Everything I Can (Think of to) Say About Layering Cardigans

OK, let's talk more about layering cardigans. Egad, I love this type of garment. When you live in Toronto, you have the unique opportunity to put on and take off a sweater a minimum 32 times a day: walk to work (sweater off), get to work (sweater on), super hot meeting room (sweater off), freezing restaurant (sweater on). You get the idea. The fact is that slim sweaters span the gap between seasons. They fancy up a sleeveless garment. Seriously, add a scarf and you're the chicest thing that ever happened, 30 seconds flat. They look good with a t shirt or a placket-blouse or a slim turtleneck or nothing.

But the thing is, they have to fit.

I know, I know, you're thinking: Lord, that woman went away for 2 weeks and now she's back - still spouting the same rhetoric - as fast as you can utter the words "proper measurements". What can I say? You don't read this blog for the novelty.

So, just to harp on things, when I say these garments have to fit, this is what I mean:

• The shoulder seam must lie over your own shoulder tip.
• The arms should be fitted, but not sausage-tight.
• The V (if there's a V) should fall at a point that works to visual advantage.
• The length - oh, this is a toughie - should fall at the slenderest point on your own lower torso. That's different for all of us but it means that, if you're short-waisted, you need a cardigan cut for a short-waist - not one cut for a long-waisted person that you buy in a smaller size than your usual.
• By this account, the closure placket must lie directly over the midpoint of your torso - not sliding or pulling - regardless of whether the cardigan is open or closed. That means you can't really cheat by buying a sweater for a wide and long person when really what you need is room in the boobs.
• The cardigan should skim your own torso closely but not tightly. Hint: If it's cut straight in the waist (aka, there's no indent where your own waist would be), move on.

Furthermore, because you're buying something that's already made - and that huge variable has been removed from the equation - there's really no excuse for poor fit. If it fails to meet the dictates above, just say no.

I must have tried on 8000 slim cardigans in the last 2 weeks. 90 per cent of them did not flatter my small-shouldered, short-waisted, voluptuously-busted shape. Can't say it did much for my ego.

But I ended up with these, and I'm very pleased:

 1. Ca Va De Soi black cardigan in viscose and Elite:

Photographing dark neutral colours (especially black) is a total bitch! I did the best I could to give you a sense of the colour saturation in this shot...

Here I wanted to show the cool - extremely resilient - waffle textile. Of course, the arms on this dress-form are quite a bit wider than mine so they, unfortunately, distort the fit in the arm and shoulder. You have to trust me when I say it fits on my body.

2. Theory Jilma Evian Cardigan in navy merino (with a bit of synthetic to promote fabric recovery):

See how this skims the waist? And the V is low enough to draw the eye to one's assets without giving away too much...

My fave feature of this is the cool stripe (part of the knit, not an overlay) on the sleeves. It's just a bit exciting.

Some other things I also want to mention:

• By the time you've tried on 8000 sweaters that don't fit, you're kind of compelled to lose your sticker-shock. It's either spend or walk and these things, well-fitted, don't grow on trees. Remember, they're not closet-garments. You will wear and cart a sweater of this variety all over the world. I'm always amazed when people balk at spending on pricey basics. By parallel example, I wear my jeans 3-5 times per week. I want them to wear well and to last long so I will spend as much on them as on the pair of dress pants I wear twice a month. I'd actually be happy to spend less on the dress pants - if only I could! (That's what making pants is for...)

• On this topic, Ca Va de Soi does not believe in discounting its (undoubtedly fine) product. A bit of info about the company: It was a wholesale operation till a few years ago. (Note to Anon from yesterday: I now remember that I used to buy the pieces from Ewanika on Bathurst just south of Dupont.) Occasionally, I'd find a mark down when a) a lone sweater remained (rare) or b) the style was discontinued but now that the family-run company markets and sells for itself (in addition to wholesaling product to other boutiques), it works with a very specific bias: The stuff is top of the line and it will sell. All items are continuity (with rare exceptions). Any chance of sale you have will be with a third-party seller.

• The fit of this brand is narrow in the shoulders and generally small in the bust. Relatively few of the styles work on me because they end up being too boxy in the waist and too snug in the boobs. Fit in the shoulders often disqualifies me for fit in the chest, but when it works (which is often enough), it's a good scene. There are MANY options to choose from but this brand caters to a slender frame most of the time. The sweater above is actually quite different than most others because the viscose knit is extremely giving (it does snap back). The Large in this style could fit a generous RTW size 14 well, I suspect. I bought the small and I have been known to wear a large in this brand, just to give some perspective.

• The fabrics are fucking awesome. Honestly, amongst the best I've ever felt. The company works with Italian and Egyptian mills. The designs are au courant, elegant and ageless. 

• The price reflects the quality. You'll spend between $200 - $300, before tax, on one of these sweaters. Occasionally more. I choose to think of it like buying a suit jacket - but one that will get much more wear because it's bound to fit better (and be more comfortable and more resilient and more flexibly applied to numerous different styles of outfit).

• You'd think there would be one freakin' photo of either of these sweaters available on the freakin' internet. Apparently not. I realize that warhorse garments don't tend to bristle with excitement, but I've seen so many equally boring versions of the layering cardigan all over the place. I mean, Ca Va de Soi I can understand (sort of). They're all about not needing your business. But Theory?!

• The Theory sweater is currently available, on sale, at Holt Renfrew. Don't quote me but I think it was $200 including tax.

• It's particularly malleable because of the 3/4 sleeve and the almost-cropped length. It comes in a cotton as well as in a merino. I don't recommend the cotton. It stretches and it doesn't snap back. The cotton-version colours are also less saturated. While it doesn't look it, the navy of this sweater is very rich.

• I am only liking the Theory cardigan more, as I own and wear it. You know I'm all about the navy. Sure, sometimes black is right, but more often, a navy sweater does the trick. The merino is not thick - so it can be worn over most summer dresses - but it will nicely segue through all seasons.

So there you go. Two sweaters, 5000 words :-)

Which do you prefer?

Plus ça change...

It seems only yesterday I wondered where to begin. And here I am again - about 10 posts behind (from an info-sharing perspective anyway) - somehow in the same boat.

For starters, I just returned from a 10 day vacation to Mtl and Quebec City. It was truly delicious, in no small measure because it's about the only decent weather I've experienced in, um, what seems like forever. There's much to relate about this trip (posts to follow), but it was somewhat anticlimactic to return to a wet basement a propos of the flash floods in TO on Monday. I don't want to get overly long-suffering. Our basement didn't flood with sewage (we've experienced that before) or even as extensively as those of many around us (and to the south of us), but it's not exactly fun to come home to reality writ-large, especially after so much relaxation and enjoyment.

In addition to eating and drinking my face off (Lord, the debauchery), I've spent the last couple of weeks focused on the changes in my body as they relate to the migraines I spoke about in my last post. Of course, one doesn't quickly detangle the complexity of biochemistry, but I did have the chance to consider things outside of the perspective of my normal life. I'm not parenting at the moment (kid visiting my parents). I'm not working. I barely looked at a computer in 10 days - can't say that's happened to me in the last decade. Holidays bring new beds and lots of walking aka structural distinctions. Natch, I have new thoughts on the matter (constantly) and I'm sure you'll hear them in time, for better or worse. Of course, this isn't a blog about perimenopause (thank your lucky stars), so I'll aim to keep my discussions of those epiphanies in check. Mind you, I suspect that my experience is not uncommon and, if I can share some new ideas they will assist others.

I do want to say, thank you, once again for your awesome comments and information on that last post. I've listened to all you have to say and, among other things, I've bought books and magnesium oil (weirdly, it's not actually an oil but a solution of evaporated magnesium chloride). I'm a couple of months into the B2/magnesium cocktail and, while this month isn't the best benchmark, I haven't had a serious or long-standing headache in this post-ovulatory phase.

But enough about that - let's talk about holiday shopping (everybody's favourite type, yes?)

As you know, I'm in a make vs buy mode lately, but there are a few basics best left to RTW, in my opinion, and I was in the market to replenish. Which items fall into this category?

• Shoes (though I really do wish I could make my own!)
• T shirts (sure, you can make them, but RTW has access to the best fabrics for this purpose)
• The slim, cropped-esque, fitted cardigan

A propos of the slim cardigan, alas, one cannot make this. Even if your tension is flawless, you can't knit on needles small enough to produce such a garment. Furthermore, the best of these cardis come in the most bizarre (and niche) fabrics - many of them milled in exotic European locales for high-end brands. It's that amazing textile which produces a perfect slender knit with beautiful recovery.

These are the workhorses of the sweater wardrobe and I have been managing, suboptimally, on the fumes of my last purchases, some years ago.

I decided, on this trip, I was not going to skimp. I don't spend a lot of money on clothing these days (not that I begrudge those who do - who doesn't appreciate peeps who have the means to stimulate the economy in such a way, and to look great while doing so?) so when I restock, I aim to buy the best I can afford.

The slim sweater is one of those items, I've observed, on which many try to get a deal: it's eternally necessary, one requires it in a number of neutral shades and sleeve/hem lengths, it sits at the bottom of one's bag when not in use, the rest of the time it's in heavy rotation, through all seasons.

We often have this idea that layering pieces are disposable, but they're keystones. Perfect stretch recovery, elegant lines (crew or v neck), the most flattering length, precise fit in the shoulder, snugness through the waist - these garments aren't meant to bag! - an ability (nonetheless) to do up buttons without gaping. I don't know how one can expect to find all of this in a cheap-and-cheerful cotton or synthetic blend. And the more one diverges from the Big Box slopers (generally large in the shoulders and quite narrow in the bust), the harder it gets.

Pilling, fading and over-stretching are not the fate of a well-made (though almost certainly pricey) layering cardigan.

At the risk of inciting suspense - and also because I need to find some photos of my new purchases (or to photo them myself) - I'll be back to show you what I bought.

What I can say is that Theory and ça va de soi are my go-to brands - and the ones I found success with on this trip.

Today's questions: Do you have a fave brand for layering basics? Do you agree that spending is the path to a good product (when it comes to this kind of garment) or do you have a go-to brand which works fabulously and which doesn't break the bank? Have you bought ça va de soi? It's a fantastic Canadian brand but I'm not sure how much exposure it has outside of TO and Montreal.

PS: One other quick thing - my aim is to reorg my blog slightly over the next little while (add an About Me section and set up a section of "highlight" posts for new readers). First off, I've opted to remove my blog links section. Of course, this isn't because I don't utterly love all of the blogs that are listed therein. But some of those blogs are not active any longer. Furthermore, I can barely stay on top of all the new blogs I love (which are not represented in the links section). You know, times change and I'm shaking it up.

This is a good time to mention, I suppose, that I don't "follow" any blogs but I do link to all of you via RSS feed. While following is a fun way to link to blogs, it's an additional layer of administration, the semiosis of which (IMO) is a kind of favouritism I don't really get with. My concern, having theoretically followed one blog (on a day when that seems like a fun idea) is that, when I neglect to follow another (and I will), it means something intentional (and it doesn't). I know how to find you all through my handy feed (more to the point, your posts find me), and that's how I make sure to stay on top of all you've got to say. Pls. don't read anything into my follow-free philosophy!

Happy New Year!

I promised you shots of the new hand-sewn jeans - the (so far) ultimate ones. The ones without stretch. And I simply had to throw in a few of me in the new top.

So, without further ado:

It's particularly stupid to be wearing these shoes. But I REALLY wanted to look my chicest.

This is the shot where I'm badass.

This is the shot where I can really see that I need to work on my waistline.

This is the shot my mother will like... (She wants you to know I NEVER wore braces.)

This is the shot we had to take 5 times because the others were particularly unflattering.

This is the gratuitous shot of the top of my hair. Which Scott says, incidentally makes my boobs look huge.

This is the shot where my head actually competes with my boobs. My eyes are urging you to look into them, but I just don't know...

This is the one of the back of the Theory Fionula sweater. It does look better in real life...

And this is where I give you an air kiss cuz I think you rock and I want you to have a wonderful new year.