Sunday, September 28, 2008

The "perfect" Fair Isle sweater



For about two years, I have been on the lookout for the "perfect" Fair Isle sweater. I'm not sure where I got the mental image for this sweater, but I could picture it in my mind's eye and it was the yard stick by which all potential Fair Isles were measured against. I would scour Ebay, would check the seasonal selections from standards like LL Bean, Lands End, Brooks Brothers, and J. Crew, but I could never find one that met my standards. However, last week I poking around Ebay and stumbled across this beauty. It is an old LL Bean sweater, wool, knit in Scotland, and in my size. The colors are nicely muted and the patterns are neither too small nor too large. I went ahead and jumped on it and managed to scoop it up for the kingly sum of $10. I received it in the mail just three days after winning the auction (I was very impressed by that), and it is fantastic. It fits a touch larger than I would want it to, but I'm hoping that can be solved by a trip through the washer and dryer. Anyways, my quest is over, and now I am just waiting for the temperatures to drop low enough to wear it.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, nooooooooooooo Mr. Bill!! Not the washer & dryer. Hand wash in woolite, roll up in a towel and squeese. Then arrange spread out on another towel to dry. I'm glad you got it, I looked but didn't need another. Buffy.

Elisa M said...

I was just about to write the same thing! Only wash and dry if you want it to fit me or a child. Drying nicer sweaters is kryptonite. Just say no!!!

trip said...

Look, I would hope that you would give me more credit for understanding what happens when you put a sweater in the washer and dryer. As I indicated, the sweater is a little larger than I want it to be, so I anticipate that a trip through the dryer should help things out. I will be sure to keep an eye on it so that it doesn't shrink too much.

Paper Clip said...

GREAT looking sweater, Trip, and a great deal! I love the old Bean sweaters. I got the classic blue with white flecks norwegian one from Brownshoe last year.

I agree that most modern ones are too load. This one is subtle and rich.