style with flannel.

11. “Beauty is a mystery. You can neither eat it nor make flannel out of it.” — D. H. Lawrence

12. “A gray flannel suit by Thom Browne or Tom Ford can be worn a billion ways.” — Nick Wooster

13. “Oh, here’s my flannel. The character’s in the way you wear it. It takes your shape while you keep it on.” — Justin Timberlake

14. “I’d much prefer to be in my flannel pajamas with a cup of Night-Night tea and a book, thank you very much.” — Jenny Han

15. “The ‘Britishness’ debate too often descends into worthy flannel about common values and mutual respect.” — Damian Green

16. “I’ll wear a gray flannel jacket with a white shirt, gray flannel tie, beat-up fatigues, and a dress shoe or Carpe Diem boots.” — Nick Wooster

17. “The flannel shirt and jeans, for example, those are the clothes I wear. If I wore anything else on stage, I wouldn’t feel comfortable.” — Rory Gallagher

18. “I had short hair, grey flannel pants, and a button-down shirt. I think it worked because nobody else was looking that way at that time.” — Loudon Wainwright III

19. “Grunge anthems found their way onto the soundtracks of television commercials, and Dodge Neons were hawked by kids in flannel shirts saying, ‘Whatever.’” — Douglas Rushkoff

20. “It’s one of those things that hindsight makes more apparent. It’s like looking at pictures from 10 years ago, and you notice the flannel and the ripped jeans. At the time, it didn’t look to you like a real fashion trend.” — Erin McKean

Flannel fabric quotes about what keeps us warm

Flannel keeps us warm on those cooler nights.

21. “In wintertime, I like to wear button-down flannel pajamas, and in summer, I prefer to wear, well, nothing.” — Phoebe Tonkin

22. “I’m a third-generation American, so I like that American-looking, Northwestern style with a flannel or jean shirt.” — Cody Horn

23. “I was a tough kid with the jeans, the concert shirt with the flannel over it, the comb in the back pocket, and the feathered hair.” — Cameron Diaz

24. “I have cotton or flannel sheets, depending on the weather. They have to be ironed, and I get my bed changed nearly every day.” — Martha Stewart

25. “Ageing doesn’t mean giving up on style and individuality; it doesn’t mean abandoning fashion and living in comfy slippers and flannel knickers.” — Twiggy

26. “You know, I’m very particular about my sheets. They have to be one hundred percent cotton, with a high thread count. Only cotton. No flannel.” — Ryan Murphy

27. “I like to do face steam, so heat up a flannel, press it onto your face, and then press a cold one on afterward to close the pores. It’s inexpensive!” — Georgia May Jagger

28. “I was raised on Nirvana and flannel shirts and Rage Against the Machine, and I sort of describe my youth as rebellious and always fighting the system.” — Casey Neistat

29. “A lot of the reason my look is the way it is, is because it’s really easy to put on a sundress every night if I have to perform – or just wear jeans every day and a flannel or something.” — Lana Del Rey

30. “Although I’m not a big fan of flannel, it gets a little hot down there, if you know what I mean.” — Joel Madden

Flannel quotes about American culture, politics, food, and style

These quotes remind us that the entire world thinks of America when its thinks of flannel.

31. “The omelet tasted like flannel.” — James Blish

32. “I’m all about flannels and layers, so that’s pretty much what I rock.” — Josh Hutcherson

33. “I can go all over the world with just three outfits: a blue blazer and gray flannel pants, a gray flannel suit, and black tie.” — Pierre Cardin

34. “Is civilization only a higher form of idolatry, that man should bow down to a flesh-brush, to flannels, to baths, diet, exercise, and air?” — Mary Baker Eddy

35. “If it weren’t so off-putting for my co-workers. I’d wear my flannel, one-piece ‘Hannah Montana’ pajamas, like all the time!” — Ryan Reynolds

36. “If I’m wearing blue jeans and flannel, it’s going to be a country show, and I’m going to get my twang on.” — Grace Potter

37. “We must slaughter a million or two foolish Malays in order to give them the comforts of flannel petticoats and electric railways.” — Henry Adams

38. “What a tiresome place America would be if freedom meant we all had to think alike or be the same color or wear the same gray flannel suit! That road leads to the conformity of the graveyard!” — John Oliver Killens

39. “There are so many cruel decisions parents have to make when their child dies. The funeral director requested a sheet for the coffin, and I sent the cozy flannel one, pale blue with happy snowmen, that had just been put away with the winter linens.” — Ann Hood

40. “I shall wear white flannel trousers and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each. I do not think that they will sing to me.” — T. S. Eliot

The best flannel quotes honoring bed spreads and nineties nostalgia

Millennials have a special admiration for flannel; these quotes help us remember why.

41. “God wears white flannels.” — James Cameron

42. “Thousands of people know my flannel knickers, and though I know this may seem flirtatious, it is not. I am a saint.” — Leonora Carrington

43. “You know, I’m very particular about my sheets. They have to be one hundred percent cotton, with a high thread count. Only cotton. No flannel.” — Ryan Murphy

44. “My mom did this in the ’90s. She’d put a bandana in her hair, cutoff jeans, and throw flannel, and I just remember looking at her thinking she was the most beautiful supermodel ever.” — Jessie James Decker

45. “Our sainted aunts’ prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for what we want. Murder is a patriotic act if you commit it in a uniform; it is the blackest sin if you kill someone while wearing a gray flannel suit.” — Nicholas Samstag

More flannel quotes to consider

46. “Every now and then, when I’m feeling a little nostalgic, I put on my ‘grunge tuxedo’ – flannel shirt, long shorts with long underwear underneath them, and a pair of Doc Martens – and dance around the house to Tad records.” — Dave Grohl

47. “Everything was fine until you moved out there. That’s right, Mom, we have mandatory lesbianism in West Hollywood. The Gay Patrol busted me, and I was given seven business days to add a significant amount of flannel to my wardrobe.” — Coley Sohn

48. “There is no lock strong enough nor wall thick enough to keep Death out,” he murmured, his lips close to my ear so that I could feel the puff of his breath against my skin. The ends of a couple of his braids had found their way under the collar of my flannel night-shirt and tickled the base of my neck. “Are you speaking literally or metaphorically?” — Jenna Black

49. “When Holly Madison, Hef’s former chief girlfriend, came out with a tell-all book about life in the Mansion, the most bizarre revelation was that, prior to the man’s infamous orgies, all of the live-in girlfriends were required to put on matching pink flannel pajamas.” — Monica Hesse

50. “Always ‘duty.’ I am sick of the word. They are a lot of old blockheads in flannel vests and of old women with foot-warmers and rosaries who constantly drone into our ears, ‘Duty, duty!’” — Gustave Flaubert

Are flannel and plaid the same thing?

The short answer is no; flannel and plaid are not the same things.

Remember this: All flannel can be plaid, but not all plaid can be flannel.

Flannel is traditionally manufactured with the classic gingham pattern, tartan, or plaid.

If you remember, flannel was first produced in Wales, and even though the Welsh did not historically wear the tartan, the plaid pattern has been popular in that part of the world for generations.

Many people associate this pattern with being flannel, but all flannel is not plaid.

Plaid is a pattern; it can be printed on almost any fabric.

You often see someone wearing a plaid pattern, but their clothing is made from cotton or polyester.

Flannel remains one of the most popular choices because of its durability, versatility, warmth, and ability to keep moisture out.