A Reader Experience: Hand-Knit Irish Aran Sweaters from Aran Sweater Market

Aran Sweater Market - Hand Knit Irish Fisherman's Sweaters

• Aran Clan Sweaters <https://www.aran.com/clan-aran-sweaters>

A reader experience:

I've gleaned great information from your blog over the years re: wool sweaters. You're the reason I sport a few from Arthur Beale and Harley of Scotland. 

Our 28 year-old son expressed interest last fall in wearing an Irish wool sweater - cream-colored, knit pattern. A familiar style. I had worn the same one for 40+ years after my parents, frequent international travelers for work, visited Ireland when I was a high school senior. I don't think he was angling for my sweater, as he's four inches taller than I am, but you never know. Our son's girlfriend, who hails from California, got him a sweater in the style, from LL Bean, made of cotton. He wears it, but it's not what he had in mind. 

I decided to hand off my sweater to him. Because these knit patterns have generous stretch, and I wear sleeves on the long side, it fits him well. I then started hunting for a replacement, ideally hand-knit like the original. Unsurprisingly, I found that the vast majority of Irish wool sweaters sold online today are machine-assembled, with panels and arms stitched together with thread. That is not what I had in mind, nor do I plan to visit Ireland any time soon. 

However, within one site that sells the machine-assembled sweaters, Aran Sweater Market, I found an option to purchase fully hand-knit Irish merino wool sweaters with specific clan patterns. They are a fair bit more expensive than the machine-assembled versions. I ordered one - a few photos attached. 

My older sweater was made from somewhat coarse and mildly scratchy wool; the new one is softer merino. As with sweaters from UK-based sources like Harley and Arthur Beale, it's best to size up. Like Arthur Beale sweaters, the wool used for the handmade sweaters is minimally processed, so the lanolin and the sheep smell remains. The wool and the knit feel substantial. I checked, and the seams that bind the panels and sleeves to the sweater are all hand-knit.

To the extent this may be of interest to you or your readers, I thought it would be helpful to share. 

 

Photos by Reader.