Bodywarmer in superfine lambswool in ash grey

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£260.00 — ex VAT

Bodywarmer — sleeveless pullover, vest — hand-framed and fully-fashioned with superfine lambswool in the south-west of the British Isles.

Sizing

The bodywarmer fits true to size, and thus the mannequin — a standard 40 — is wearing M.

XS S M L XL
To fit chest 36 38 40 42 44
Pit-to-pit 18 19 20 21 22
Back length 23¾ 24 24¼ 24½ 24¾
Warms the body is what the bodywarmer does, and particularly the front of the body, being as it has a heavy eight-ply front. The back, however, is a fraction of that weight, and thus the bodywarmer can be worn comfortably underneath a coat in winter, serving as a thick, lambswool shield against cold.
The front of the bodywarmer is tuck-stitch: that most dense and textured of knits. The back, meanwhile, is a fine plain-stitch. The armhole, hem, and neck, meanwhile, are rib-stitch — the latter of these double-layered — which is best at holding its shape and keeping things right and orderly at all times.
The yarn is superfine lambswool — 1/14 Nm, to be exact. It is supremely plush and buoyant — truly as soft as lambswool ever gets — and is spun in Scotland using techniques refined over a couple of centuries. Indeed, its finishing involves today, as for centuries, the helpfully balanced waters of a local loch.
The bodywarmer is hand-framed — i.e. made by a single skilful knitter, who controls quality and tension of every stitch on an old, hand-operated contraption. It is entirely hand-linked, too, which is a painstaking undertaking wherein every section of the bodywarmer is linked to the next by hand.
There are two shades of yarn at play here — two gentle, slightly warm greys of the middling order. The front, as mentioned, is tuck-stitch, which has a distinctively textured appearance. It is dense, on the one hand, but springy and breathable on the other. And just look at it — marvellously textured, the tuck.

As worn

Him, here, happens to be 38 in the chest, 6ft 1in in height, and 12 stone in weight, and is wearing his new bodywarmer in size S.
History repeats itself, the first time as tragedy, and the second time as farce.

Makers of

The garment is hand-framed by a knitwear maker founded 100 years ago. They work with small, hand-operated machines overseen by one person, rather than automated machines, making them one of the last makers still to do so in Britain. It is slow going, but the results always bear out the work put in.

So they say

Thank you so much for this fabulous creation. It is comfortable and beautiful, and warm, of course. I am very fascinated by the collar and neck: it is so elegant. Might I hope there will one day be a jumper with the same neck construction? The bodywarmer not only warms, it also lifts one's spirit — something sorely needed in these times.

Warming words from a lady in Denmark, who purchased a bodywarmer in geelong wool in November 2020.