Aran jumpers.. are you cool enough for them?

So you think that Aran cable-knit jumpers aren't cool?

So, you've changed your mind and now want to rush out to buy your own (or ask your gran to knit you one, or find a vintage example). A classic fisherman's sweater named after the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland, these jumpers are knitted with traditional cable, diamond, zig-zag and honeycomb stitch patterns influenced by the world in which they were made.

Traditional knitwear is going through a renaissance and you can recreate the look easily. Most of these sweaters are not genuine Arans, but all are influenced by the design. I have stuck to cream and white, but coloured cable knits are not hard to find.

John Lewis British breed sheep jumper

John Lewis wool and cashmere

Barbour

John Lewis

Joules

Paul Costelloe for John Lewis

Edinburgh Woollen Mills

D S Dundee

Peregrine

French Connection