From scholars to rockers, all young men look good in jumpers, cardigans and scarves, writes Deirdre McQuillan
Autumn, with its alternating sunny and wintry days, is the perfect time for low-key woollens with high register T-shirts, or traditional cabled roll necks in earthy shades worn with trousers or jeans and Converse trainers. A trilby, worn rakishly, adds a rock 'n' roll touch to a stripy sweater, and a tartan scarf the necessary insouciance and warmth for a cycle into town. Pete Doherty's fashion influence needs no introduction.
Updating staples, looking lean and mean, is the key to modern streetwise dressing. Waistcoats that hang loose over faded T-shirts give new energy to old faithfuls; they're even more edgy in fake fur, and a pair of long, narrow grey jeans provides an alternative to familiar blue denims. Honeyed colours are the stuff of autumn, but a dark jumper allows some free play with bolder shades in accessories. There are telltale ways to sport a knitted scarf, either tossed student-style over a rucksacked shoulder, or wrapped and knotted around the neck. Weight and width determine how to do it; too thick a scarf can choke and overwhelm, too thin can look like a meaningless extra.
Good knitwear buys can be found in shops such as Reiss, Arnotts, the newly-opened All Saints in the Powerscourt Centre, Zara, River Island, Urban Outfitters and boutiques such as Gentlemen Please in Glasthule and Blackrock and Galvin for Men in Tullamore. Cashmere fiends will sniff out the best in Monaghans in the Hibernian Mall, Dublin 2, while second-hand sleuths will source their versions, in traditional black or camel, for €40-50 in A Store is Born, Clarendon Street, Dublin, on Saturdays.