Hero Piece: The Gray Cardigan
The humblest sweater in your drawer can be a wardrobe work horse
I have to start off by saying that this newsletter about a gray cardigan is dedicated to none other then my friend Susan, who is the queen of gray sweaters. I was always blinded by camel and black and the occasional ivory, but Susan opened my eye to step-sister of neutral colors…gray. So this ones for you Suz B!!!
The humble gray cardigan. If it could speak would quite possibly say “nothing to see here” - but I beg to differ. A gray cardigan can be the ideal mediator to an outfit or the perfect “other” to an outfit that would other wise be monochromatic. Its a clothing piece that just makes sense, when you think about it. I wore my gray crew neck sweater all last winter and was in love with it, but this fall with its warmer temperatures, has required a little pivot in the kind of sweaters I’m breaking out of my dresser. This past month have been leaning heavily on my gray cardigan!
I scooped up this specific cardigan from a vintage pop-up event and it has no tags and fits me perfectly so I have no real “brand plug” for you here, other than encouraging you to go on the hunt for your “perfect gray and perfect fit”- I’d highly recommend searching vintage gray cardigans on Etsy, something very fun could come up! If you live in Atlanta I recommend swinging by Kudzu or Motherlode to check out a bunch of vintage in person. Back to styling though… the gray cardigan has been my cherry on top, my piece de resistance, the apple of my wardrobe’s eye!
I’ve already worn it a few ways “out in the wild” between work and my day off:
It was the perfect solution to mellow out a printed dress for work..
Those were the couple fo times I snapped pictures in the cardigan, but it is truly something I continue to grab and am constantly feeling inspired to create outfits around. Below I put together a few of the outfits that have been living in my brain and that I will be breaking out in the coming months.
This one I think has gray cocktail party or date night potential… I love the contrast of the bold skirt and the soft gray sweater (the great mediator).
Already planning on this work outfit..
I’m also a sucker for a brown/gray color combo and I’ll definitely be out and about in this look
As for how I’ll be wearing it on my days off, see below :
Love a little pop of red again the white and gray, a touch of contrast always makes me feel less washed out!
The above is exactly what I wore today and is what really got me thinking about the way I’ve been enjoying my gray cardigan this season. I hope you all find your perfect gray cardigan this season or go and shop the cardigans you have in your dresser and play around, you never know what could be your “hero piece”. I’ll see you guys in my gray cardigan :)
Cheers,
xx Taylor
Thanks for reading
I can die happy having left behind the legacy of the grey sweater. I love all the looks-- esp how you use the GS to offset the girliness of the cord dress.