Quality jumper recommendations for males

February 15, 2010 8:34 AM

Can you help recommend a decent, stylish jumper to a male? I have quite particular tastes, listed inside.

Given that the cold weather in Britain shows no signs of going away soon, I'm looking for more jumpers. I find it hard to find clothes because of my particular tastes. I don't want to spend too much, but I want something of quality. I have searched both in real-life shops and on the internet. Maybe there are some manufacturers which I have been overlooking.

I find that a lot of jumpers and sweaters in shops today are too thin. I don't want them to be thin because they stretch too easily and they don't keep one as warm. I also don't like v-necks, which is annoying because it seems to be that the majority of jumpers sold here are v-necks. I would be very happy for recommendations of stylish, thick knit, crew neck jumpers made of cotton or of wool.

posted by jpcooper to clothing, beauty, & fashion (10 answers total)

J. Crew looks like it's expanding into England, and so I'd recommend their crewneck lambswool sweater, which should fit all of your criteria. Unfortunately, it's gone from their website (here it was), presumably until next fall. While this doesn't help you now, should you find yourself in a similar situation next year, it's worth consideration.
posted by The Michael The at 8:50 AM on February 15, 2010

I found this merino wool sweater from Woolrich which looks very nice. It comes in a variety of colors and sizes. I also found a mock-neck merino wool sweater from JoS. A. Bank. Are either of these close to what you're looking for?
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 8:51 AM on February 15, 2010

How about this Hackett crew neck available at John Lewis department stores?
posted by jonnyploy at 9:13 AM on February 15, 2010

Hi, these are great suggestions. I should have maybe said that I'm looking only for things sold in the UK. I've looked at the Hackett sweaters, but they're not really thick enough and they're a bit expensive. I'm looking for something at most 55 pounds.
posted by jpcooper at 9:39 AM on February 15, 2010

Wow, you're in Scotland! Have you tried second-hand stores? I'd imagine the area would be full of amazing bulky sweaters, if you just know where to look. The net is pretty good, but for a really bulky, nice sweater, a traditional knitted item would be wonderful for you. Granted, they can be very expensive, but since you're a student and not a tourist, you should be able to ask around and find something off the beaten path.
posted by amtho at 9:49 AM on February 15, 2010

I have similar requirements and my wife got me one like this - not sure it's exactly the same, but it's a Debenham's house brand I gather. Not strictly crew, but not V either. And warm as blazes.
posted by sagwalla at 12:58 PM on February 15, 2010

Just general advice: Cotton will stretch, no matter how thick. Wool is naturally elastic so it will retain its shape better.

Also note, in taking care of your sweaters/jumpers, do not hang them, as this stretches them. Instead store them folded and flat.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:56 PM on February 15, 2010

Thanks for the info on wool. I didn't know that. Until now I've bought mostly cotton because buying an initial woollen garment would mean washing a single item separately, but I suppose it might make sense to buy only wool if it's meant to keep its shape better, as stretching annoys me a lot.

I have indeed looked in second-hand shops, but haven't found anything satisfactory in them. Maybe nicer things would be found in Edinburgh's.

I do like the item at Debenhams, and may go to have a look at it.

As the result of further searching on the net, I have found this and this. I've found that sites like this normally make their clothes very large, so I'm going to have to check my measurements.
posted by jpcooper at 3:59 AM on February 16, 2010

Ask around, or do some other research, to find the best second-hand shops. They vary in quality, at least over here in NC.
posted by amtho at 8:13 AM on February 16, 2010

Ok, here's a bit more general advice about wool sweaters/jumpers.

1. When you wash them, handwash them, then dry them flat. NEVER use a clothes-dryer with heat and agitation, because it will shrink them. (Probably you know this already, but I mention it only to be sure.) There are some wools that are treated to be washable, but don't put them in the dryer.

2. To help with online shopping: If you want thicker material, then you don't want cashmere, lambswool, alpaca, or most merino wool -- these are prized for their thinness and lightness. They're very warm for their weight, but if you want the heavy-weight stuff, avoid these.

3. Different knitting patterns will result in a stronger, stiffer, sturdier fabric, and if you can recognize these it will streamline your shopping. Examples of these are:

3A. Stranded color knitting, which is a way of producing small color patterns as found in Fair Isle or Scandinavian patterns. To create the color patterns -- for example, black and white dots -- the knitter uses both black and white yarns. So garments made with these techniques are in effect double-thickness, sturdy and warm. Find one in a shop (or in your wardrobe) and look inside, and you will see the two colors being doubled-up.

Note that color patterns composed of big blocks of color, such as a picture of a monkey? reindeer? in the middle of a sweater of a different color, are produced by a different process that does not double up the yarn, so does not yield the benefit of extra thickness. The doubling-up happens with patterns that seem to be composed of "pixels" of alternating color, where the knitter is going "black-white-black-black-white" so must bring both yarns along the whole circumference of the garment.)

Icelandic sweaters are the thickest and stiffest knitted sweaters that I've encountered, because they use stranded color knitting and are made of Icelandic wool which is coarser than other wool. (It may be hard to find one that is in your price range, though.)

3B. Raised all-over stitch patterns like Aran patterns, cabled patterns, and ganseys or guernseys* These are warm and stiff because the ridges and valleys of the pattern in effect increase the thickness/insulating power of the fabric.

*Note about guernseys: They typically have a higher neckline than the crew-neck, but that link above goes to a crew-neck guernsey. I traditionally think of the guernsey as having a "bib" of cabled pattern on the front and back, but the one I have linked here is plain. The other classical feature of the guernsey is that it's very tightly knit, which should make it a stiffer fabric, though it may not be "very thick" feeling.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:18 PM on February 18, 2010