Are cardigans really a fashion mistake, or still practical for summer layering?

[Janey90]

With summer hopefully approaching, I realise I have a fair few cardigans in my wardrobe. Ideal for when I need an extra layer that isn’t too stiff or structured. And there are plenty on sale in the shops too. So is it really a fashion mistake to wear a cardigan, and if so, what is the alternative?

I think that might be a "you" problem - not a cardigan problem ... what a pity!!!

No he was right. Dotty old lady vibes don’t work if you’re an actual old lady. I really appreciate his honesty about how I look, he’s right 99% of the time and he never hesitates to tell me when I look good.

I'm a year off 60 & starting to ponder on this very thing re my own wardrobe ... though apparently "Eccentric Auntie" is the vibe of spring 2026 ...!!!

Youth does allow almost unlimited leeway in what (moth-eaten charity shop find/clothes nicked from a parent or grandparent/cheap high-street tat) you can wear & look fantastic in ...

Anyway, my nephew already calls me his mad aunt or fun aunt - & thinks lots of my clothes are weird - so I think I'm well ahead of that trend!!!

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWjtubMAk8f/?igsh=Y2VjZXZndnE5cnVu

I so want this, but too expensive!

I have loads of long cardigans that I wear unbuttoned for work. I love them.

This. Who cares?

cardigans are great for layering

wear what you like and what is comfortable and flattering.

I feel the cold really easily and don't always want to be pulling a jumper over my head. Do you never feel the cold?

I've got big boobs so can only wear fitted cardis or long ones ( bloody loved waterfall ones as they were so flattering for my shape!). Thick, boxy ones would definitely make me look frumpy, no matter how fashionable they are. They're so practical, but I do have to be careful which ones I get. I've probably got about 15 of them, I think...

For the people who don't like the word 'cardi', it's lucky you're not Welsh from Cardiganshire as they are called Cardis 🤣.

I only own one and I bought it quite recently, it’s this one and I love it!
https://www.revolve.com/mobile/free-people-lila-stripe-cardi-in-pink-combo/dp/FREE-WK1278/?d=F&tCurrency=GBP&tCountryCode=GB&deeplink=true&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=UK_EN_PLA_ALL_MAX_Zombie&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17439203921&gbraid=0AAAAAD9qhJg1fFCb_xP-1iLndmahS0HSa&gclid=Cj0KCQjwp7jOBhDGARIsABe7C4fpz2Hm1Y1D7drGiSvdOwL-fFzn_IhO0kxRI-t30UhZSxc4hy59KzkaAgiIEALw_wcB

sorry about the horrendous link 😭
I wear it unbuttoned over dungarees and also with some straight leg jeans, just a nice casual extra layer. It’s oversized so looks a bit weird buttoned up on me but I get chilly and hate pulling jumpers over my
head for some weird reason!

It’s the fact that she was on stage dressed top to toe in Issey Miyake and back stage who knows what she would have been wearing? And there’s me, wearing a cardigan. To me it didn’t fit the optics so I turned it down and went home to my comfy pyjamas.

I bet Grace Jones wears cardigans in private. All the coolest people do ... 😁

I notice what people are wearing and I'm not a complete knob 🤷

But if you judge them on it, you would be. And if someone didn’t do something because of fear of judgement over something as stupid as the clothes they are wearing, that’s an issue.

Ok but that's not what you said.

Nothing wrong with cardigans at all.

If I were to list fashion that is a bad mistake or the result of someone's practical joke, they would not be on the list.

The people of Cardigan, the place, often refer to as to it ( the place) as Cardi and I remember my nan saying someone ‘ was a bit Cardi’ meaning being tight with money as they have a reputation like the Scots for being careful with money. So no it a modern thing to shorten Cardigan to Cardi -it’s like ‘telly’ for television -its been around ages.

It concerns me that these threads have no link to style or fashion at all. They seem full of prejudice and now pedantry over spelling! Anyone who is happy wearing a bin bag has nothing to say on fashion. So what’s the point of being on a thread about cardigans?

For those of us who actually know something about fashion it’s very annoying! For information: Vogue ran an arrive on cardigans and how yo wear them last autumn. They are 100% wearable and up to date. The first time they chose was a mutex yellow button up one with a round neck. This spring you could undoubtedly find similar and be bang on trend. Ditch the bin bag and get a CARDI!!!!

Thank you for taking the trouble to post but I did say I knew there was no logic to it.

Tbf one can imagine Anne being unfazed if she was seen in a - shock horror - fleece with bits of hay on it though she dresses immaculately on duty.

@mypantsareonfire I notice what people are wearing. Obviously when at work in a stables, it’s different, and miles away from a cardigan thread. We have a fantastic fashion industry in this country and I’m delighted when people take an interest in it and buy clothes to enhance how they feel. We obviously don’t obsess on it but me, and my daughters, and even my husband like to dress well and if that pleases us and supports British business (we do!) then I’m proud to say I love fashion and I resent being called a “knob”. Maybe find another thread to insult people?

Gorgeous.

who doesn't wear a cardigan?? This baffles me. Why wouldn't you? They can come in such a wide range of styles and shapes, to label them uniformly a 'fashion mistake' seems mad. They don't all have to be waterfall cardigans

Don't think I could wear that one to school....

Does it wash well?