Woolly jumpers

Mainly from Woolovers but occasionally from Sainsbury’s and similar shops. I sometimes get them when they are in a sale.

EllanVannin

Alpaca is warmer and hard wearing, more so than cashmere. You should find a decent jumper for around £30 if there's a sale on. A couple of those would see you through winter.

I think you would be hard pushed to find an alpaca sweater for £30 quite honestly.

The ones I have have been as expensive as my cashmere sweaters.

Mixed wool and cashmere is nice and not so expensive.

I think the trick is the way it is cared for. I have sweaters that are donkeys years old and still as good as new.

Woolovers are based quite near where I live but I only have a couple of their sweaters. Not overly keen on them.

Bluebelle they will send a booklet for you to choose from but I personally find them expensive out of sale times.

Bought my ideal jumper from Seasalt. It bobbles dreadfully. They said if I took it to a local store they would debobble it for me. 50mile round trip. I don’t think so

I buy Woolovers in their sales but I don’t think they are as good as they used to be and as others have said are now quite expensive.

Edinburgh Wool Mill also has some ok woollen jumpers.

The best time to buy Woolovers winter stuff is just after Christmas. You can also sign up the their news letter and have a look at their clearance ranges.

You couldn't buy the yarn to knit an alpaca jumper for £30.

If you are lucky, you might find one (or merino wool, or even cashmere) in a charity shop or on eBay for that price or less, though. Ebay sellers will usually want more, but charity shop workers often seem to have no idea about the value of quality yarns and price accordingly.

@ BlueBell.
www.wooloverslondon.com/outlet
My recent puchases have been of poorer quality, but I still like the fact that I can put them in the washing machine.
I've had my older ones for about 5 years and still as new.

ps just looked at that link and the prices have gone up!

I thought so too, Fennel.

What colour is hickory? If it's brown why not say so!
I want a dark red cardigan but it's difficult to tell if it's red or brown.

Edinburgh Woollen Mill also has some ok woollen jumpers.
Two of my favourite jumpers came from EWM.
There's nowhere much else to go shopping here.

I can’t wear wool next to the skin, and get too warm if I have to wear a long sleeve tee under a jumper, so go for synthetic.
Sainsbury do a decent range, as do Debenhams.I prefer cardigans really, especially longer ones in colder weather.

You can also buy bobble removers. I’ve just used a manual one that came from Woolovers. It worked well and I now have a bobble free jumper

woolovers have definitely upped their game.They went through a phase of cheaper, thinner, tighter, shorter and became a bit like marks as in quality went right down but they pulled out the stops and did a re-think. Kudos to woolovers, their quality is very good now, their designs are much better, the fact that they use natural materials is to be applauded. If only marks had done the same

Woolovers started by being sold on market stalls, it has been a long haul for them but the company realised that . customers want quality that lasts. So yes, I bought 2 jumpers yesterday

Patra silk is another company that is upping their game, I have a silk ribbed jumper from them, as well as silk vests. Lovely quality

Re cost: I knit garments for me, if I spin a natural mix first of eg merino/silk/cashmere, it might cost me £45 for a short sleeved jumper weight. If I make a quality cardigan from eg john arbon devonia yarn, it could well cost me £60 to make.

I buy 1 cashmere jumper a year, I only hand wash using Euclan it’s a no rinse wool shampoo.
It leaves wool feeling so soft and smelling great, it also has anti moth properties.
I also use a “wool comb” to remove any bobbles.
I have many old jumpers they all look in excellent condition.

Here’s a link. www.woolwarehouse.co.uk/accessories/eucalan-no-rinse-delicate-wash-eucalyptus-100ml-bottle

Ref M&S I only buy Cashmilon sweaters. They are cheap, many colours, and wash and last well. Also like Woolovers. The Cashmilon are surprisingly warm..

I can’t wear wool as such. It makes me itch. I’m ok with cashmere and for everyday I need something softer - usually including synthetic materials. I don’t but from any specific shop - just when I see something.

I prefer chunky acrylic as I can wash it hot with bleach if I so choose. It dries faster than wool and does not shrink. Acrylic is cheaper than wool, and no Australian sheep have suffered .

Tu is good value. I have a Tesco chunky acrylic ,no bobbles or loss of shape.

We have traditional Guernsey sweaters bought from Le Tricoteur on our honeymoon 43 years ago. Still in excellent condition and so practical. Can't fault that for value!

The trouble with acrylic is that it is a plastic and the fibres get washed down to the sea.

And these tiny fibres — less than 5 millimeters in length, with diameters measured in micrometers (one-thousandth of a millimeter) — can eventually reach the ocean. There, they’re adding to the microplastic pollution that’s accumulating in the food chain and being ingested by all sorts of marine wildlife, and even us. Most of the plastic that’s in the ocean, in terms of number of pieces, is not in the form of whole products like cups or straws, but instead broken-down shreds of plastic.

I find that M&S mens woollies are much better quality than the womens' ones. The colours are not very exciting but at least they're warm and last well. I wear a thermal polo neck underneath and that looks OK and is non itchy. It's hard to think of being so cold right now but I know I'll be glad of the woollies soon enough.

I tend to live in crew neck lambswool sweaters and used to buy them from Edinburgh Woollen Mill. They were excellent, machine washable, didn’t bobble, never seemed to wear out. Very reliable. Then I bought some when we were in Oxford and noticed they changed the brand, and they were shocking. Poor fit (you had to try on a whole stack of the same size to find a decent fit), coarse feel to the wool, didn’t wash at all well even at 30 degrees; one even had a seam that came apart on the sleeve! I haven’t bought them since. Pringle are nearly as bad. I might look at Woollovers. I don’t mind paying for something if it’s going to cut the mustard.

Its worth a look in Sainsburys mens section sometimes have nice sweaters colours etc not very expensive (probably best to look on label and see what they are made of).

Woolovers do-
Cotton
Cotton with cashmere (surprisingly comfortable)
Cotton with silk
I can’t wear .wool

M&S Cashmilon is soft and silky and their crew necks are great.

NfkDumpling, regarding alpaca, I have a cardigan containing alpaca and find it very itchy, even with a long-sleeved tee-shirt underneath.