Sweaters

From the Fall 1984 catalogue: “A sweater as cozy as a bowl of oatmeal. For reading in front of fires or rambling on the moors, a dog of excellent pedigree frolicking behind. It looks as if one’s mother might have knitted it, and just as much care went into it. Full-fashioned, which means the sleeves […]

From the Fall/Holiday 1987 catalogue: “On cold, wet winter days, when the closest you can come to racquet sports is a desultory game of Ping-Pong, our Winter Tennis Vest is a remembrance of swings (and springs) past. V-necked and striped like a traditional tennis vest, it’s as soft as a new tennis ball and as […]

From the Fall and Holiday 1986 catalogue: “Rovers by nature, we’re always looking for sweaters that make congenial fellow travelers. Especially since our vagabondings Down Under convinced us of their virtues as outwear. (As serious hikers know, no fiber matches wool for warmth, even when soaked by a squall.) When we discovered roving yarn–a blend […]

From the Spring 1987 catalogue, this 100% cotton sweater was made in Italy. “In creating this sweater we used yarn the way Monet, Sisley and Cezanne used daubs of paint: to reproduce the shimmering effect of light in the natural world. Thus, each “color” is really a palette of complimentary hues–as many as six shades […]

The authentic Aran Sweater was offered in Fall 1984 Update in the British Isles catalogue. It was also offered in Holiday 1984. The hand-knitted sweater was a work of art that sold for $250 and came with a tag signed by the artist who knitted it. The tag read: “In my own home on the […]

Running from Holiday 1985 through Holiday 1987 in a number of colors. From the Holiday 1986 catalogue: “We’ve always admired the intricate cables of the Irish fisherman’s sweater–mythic patterns with sould in every stitch. Yet when all’s said and done, every fisherman’s sweater we’ve ever owned seems to have been made for the North Sea, […]

Pics from Poshmark Pics from Poshmark

Sold in Summer 1987 and Spring 1988 in Natural, Bronze, Faded Sage, Dark Olive and Mustard. From Summer 1987: “Cardigans need not be relegated to twin sets and teatime. Ours is multifaceted, practical–and surprisingly feisty. The strong stuff it’s made of–self-sufficient cotton of unquestionable fiber–is soft but substantial; when the debate heats up it stays […]

This sweater was introduced in 1984 and sold through 1985, and in that short time was produced in a number of colors; most commonly in natural tones, but also yellow, blue and lilac. Made in Hong Kong it is composed of cotton and linen. From the catalogue: “A sweater with a nearly silky feel, but […]

This Hong Kong made sweater is easily identified by the distinctive shoulder seams that run to the neckline. From the Fall and Holiday 1987 catalogue: “A heathery pullover inspired by our rambles and scrambles in the fells (mountains) of England’s Lake District. We spun Shetland wool–beloved for its felicitous blend of warmth and lightness–in three […]

I’m fairly certain the sweater below is a Burgundy American Tweed Sweater based o the collar and the age of the tag. From the Holiday 1984 catalogues: “Cornbread, gumbo, quilts, baseball, convertibles–America has always had more than. afew good ideas of its own. One is the American Tweed Sweater, made of homegrown wool in colors […]

Unlisted in the catalogues, this Blue version has been sighted by an eagle-eyed reader of the blog!

From the Holiday 1985 catalogue, a selection of tweed sweaters made in teh USA. From Poshmark, a plum Crew-Neck Pullover Sweater.

I picked this sweater up on eBay in November 2020 and couldn’t have been more excited. I rashly jumped to a few major conclusions in my first take on it, wishfully thinking it was a very early item, pre-Gap, dating between 1981-1983. I’ve always wanted to find something from that era, and I thought I […]

From the 1984 catalogue: “Different as they are (and are they!), the British, the Scots and the Irish do share a few things in common. Fog. Mist. Drizzle. Which they endure, indoors or out, with tweedy, leather buttoned vests that take the snap out of the cold wet atlantic winds. Our Donegal Cardigan Vest, of […]

From the catalogue: “We designed this striking sweater to prove that outer-wear fit for rigorous walks need not look pedestrian. We got the idea while hiking New Zealand’s Milford track, as famous for it’s bone-chilling downpours as for its breathtaking panoramas. Aussies and Kiwis chose wool for weathering cold and damp, so our vest is […]

Sold only in Holiday 1986 and 1987. From the catalogue: “The fisherfolk of the British Isles have a rich tradition of distinctive knitting patterns, many of them derived from their daily lives. Look closely at our Cabled Vest, and you’ll see fishing ropes twisting and trellising up to the moss stitch of the shawl collar. […]

This interesting sweater just showed up on eBay. Kind of a fun challenge to identify! Going through the sweater category on the Abandoned Republic website turns up the Shetland Writer’s Sweater in the 1983 Christmas catalog, but without color to guide us. Is this brown sweater “russet” colored? The leather buttons, side pockets and collar […]