What makes a £400 cardigan 'worth it'?

[NiceSausage]

I was thinking about this because the ONLY damn cardigan I have truly loved and which fits (perfectly) my ultimate criteria in many years of searching comes in at this price. Typical!

It is a cashmere loose fit v-neck from Johnstons of Elgin.
I have searched everywhere, from Poetry to Ebay to Vinted and have never been able to find the one in my mind. And then this turns up.

I could use my savings, which wouldn't be hurt by it, but it feels somehow off. I can't bring myself to do it. When I ask myself why, omitting financial constrains (which thankfully there aren't at the moment), it comes down to wondering whether the construction and source of this garment are actually worth it.

Does anyone know how this shit works?
How does a person qualify such expense for a transitory item? It mnight surely last for many years, but it isn't a holiday or a true life experience. I am not used to throwing money on expensive clothes.
But I adore it.

I don't want permission to purchase it, but would like some insider knowledge of why it costs what it does. I gather these are made in Scotland - great. But what does this cost truly cover? And is this just another item which lends someone status and not much else?

I find things like that in the charity shops where I live. I would not drop 400 on that, moths will have eaten holes in it or you will shrink it in the wash and it will work out to be 50 quid a wear if that....

I think the long loose sleeve is part of 'the look' of the cardi. Everything about it is slightly oversize.Prim little sleeves would spoil its gorgeous look.

My mother bought some cashmere cardigans in Edinburgh in 50’s which she passed on to me and I have now passed on to my daughters. They are worn regularly. Quality cashmere has a long shelf life.

What about these?

www.woolovers.com.au/womens/cardigan/womens-cashmere-merino-classic-v-neck-cardigan-beige-15697

Australian company but when you take exchange rate into account it's very good value for you.

If I could wear cashmere I would 100% spend that money on that cardigan. I understand, it's perfect. Buy it. I spend my life looking for that exact cardigan in a synthetic material as I can't wear wool or cashmere.

This.

Cheap cashmere is very short fibre and tends to shed - really annoying if you're wear black jeans or a black coat. Some cheap cashmere knits tend to bobble too.

Good quality cashmere is longer fibre and does neither. You will need to hand wash it and dry it flat ( press between towels and then on airing cupboard slats) though to keep it looking lovely. If you are happy to do that, go for it.

Another knitter here (see UN!) Johnstones of Elgin is excellent quality cashmere. The best is reputedly Loro Piana but I can't personally attest to that -- I can tell you I got some of their mill ends and it was lovely. Cheap cashmere is garbage. Because of the demand for cashmere, they're selling absolute trash and the goats are destroying the steppe.

I'm disgusted by the quality of so much knitwear these days. I don't want to knit every jumper I wear but sometimes it feels like I'll need to if I want natural fibres. There are brands where you're paying for a designer label, but genuine quality knits made from high quality fibres, properly designed and madethey are expensive. Cashmere is a delicate fibre. The short fibres in cheap cashmere will wear poorly and you'll have holes sooner than not. Plus, the odds are that they've minimised the amount of fibre they've usedlooser knit or thinner yarns. (By the way, this is why a cashmere-silk blend is not only luxurious, but more durable. Silk is much stronger than cashmere, and also adds shine and drape.)

(See also - remember the pashmina craze? So much of what got sold in the west was nothing like the real thing. A friend has a real one from Kashmir, it cost some ridiculous amount of money, but It was one of the most incredible things I've ever felt. Real pashmina is from hair that's hand-combed off the goats.)

I have two oversized cashmere Brora cardigans that had full retail price of £400 each. One I bought partially with gift vouchers, the other in the sale. I have worn them both so much, as they're perfect for throwing on over just about anything. They haven't pilled, shrunk or been eaten by moths. I have had them for so long that I can't even remember when I bought them and consider them worth every penny (even at full price).

I say buy the cardigan!

You'd be doing the British economy a favour if you bought it, @NiceSausage 😈

(I love it - it's my idea of the perfect cardi as it is so straightforward and has no silly 'design' features - and would like to buy it, too, but can't afford it - so you'd be buying it for me by proxy. If you were buying it for both of us, that would psychologically halve the price).

Definitely buy it, it sounds like you would get a lot of wear out of it.

I think it looks lovely. I didn't expect to like it as much as I do. If it were me, I wouldn't have any qualms about the price being fair. Cashmere used to be a luxury and there's an argument that it might have been better if it had stayed that way.

My criteria would be:
a) If I were willing to buy no other clothes for 6 months to pay for it. You might want to adjust that as It sounds like you don't buy clothes as often as me but hopefully you get the idea. I'd be a bit concerned about dipping into savings and would want to replenish them asap.
b) How often I'd wear it. I think I'd want to be confident of wearing it around once a week or fortnight, summer aside. This might be a struggle for me as I was brought up on 'saving for best' and I can't shake myself out of it.

My concerns (aside from using savings) would be firstly the care required to keep it in top condition. I often find that more expensive clothes need less careful handling because they're better made, but high end cashmere doesn't seem to work that way. The word 'gauzy' in particular would trouble me.

Secondly, I think it only looks timeless because oversize is the norm at the moment. The sleeves are a clue to how it might start to look when the pendulum swings the other way, as it will at some point. (But then it'll also swing back again.)

I have never regretted buying a one-off expensive item I really wanted. I have often regretted not going all-in for the special item, and have sometimes even ended up buying a cheaper item, being dissatisfied, and ended up buying the expensive one anyway! Go for it, if it's the one you want and you can afford it.

Tricky, I highly rate JoE's quality and am generally one of those that parrots that if you want a baseline quality that translates to longevity you need to pay more than most are comfortable to pay.

But sometimes a high asking price has to do with rarity, more complicated construction/techniques, etc. to achieve a very specific quality that's more about luxurious feel and delicacy than sturdy quality.

IME gauzy cashmere qualifies as the latter, I'd have to reserve judgement until I saw it in the flesh but the gauzy cashmere I've owned previously tends to pill much quicker and wears through wherever you're even vaguely tough on it (elbows and cuffs, usually). It's something you buy for the sensory aspect, if you want something long lasting comparable to this weight as per a previous poster, look for a cashmere/silk mix.

Scottish cashmere is a very different thing from the Chinese stuff...........sheer luxury. I have Scottish and Italian cashmere knitwear, all bought second hand, or couldn't afford it. It's simply gorgeous.
Also ethically produced and high standards for workers.
Just learn how to take care of it, hand washing carefully etc., and it will last a lifetime.

I say buy it. It's classic wardrobe staple in a neutral colour so you will be able to wear it with lots of other items. But most importantly you love it.
I'm happy to spend a fortune on basics that I love because I know I will wear them to death. Why keep looking for something when you have already found it?
I have some 360° cashmere jumpers from a few years ago that cost similar and they are still beautiful and when I wear them I feel amazing. That's what clothes are there for imo.

@NiceSausage - I'm sure it's not as well (or ethically) made, but I have an identically shaped cardigan from the John Lewis Men's cashmere range (except mine is dark navy). It is very bombproof and has not bobbled or degraded in any way despite me wearing it to death for a couple of years now. I bought a Small and am a size 8 but I wanted something long and not close fitting. Perhaps have a look at men's knitwear before you decide, if your main reason for buying is that you can't find a similar style elsewhere?

Another suggestion is to have a look at Nearly New Cashmere (the men's section). They have high end brands - eg Loro Piana for around £75-ish

Meant to add the link to the one I posted earlier, although it will only link to the pink one! It's cotton and cashmere, but in the sale at £50:
https://www.houseofbruar.com/ladies-cotton-cashmere-v-neck-cardigan-pink/

Is it going to be the item which instantly makes you feel put together? Is it going to be the item which you always grab towards the end of a warm summer's evenings when it's getting a bit cool? Is it going to be the item which, sometimes, it's just nice to wear around the house as it is so cosy & comforting? Cashmere can often tick all of those boxes. If it does for you, and you can afford it, buy it.

I wouldn't spend 400 on that. But if you love it, get it. I'd spend 400 on other things though

Thank you everyone who has took time to answer. I have decided against purchasing the cardi, more due to not actually needing it than whether I can justify it's value.
Of course I would love it, it is the exact style, colour, etc, but I have managed so far without this exact cardigan and can happily continue to do so. I also appreciate the great advice that I have been given here about wool, production, etc.

Good decision OP. I sometimes get hung up on a particular item like this too, then step back and realise how incredibly picky I am being. There are hundreds of thousands of cardigans to choose from, do you really need one that is so expensive? Why do you need that exact specification?

Each to their own of course, but personally I couldn't justify this cost for a cardigan no matter how nice it is.

Oh op I feel a bit sad for you now, even though I had reservations.

Of course you didn't need it, but nor does anyone need a trip to Venice or tickets to the opera or Glastonbury.

I hope you find something else just as lovely.

I'm sure you'll find one with a price tag that'll give you a bigger smile

But why not order it just to see the thing - and then send it back if you’re not convinced? Unshakeable curiosity does sometimes prompt me to click buy, even if a thing costs more than I really want to pay. Now I think of it as just like trying a £££ dress on in Celine, say. (In those long ago days when shopping meant leaving the house …) There’s no actual commitment up to the point where you don’t give it back.

It wasnt really the price tag, it was a closer inspection of the same cardi in different colours. The arms are exaggeratedly long compared to the body, which made me guess it was unisex - great for those with longer arms but not me. I would also appreciate pockets for the price, too.

So all in all, the body of the cardi was too short for my preference.