Do You Need a Festive Jumper? Creating Party Looks with Basic Knits

Pattern: Timepiece Pullover

In my newsletter several weeks ago, I talked about the colourwork sweater as the quintessential winter party jumper. For those who are not into colourwork, I also suggested alternatives - such sweaters with embellishments at the neckline, or sweaters knitted with shimmery yarn.

But in fact there is another direction you can take entirely, if you want to incorporate a handknit into a festive look. And it doesn’t involve knitting a new sweater!

Because the thing is, a festive outfit is exactly that: an entire outfit. You can therefore focus on making the other elements of the outfit ‘festive,’ with the handknit element functioning as the anchoring piece. In other words: pick out a dressy party skirt, dress or trousers, and pair them with a basic handknit that you already have. The more ‘out there’ the bottom piece, the more basic and ‘normal’ your handknit can be. And even if it’s a sweater you’ve worn a thousand times in an everyday context, it will take on a new personality.

Here, for example, I have paired an elaborately layered velvet dress with a basic v-neck pullover. Because of the skirt, the pullover looks dressy - despite being a very basic piece.

Pattern: Braids of Grass

A sequin maxi skirt is also tremendously effective at setting the tone. This normally very rustic-looking tweed pullover looks considerably more sophisticated when paired with a shimmery fabric. Keeping the pieces in the same colour family helps with this as well.

If you like sequins, but are concerned about the environmental impact - that is a concern I share. I rescue sequinned garments from thrift shops, where they are plentiful this time of year. I also never intend to wash these pieces (read about what happens when you launder sequinned garments int he washing machine, if that is something that interests you).

Pattern: Tonn Pullover

A voluminous taffeta skirt, whether long or short, will of course also immediately transform any look into a party look. In fact with this kind of skirt, it is especially important to tone things down on top. I think the wavy stripes here work pretty well, as does the oatmeal background colour of this jumper - it’s a casual, outdoorsy top, that brings the inherently dressy nature of the taffeta down a notch.

Of course, while traditional ‘party fabrics’ featuring velvet, satin, metallics, sequins, or taffeta, work very well, there are other ways to create these kinds of looks - depending on your style and preferences. Consider embroidered fabrics, tartan, floral motifs, geometric patterns, layers and ruffles, asymmetry, quilted fabrics, avant-garde pieces that use volume and tailoring to create striking sculptural looks.

Point being - transfer the onus of being the Party Piece away from the sweater and onto a different part of the outfit. That way, you can wear any handknit you want - perhaps even your favourite, everyday one - whilst looking dressed up and festive, and feeling warm.