I love how preppy/outdoorsy/covertly chic these are, and of course I am a complete sucker for this grey and yellow turtleneck—a really elegant color combination, in my estimation.
Likewise, I’m enchanted by the pink-on-red (or is it dark pink?) on this cute option.
OK, I’ll be honest: part of me feels like this one looks like a novelty Halloween garment. But another part of me loves how excellently graphic it is.
An easy cardigan that I might size up on for layering purposes.
Leave it to the pattern-mixers at Alex Mill to come up with something as crazy/fantastic as this collared cardi.
The part of me that wants to try to wear more colors thinks it would be fun to try this fantastically happy choice.
This is actually a fleece pullover and not a sweater at all, and it’s pricey too, but I really dig the pattern and colors.
A subdued choice that almost looks hand-knit.
Once again, I surprise myself by liking something brown.
A perfectly traditional option for throwing on whenever.
And finally, a Barbour turtleneck that looks ideal for weekend lounging.
I just ordered the Etoile fleece version but I went for the white and black pattern. I dug the colorful one, but decided against it at checkout! I hope the inside is soft. I’ll have to return it if it feels stiff inside!
Very pretty! I feel that this is definitely an East Coast thing. I only knew about them from fashion magazines and I still can’t think of any time I’ve seen one in the wild here. Maybe it just never gets cold enough? Or is it too specifically preppy?
I’d love to see some of these on GOACA. Am feeling like I’m neither old enough nor young enough.
Luckily, I can avoid this sweater category entirely. I’m an inverted triangle shape and the one and only time I tried on a fair isle sweater I took one look and it came off faster than you can blink. Talk about looking like a she hulk, I couldn’t believe a sweater could do that. I suppose pear shapes can really rock this though.
Ha! I belatedly realized that I’m also an inverted triangle, so I can relate. Fair Isle sweaters are cute on other people… too twee and fussy usually on me. I did see this one recently on fitness clothing brand, Kari Traa, and loved the Sail (black) and Dove (gray) versions. Would totally get either, except for the polyamide (one of those microfiber shedding fabrics) in the otherwise wool blend. https://www.karitraa.com/en-us/sundve-knit/622654.html?dwvar_622654_color=SAIL&dwvar_622654_size=XL&cgid=109646
More on micro plastics being shed in laundry: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0269749118346104
And congrats, Kim!!!
Thanks, Jax!
Would love to see more of you in your posts Kim…you are hidden behind the scenes like Oz. Been reading your blog a long time and have no sense of your overall style or You. Would be fun to see you in an occasional outfit or pics of how you incorporate the home edits in your own home.
Super fun post, Kim! Perhaps I will haunt the resales, lying in wait for a wool one. (Laying in wait? Grammar is not my strong point, I regret to say.)
I am being absurd and replying to myself because I want to make clear I’m not criticizing your round-up, Kim — all of these styles look pretty, and they’re what’s available from a suite of brands at all kinds of price points. I’m just a grump about this. I was given that Marant pullover as a gift last year (different pattern), and while I wear it often and I love the look of it, and it keeps me warm, the interior feels almost like fiberglass, its so poly-poly-polyester, and so seeing the original retail price is rather a shock. The Alex Mill and Barbour pieces seem fairest in terms of blend (all wool, some fine merino, for $250, or 80% with nylon at under $200). The rest of it I don’t understand, though I really don’t understand a thing besides what I read here about the business of fashion.
The TL; DR: I love your blog and selections, Kim, and I hope me bitching about prices isn’t seen as a critique of you, at all, because I read other bloggers and snarl at the entries (I know) because everything is “edited for grown women” which absurdly now somehow means “I can’t pretend I live like others, and this sweater made in dubious circs is still $1200 and please don’t even acknowledge this, readers.” And you aren’t about that shit, which is why we love you.
I love the patterns but am so frustrated by the pricing when I see the fabric blends.
I love a fair isle pattern but am super picky about the details. It figures the one I like is $500! LOL
I love the fleece half-zip.
Echoing other comments here regarding fabrication. I no longer have the patience for high-priced synthetics for many reasons, warmth and durability among them.
That being said, yesterday I did coincidentally wear a hand-knit fair isle that I snatched up from my local vintage store for a mere $8 a few years ago. It’s acrylic but the colour combo (navy with white details) and the just-right boxy fit are worth my while. I feel like resale would be a great resource for a wool fair isle, unless I’ve not realized they’ve become too trendy!
I tried on that first one at BR a few months ago with a thin turtleneck underneath, and while beautiful, it was so incredibly itchy, and I’m not especially sensitive to wool.
On the other hand, I bought that Alex Mill cardigan in red a few years ago, and every time I wear it I get compliments. I love it so much, I’m actually considering the blue.