The best menswear finds, especially in the heady, layering-rich climes of brisk autumn and winter days, sometimes feel like unearthing a hidden gem, a familiar piece tucked away in an old closet or within a vintage store. Minus scouring a vintage market, there’s a way to unlock a near-picture perfect sense of cold-weather style with a modern-but-familiar twist: Simply look to the menswear greats, like Steve McQueen or Ernest Hemingway, and consider what they would wear for adventurous pursuits far afield.
The answer, at least as far as sweaters are concerned, is the ever-reliable, ever-distinctive and pleasingly rugged, instantly flattering shawl cardigan.
While the standard button-front, V-shaped placket design of the classic cardingan offers a warm, preppy, Mr. Rogers-esque appeal, the shawl cardigan is built with a beefy foldover collar giving the appearance of, well, a shawl.
So named for British Major General James Thomas Brudenell (aptly known as the 7th Earl of Cardigan), the sweater provides more-than adequate cold-weather protection, the collar frames the face handsomely and it wears as easily over a reliable thermal henley as the tough-as-nails chambray shirt.
Photo via Taylor Stitch
And the one you want this season? It’s the Taylor Stitch Crawford Sweater. It looks like the kind of sweater you’d find draped over a leather chair in front of a roaring fire, and the details get better from there.
After all, the San Francisco-based company hones in on classic Americana with a fresh twist (think reliable Oxford shirts, sturdy yet supple chinos, excellent indigo denim and beefy organic cotton T-shirts, plus an array of handsome, military-inspired outerwear). On top of all of that, the Taylor Stitch Crawford Sweater is just a darn fine piece of menswear, featuring textured BCI cotton with plenty of texture in its seed stitch build.
The overall effect is a medium-weight sweater that simply feels like home, particularly on frigid autumnal days. The hip pockets, to me, evoke the sort of sweater my great-grandfather favored in the mountains and rolling hills of West Virginia. He’d stand with his hands in his sweater pockets and gaze out the window at the autumn foliage, and you can do the same now with this tasteful homage.
In my own day-to-day years later, I’ve found the Taylor Stitch Crawford Sweater is comfortably worn with a strong cup of coffee on a weekend morning, or else layered beneath a waxed field jacket on an afternoon when the rain won’t quit, and then easily paired with an Oxford shirt for an evening Old Fashioned.
Photo via Taylor Stitch
The stand shawl collar and a range of handsome color options deliver character and a memorable sense of wearability (although timeless Charcoal is this writer’s favorite). This shawl cardigan draws compliments aplenty, feels comfortable yet sturdy out of the box, and will reliably keep its place in your menswear rotation for months and years to come.
Would Hemingway be proud? Would McQueen wear this sweater? A guy can dream.
