Knitwear season is finally upon us, and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a list of the ways we love our beloved cold weather favourite.
1. Natural fibres allow the skin - a major organ - to breathe, unlike wearing synthetics.
2. It’s not all about cashmere. Tight merino wool knits feel as close and as structured as tailoring.
3. Cuddly to wear, and to cuddle. In our digitised world, people need a (knitted) excuse to reach out and get tactile.

With all of the above in mind, designers have been applying their skills to knits with an enthusiasm that arguably has not been witnessed since the 1970s. Back then, pioneers, notably Missoni and the late Sonia Rykiel, offered up incredibly fluid styles as a contra to the domination of the strict skirt suit. Somewhere in between, knitwear has been dumped in the ‘frumpy’ category, the ‘norm core’ cliché and in the environs of street casual.

In my chest of drawers (with respect to my British Island roots) I have a collection that includes; a Guernsey knit (the slashed neckline is flattering); several merino wool crew necks, a cable knit cape from Uruguay (also a sheep country) and an Aran knit from Scotland and all in challenging, folky proportions. What’s in your knitwear portfolio? They tell stories, these knitwear things.

The designers below are delivering a new style of knitwear, pieces that chime with the past yet work in the modern world. Ruffles, slim lines, fleek motifs, outsize proportions, rain repellant wools? I can’t say it’s new outerwear but it feels good.