Knitwear season is upon us, its the time of the year where flimsy sweaters are folded away to the back of your armoire and heavier fabrics become your staple for the foreseeable future only to be interrupted for a fortnight or so by the lurid Christmas jumper. There is nothing more cosy than an oversized, chunky roll-neck jumper, and this season I’m loving Jigsaw menswear’s collection of merino, cashmere and fine wool knits.
Back in the 90’s, before COS and Reiss arrived, Jigsaw Menswear was king of the high street and the go to brand for men avoiding designer price tags but still looking to invest in quality, fashionable pieces all the same. Sadly, when the brand tried to reinvent itself with an edgier feel (remember Uth?), it lost its loyal clientele and eventually the menswear line was abandoned. Until 2012 that is, when Frances Walker fresh from Fahri relaunched the menswear line with a small collection of highly wearable, textured pieces for the every day gent.
So here we are AW2013, and this season Jigsaw has created a relaxed collection of heavy-duty knitwear modelled by a silver fox somewhere with moody weather and lots of pine trees. The vibe is rustic and handcrafted cool, the kind of jumpers you wear on long country walks and cuddled up by the fire in the evenings. Priced anywhere between £85 – £150ish the knitwear isn’t particularly pricey when compared to other high street retailers, particularly as most are made using natural yarns so they should last you the whole of the season and then some.
Inspired by the works of Mark Rothko and Sean Scully, its all about tone on tone colour palettes, block colour and subtle changes in proportion and scale in the way the knit is constructed. Men will be wearing these artisanal knits with wool overcoats, rolled up denim and I-mean-business boots – and us girls? The pieces channel an easy going weekend vibe, but as the smallest size is an S they are unavoidably large if you are petite. For a more feminine look teem your knitwear with this season’s over the knee suede boots and spray on jeans, or for a more masculine look wear with a bomber jacket, indigo denim and some Grenson brogue boots – beanie compulsory. It’s worth noting here, that Jigsaw’s womenswear knitwear line is themed around “elegant androgyny” with a largely neutral palette of cream, navy and grey slouchy cashmere numbers, so you can still channel masculine chic in their women’s aisles too!
These are my faves from the AW13 Jigsaw Menswear knitwear collection, available here.
Keep up to date on Bloglovin | Follow me on Instagram | Like me on Facebook
