Do You Need a Sweater Edit?

Style

Sep 26

Written By

It’s time to think about your sweater game for fall and winter. As sure as hemlines rise and fall and denim shapes evolve from skinnies to wide leg, sweaters have a cycle, too. This season you may feel lackluster in the knitwear you’ve been collecting over the past four or five years. Depending on what styles you have represented, a sweater edit could be in order.There are small details that can start to date sweaters, like the overall length and the shape of the arm. If you’ve been moving ahead by incorporating some higher waisted pants into your wardrobe, the shorter sweater lengths could be the perfect silhouette for lengthening your legs. In previous years we’ve relied on heels to make our legs look longer in pants. But if you love the look of sneakers, cropped sweaters will offer you the same visual illusion when you pair them with high waisted denim (or pants). All we’ve done is change where the length is added -- top instead of bottom!The other impact to sweaters and knitwear is the influence of the 80s. This means over-sized pieces, which are front and center for many designers. Rest assured, this doesn’t mean you have to incorporate the shapeless styles of the past. However, pay attention to how tight the loops are and the density of the yarn. In other words, everything is scaling larger than in previous seasons. Those tightly woven, fitted knits are going by the wayside in order to give you more room! In my opinion, that’s a good trend, like offering more legroom on airplanes!Other designers will still stay true to their audience who love them for what they do best. Aldo Martins and Isabel de Pedro have distinct design practices from which they don’t deviate. This keeps their clients connected to the brand and builds trust in the collection season to season and year to year, regardless of the trends. If you have ever purchased the iconic knitwear from Aldo Martins from TSALT, you will no doubt love what they have produced for this season. I have two favorites from Aldo Martins that I consider "elevated sweatshirts," meaning they are casually comfortable but special enough to wear out to dinner, too. Both of these styles are representative of the streetwear.Below, I’ve given examples of things to look for when you are shopping sweaters and knitwear this season!