One of the things that we really like about our Scottish made knitwear is just how great it is as a layering piece, an easy accompaniment to other items of much loved men’s clothing such as shirts, sport coats, tailored trousers, jeans etc. It is soft and cosy which provides a touch of gentleness and comfort to what would otherwise be quite rigid outfits. What is perhaps a little surprising, is that our knitwear also looks and feels great when worn together, combinations that are perhaps less commonly seen, but we think work really well.
We have put together some looks showing how we would combine our knitwear for a doubling up of warmth and comfort – we hope this will inspire you to mix and match your favourite Colhay’s pieces, so you are able to maximise your enjoyment of them.
Shawl collar cardigan with mock neck
Instead of wearing a shirt or t-shirt underneath the shawl collar, it is just as stylish wearing it with our superfine lambswool mock neck. It's a great choice especially when the weather starts to turn cold and you just need that extra bit of warmth by doubling up on knitwear. The mock neck is a lighter weight piece than the shawl collar, so you can wear it as a medium weight base layer that doesn’t over heat, and the shawl collar acts as the heavyweight buffer when you are out in the cold.
For the first combination, we have paired our vintage camel mock neck with our new olive shawl collar cardigan. We think that the earthy olive colour works really well with the slightly sharper rust/camel colour. We've gone for a pair of dark denim to balance out the outfit.
For our second combination, we tried layering a bit more, this time, we used our superfine lambswool navy mock neck as a base layer, put a light wash denim shirt over that as a mid-layer, then finished off the look with our cashmere shawl collar cardigan in dark olive.
Another example exhibited below, this time we've paired the dark brown mock neck with our ecru shawl collar cardigan:
If you are a layering lover as we are, then you'd like our combination below: we paired our navy mock neck with a blue corduroy shirt first, then paired that with a grey flannel suit and our chunky superfine lambswool shawl collar cardigan in grey mélange. The navy mock neck and blue corduroy complement each other, and the charcoal flannel and grey mélange rib stitch knit complement each other, creating an overall tonal look. Here the navy mock neck acts a base layer, with the shaw collar cardigan acting as the outerwear.
Shawl collar cardigan with roll neck
When we get into deepest darkest winter, there isn't much more comforting than to be wrapped up in two layers of the most lusciously soft and warmest Scottish cashmere and lambswool.
For this combination we’ve layered our new olive shawl collar over our dark navy fisherman’s rollneck sweater. The textures of the two jumpers are sufficiently different so they provide a nice contrast - the thick cable with the rib stitch. We also think the navy and olive complement each other nicely as they are both relatively dark, matt colours. We’ve completed the look with a pair of light wash denim to contrast the darker top half.
Another example below - this time we’ve paired our fisherman’s cable rollneck jn ecru with our navy shawl collar cardigan. For a more dressy bottom we went for a pair of pleated grey flannels.
Shawl collar cardigan with cricket jumper
The cricket jumper is a new addition to our collection and will be launched in November this year. To give you a sneak peek of its potential, we've combined our superfine lambswool cable cricket jumper in cream and olive with our camel shawl collar cardigan and a denim shirt underneath. We feel the cream of the cricket jumper works particularly well with light wash denim and the matt, earthy camel of our shawl collar cardigan. The cricket jumper is fairly chunky, but the cable pattern provides a nice contrast to the rib stitch pattern of the shawl collar cardigan. Lots more inspirations to come for this piece!
Shawl collar cardigan with polos and shirt cardigans
Another knit on knit combination we like is the pairing of polos and shirt cardigans with our shawl collar cardigan. The polos and shirt cardigans have a refined, firm collar in a milano stitch which contrasts well against the bigger and thicker cushioning of the shawl collar cardigan. With this outfit, we kept to a brown/camel/white colour palette, which always works well together.
Similar palette to the combination above, but this time, we have combined the camel shawl collar cardigan, with our dark brown cashmere polo, and our oatmeal mock neck. The dark brown, being the middle layer, breaks up the two relatively lighter colours in the oatmeal and camel.
For the outfit below, we combined our cream cashmere silk short sleeved polo with our cashmere shawl collar cardigan in dark olive. We love the cream and dark olive colour combination. The cashmere silk polo shirt is a lighter weight piece compared to our long sleeved cashmere polos but combined with our chunky 8-ply cashmere shawl collar cardigan, you won't be feeling the cold!
If it does get too cold for the cashmere silk short sleeved polo shirt, then swap that out for our cashmere polo shirt in oatmeal, and wear that with our dark brown shawl collar cardigan:
Mock neck with cashmere shirt cardigan/cashmere polo shirt
We find the mock neck an incredibly handy piece as an underlayer for these colder months. It works really well underneath our cashmere shirt cardigan or cashmere polo shirt. Two layers of the finest Scottish cashmere and lambswool, and you won't need much else to brave the winter months!
For the first outfit, we've combined our cashmere shirt cardigan in dark olive and superfine lambswool mock neck in oatmeal:
We finished the look with a double-breasted navy flannel blazer:
For our next combination, we swapped the light and dark colours around by having the dark brown mock neck act as an based layer, and the cashmere shirt cardigan in oatmeal as the top layer:
We did some further layering with a long brown check coat and our cashmere scarf in cognac:
In our final example, we have once again utilised the oatmeal mock neck as a base layer, and used the dark brown cashmere polo shirt as a pullover mid-layer:
Shawl coat with our other knitwear
This season, we are very excited to be introducing a heavyweight shawl coat - just as chunky as our superfine lambswool shawl collar cardigan, but knitted long, belted and designed to be worn as a luxuriously soft casual substitute to an overcoat. At the time of writing, this piece is still yet to be launched, but we wanted to show you some examples of how we'd style it in advance to hopefully make you just as excited about the launch as we are!
With the outfit below, we've paired the shawl coat in navy with our dark olive cashmere silk shirt cardigan and a pair of dark denim. It's another example of how the dark navy and the dark olive in our collection work really well together:
Another way we would combine our shawl coat in navy is with our cashmere ribbed submariner rollneck in merlot; the navy and merlot complementing each other beautifully:
Finally, with our new shawl coat in dark brown, we've decided to pair it with our superfine lambswool cricket jumper in cream and olive - we feel these colours combine well, and the chunkiness of the cable on the cricket jumper complements the thick, soft rib stitch of the shawl coat:
