WINTER EDIT : PART 1 – BEST KNITWEAR TO KEEP WARM IN STYLE

In a series of Dapper Lounge Winter Essentials Edits, Part 1 looks at the layer crucial in keeping you feel toasty while looking first class; knitwear.
With its first month and the official beginning of Winter, June has seen a pretty solid start to the cooler period of the year, even if it did take a little while for winter to find Sydney’s address. So it’s only fitting to get the woolly warmers out and rug up in your best knitwear and still look sharp.

From sweaters to pull-overs, shawl cardigans and roll-necks (or turtlenecks however you chose to call it), lets take a look at some options to expand your knitted repertoire.

A versatile piece that can not only add style to your weekend wardrobe but laying this under your blazer gives a sophisticated accent to your outfit for a winters day. Check out the below sartorial styles to include in your cardigan collection.

From merino wools and the luxe feel and quality of cashmere, the cable knit sweater is a sure staple for layering come what most call the hibernation season.
Cashmere is hard to pass up when it comes to knitwear and pending on your budget, this yarn (along with others) does come in different grades of quality which makes it a little easier to attain and include in your winter wardrobe lineup.
If you’re after premium, then Ralph Lauren’s Purple Label pictured above might just be for you. The production process of their cashmere cable-knit uses “goats raised in the mountains of Mongolia, where the high altitude and cold climate result in a fine, soft under fleece. Only the whitest long staple fibres are used to ensure the best dye results, as well as exceptional warmth and incredible softness. After this meticulous sourcing process, they’re spun by artisans in a century-old Italian mill, washed using pure water from the Swiss Alps.”

A bold way to stay warm, opt for strong checks, strips or graphic knits which are a fun way to inject extra character and statement while introducing a wider colour palette to your look. The jumper featured above by Marcs in a recent Dapper Lounge shoot is a great piece to pair with a shirt and tie for casual Friday attire.

No winter is without the classic and timeless V-neck or crew neck knit. Although from season to season the on-trend colours may change, this piece is a given when it comes to the ‘shirt, tie and jumper’ combo. A shirt and tie with any of the below, teamed with a smart blazer and your ready to go.
Fabric like camel as used in the below Saint Laurent’s ‘Camel Sweater’ available at Mr Porter, are another brilliant yarn with a super soft hand feel and have great thermo-regulating qualities.

Before Steve Jobs adopted this piece as his daily uniform and ahead of Steve McQueen showing us gents how to don this growing winter staple, the roll neck was originally worn on the backs (and necks) of men as utility wear and dates back a good 600 years. The exact beginnings of this piece aren’t well documents but we do know that the French and Brits dreamed up the term the ‘roll neck’, with the US choosing a more casual adaptation, the ‘turtleneck’.

Gauge is key to knowing how to pair this piece with your look. The gauge refers to the number of stitches per inch of fabric and a lightweight/fine thin gauge rollneck uses a thinner needle, thinner yarn (thread) giving many more stitches per inch to create the garment; which is a perfect piece to pop under your tailored suit or blazer with a chino and  loafer combo. Heavy gauge knits are less form fitting and chunky, ideal for an ‘off duty’ look layered under a trench or pea coat with chelsea or chukka boots.