A note from Leya · Relaxed, but never sloppy
At 67, I found a jumper that's comfortable without making me look like I've given up
A jumper that's properly comfortable AND looks as though I've made an effort. I'd started to accept you had to choose. I'm 67, and my comfortable jumpers have all gone baggy and shapeless, while the smart ones cling in all the places I'd rather they didn't. So I spend half the morning choosing, and the other half tugging at whatever I picked.
What I wanted was one jumper I could wear to the garden centre and to Sunday lunch with my son and his wife, and feel like myself at both.
Then I found the Monica from Susan and Kate London, a British label started by two sisters. It's a half-zip jumper in a soft beige, and it's the zip that makes all the difference.
Zip it up to the neck and it looks neat and polished, the sort of thing you'd wear under a blazer. Leave it a little open and it's relaxed enough for a Saturday. The cut is loose without being baggy, so it skims rather than clings, and the neat cuffs and clean hem stop it looking like something I've slept in. Over jeans with white trainers, or tucked in at the front of proper trousers, it simply works.
Zip up for lunch, zip down for the garden. Same jumper, whole day.
It came to the garden centre on Saturday and to Sunday lunch the next day, and I only changed my shoes. My daughter-in-law asked whether it was new, which in our family is the highest compliment going. And my neighbour Pat, who notices everything and says nothing, told me it suited me.
It was £54.95 in the sale. I hesitated, because that's more than I usually spend on a jumper, until I saw it's normally £185. Less than a third of the price, free delivery, and I'd checked I could send it back within 30 days if the fit was off. It comes in several colours and in sizes UK 6 to 16.
If your jumpers also split into 'comfortable' and 'smart' with nothing in between, do treat yourself to a look. The Monica is rated 4.7 out of 5 by more than 260 women, it's £54.95 in the sale instead of £185, and the middle sizes always seem to go first.
Monica | Half-Zip Jumper
£185.00 £54.95Save 70%
- Half-zip collar, wear it up or open
- Relaxed fit that skims rather than clings
- Neat cuffs and a clean hem
- Easy to layer under a coat or blazer
- Several colours · UK 6 to 16
Sale — while sizes last.
Leya Whitmore is 67 and lives in Guildford with a labrador. She is not a fashion writer.
Susan and Kate London · Free UK delivery · 30 day returns