A letter from a customer
I do not wear stripes. I have said that for about fifteen years. This cardigan is the reason I stopped saying it.
Six things that changed my mind about the Emmett, written by a customer, not the shop.
I wrote a letter about the Amanda jumper from Abbey Lane a while back, and then one about the Anastasia scarf. A few people have since asked what I am wearing in the photo on that second letter, the one taken on the way to buy the scarf. It is this. The Emmett. I did not plan to write about it, because I genuinely did not think I would end up keeping it.
Stripes have never been my colour, so to speak. I own exactly one striped thing, and it lives at the back of the wardrobe. So when my daughter sent me a link to a striped zip cardigan, I almost did not open it.
I opened it a second time anyway, and here is what changed my mind. Six things.
It zips, it does not button
This sounds small until your hands are cold. I have a cardigan at home with six small buttons, and on a frosty morning it takes me longer to do it up than it took to put the kettle on. The Emmett has a proper metal zip with a neat pull tab. On, up, done. No fiddling at the school gate or on the platform waiting for a bus that is always late.
I have a drawer full of cardigans I love and never actually wear because they take effort. This one I put on without thinking, which turns out to matter more than I expected.
The stripes grew on me, and then I actually missed them
Navy, sky blue, red and a band of yellow across the shoulders. Bold is the word for it, and bold is not usually a word I reach for. But a grey morning in October does not need another grey jumper. I wore it to the shops on a flat, overcast day and caught myself in a shop window looking, for once, like I had made an effort rather than just got dressed.
My husband, who has an opinion on almost nothing I wear, asked where I got it. That is not a frequent occurrence in this house.
See The Emmett70% off ยท Free UK delivery ยท 30 day returnsThe collar and cuffs are properly ribbed, not just for show
A stand up collar that actually keeps the wind off your neck, and cuffs and hem that are knitted tightly enough to spring back into shape rather than go baggy by November. I have had jumpers where the cuffs stretch out within a fortnight and never go back. These have not done that yet, and I have worn this one more than I expected to.
Two colours, and they suit completely different moods
Cream with the stripes standing out clearly, for days when I want a bit of colour near my face. Grey with the same stripes sitting quieter, for days when I want the cardigan to do less talking. I have the Cream. I nearly ordered the Grey at the same time and I am still not entirely sure I will not go back for it.
Cream
Grey
Grey, outdoors
Cream, detail
The offer made me stop putting it off
The Emmett is 70% off at the moment. I am not usually swayed by a percentage on its own, because a sale is only worth something if the thing is worth having at full attention. This one was, so the 70% off simply removed the last reason I had to keep hesitating.
It is not a cardigan I am keeping for best. It is the one I reach for first
That is really the whole point of it. It is warm enough for a crisp morning, light enough to wear indoors over a shirt, and quick enough to put on that I no longer leave it hanging in the wardrobe for a special occasion that never quite arrives. It has become the ordinary, everyday thing, which for a cardigan is the highest compliment I can think to give it.
The Emmett, against the cardigan you usually reach for
I have owned a fair few cardigans that stayed in the wardrobe more than they were worn. Here is the difference, laid out plainly.
The one at the back of the drawer
- Small buttons, cold fingers, slow mornings
- Safe grey or navy, nothing to lift a flat day
- Collar and cuffs that go baggy by November
- Kept for best, worn rarely
- Full price
The Emmett
- Smooth full zip, on in a second
- Bold navy, sky blue, red and yellow stripes
- Ribbed collar and cuffs that hold their shape
- Worn most days, not saved for best
- 70% off, two colours, UK sizes 6 to 16
About the price
I will be honest, the way I was with the scarf. When something this easy to wear is also 70% off, my instinct is to look for the catch. I looked. The knit is exactly as it is in the photographs, the zip works properly, and the stripes have not faded after several washes.
Free UK delivery, and 30 days to send it back if it is not right. If you, like me, have a cardigan drawer full of things you never actually put on, I would have a look at this one before the weather turns properly cold.
Anne Whitaker
Emmett Striped Zip Cardigan
70% OFF- Bold navy, sky blue, red and yellow stripes
- Smooth full zip with a neat pull tab
- Snug ribbed collar, ribbed cuffs and hem
- Relaxed easy fit, softly dropped shoulders
- Cream or Grey, UK sizes 6 to 16
- Free UK delivery and 30 day returns
About the writer. Anne Whitaker is a customer from West Yorkshire. She previously wrote letters about the Amanda jumper and the Anastasia scarf from Abbey Lane, both put up by the shop for other customers to read. This page is an advertisement for Abbey Lane ยท Free UK delivery ยท 30 day returns.