Stay informed with free updates
Simply register at Style myFT Digest – Delivered straight to your inbox.
It’s easy to see the appeal of wrapping yourself in thick cashmere, pumpkin spice latte in hand, on a frosty morning, with a blue sky and crisp leaves underfoot. But have you tried using public transport lately, when daily temperatures can fluctuate between 4°C and 16°C mid-afternoon, leaving everyone regretful? And that’s before you enter the arctic winds of an air-conditioned office where the cold cuts through your shirt. Or sit on a plane where the temperatures are Baltic or subtropical.
For urban professionals looking to negotiate these hostile microclimates, simply layering knitwear is the only way to go. Buffy Reid, founder of the British knitwear brand &DaughterShe had moody weather on her mind when she launched the Underpinnings collection (a series of superfine cashmere T-shirts, cardigans, polos and crewneck sweaters) in, well, July. “Technically, it’s the hottest time of the year,” he admits. “But people travel, it’s hot and cold, and they’re looking for versatile wardrobe items.” Reid had been coming up with lighter knitwear to complement its traditional sweater offering, having seen a shift in off-season shopping. The final thread, supplied by the Scottish manufacturer. Todd and DuncanIt is a blend of 64 percent cashmere and 36 percent cotton. “The cotton gives it that lovely breathability and a slightly cooler finish. It’s not a confusing winter sensitivity – it can be worn all year round.” Since then, the Emer cotton and cashmere T-shirt has become a bestseller. “A knit top seems like a misnomer, but it has a certain elegance to it.” I too had my doubts about its usefulness, but now I am a complete convert.
The moody weather may also have inspired the return of that most traditional ensemble: the twinset (wear it with or without pearls). Seen on the AW24 runways at Prada (in two-tone combinations), Miu Miu and Chanel, it adds an element of sparkle to the strange weather season. Reid has reintroduced the combination into his offering at &Daughter because it seems so relevant again. As she observes: “She’s a bit Rachel Green in Friends – easy but still elegant. Some customers have bought a t-shirt. “Then they bought the cardigan.”
Dutch knitwear brand Extreme Kashmir has long advocated (perhaps unsurprisingly) for year-round cashmere. Their latest “extra fine” fabric is a super fine fiber that feels like silk and lends itself to tank tops, t-shirts and shawls. “It almost looks like a nightgown, it’s very light,” enthuses founder Saskia Dijkstra, a knitting nerd whose 20 years of manufacturing experience for brands like Joseph and Jil Sander left her with a little black book of expert suppliers and factories. cashmere in Hangzhou. , Porcelain. Extreme Cashmere’s latest innovation for SS25 is a cashmere wool fabric that combines 70 percent merino wool with 30 percent cashmere, offering a lighter, drier feel. “From the beginning, we’ve focused on layering garments, especially layering heavier cashmere pieces,” she says. “We’ve also seen customers mix and match different qualities, such as using cashmere instead of cotton and cashmere.”
María Lemos is one of them. customer. When we speak, she’s on vacation on the windy Greek island of Patmos, where she has a house, and is wearing an Extreme Cashmere cotton and cashmere dress. “Tonight I will take the boat to Athens and the temperature drops 10ºC on the boat, so I will add a cashmere sweater on top,” he reports. As owner of the carefree Marylebone boutique Mouki Mouhas seen a clear shift in customers looking for capes. “We sell clothing very well: T-shirts, turtlenecks, underwear to wear under the shirt. I bought these Casey Casey merino turtlenecks in bright colors. [for the shop] – I didn’t want to store them, they were very expensive. They sold out in a week. “People bought them to layer under a shirt, adding color to a neutral base,” he says.
On the subject of merino wool: get rid of those dusty slanders. The superior breathability and moisture-wicking properties of merino wool mean it can still preserve an aura of elegance. In sheep inca London-based knitwear brand that allows customers to track the supply chain of its New Zealand merino wool sweaters via an NFC tag attached to their hems, demand for thinner layers has skyrocketed 35 percent year over year. “Our transition layers perform particularly well in the UK, where the contribution to sales is 10 percent higher compared to the rest of the world,” says James Morgan-Jee, head of production at Sheep Inc. Meanwhile John SmedleyLong-sleeved extra-fine merino wool polo shirts are a cult item among Parisian fashion connoisseurs (the appropriately luxurious “truffle” shade is on trend).
new york designer Mary McManus He is another very united evangelist. Her namesake brand began showing sheer fabrics in 2021; The sheer polo style was the best-seller of the spring 2024 collection. “It strikes that perfect balance between feminine transparency and a more masculine austerity that I like,” he says. “I also like to layer thinner fabrics on top of each other, or wear them around my neck as a scarf or cape.” Equally notable are Attersee‘s Whisper, knitted from a blend of fine gauge Italian cashmere, merino wool and silk for an elegant, streamlined finish.
If this all sounds like anorak territory (and it’s true that analyzing knitwear compositions may be unfamiliar to many shoppers), then consider it a rational response to a strange climate and an economy where every pound counts. As Philip Larkin might observe, “Autumn has caught us in our summer clothes.” Increasingly, that’s a good thing.