How to wear a sweater like an Italian man

Telegraph

20-02-2025

It's been a bracing winter in the UK, even for a Scottish man like myself who relishes the sharpness of the air and gloamin' of the darkened evenings. And with it a tedious same-sameness in our wardrobes; I seem to have the same chunky, oversized beige sweater in rotation, because suits with shirts are too lightweight for these arctic climes and thin gauge knits don't quite cut it.
Or perhaps they do, and I'm getting it all wrong. A recent bout of trips to Italy during winter – five in three months – confirmed that, like so much in life, Italians do it so much better in how they dress. Claridge's, the grand matriarch of London luxury hotels, has just launched a collaboration with Tuscan Hotel Il Pellicano, with a range of cheering products to go alongside, as a love letter to all things gloriously Italian and summer; rather inviting amidst the greige of this particularly bleak February. The London drizzle might not evoke the same effects as the lapping waters of Porto Ercole, but a guy can dream (and do it in some fine Italian threads while he's at it).
This appreciation of the finer points of style and the particular knack for La Dolce Vita extends to how men dress, as demonstrated deftly on the cobbled streets of Firenze during the city's bi-annual Pitti Uomo event in January, a menswear fair at which the peerless style of uomo Italiano is abundantly apparent. The temperatures were hovering around the perilous minus mark, but the men were raising the bar in terms of style. Fending off that much feared ' colpo d'aria ' – the icy blasts thought to cause maladies – while looking impeccable is part of the Italianate vernacular.
Part of that is their particular knack with knitwear. You don't need me to tell you how to put on a jumper, but there is a particular panache to blending knitwear into your wardrobe that the Italians do very well, whether on the boulevards of the more dynamic and zippy Milan or the darkened alleyways of Venice. It's a particular quandary in the office; it's too cold to wear a suit with a shirt, but is knitwear too informal for smarter environs? There's the three quarter zip – so termed the ' Tory knit ' – which is perfectly fine, if a little middle-of-the-strada, but there's a lesson to be had in how the stylish men of Firenze, Milano and Napoli do cold weather knitwear well.
The Stanley Tucci knit
Of course we have Marcello Mastroianni and Gianni Agnelli as masterclasses in masculine Italian style, but Stanley Tucci's got to be up there as one of the most stylish Italian men (as the son of Calabrian parents – do read his book Taste). He recently represented his generational homeland in an audience with the King for an Italian-themed dinner at Highgrove, and his style has always been authentic to the particular lyricism of bel paese; see his penchant for slim-fitting, lightweight long-sleeved polo shirts as a go-to. There's something particularly continental about this piece of knitwear; just add a Vespa and a fresh pair of cream chinos with a negroni at sundowners on some coral-tinged terrace.
Knitted silk cashmere polo, £325, Luca Faloni
Granted, it's light for winter, but layering it with a puffa jacket and gilet (more on those later) keeps things smart; Luca Faloni is a brand favoured by Prince William that handcrafts them in Bergamot and offers a vast array of colours. They also work seamlessly under a suit jacket, which brings us to…
The new shirt knit
Wearing a lightweight knit underneath your suit blazer isn't a new concept, but it was one championed on the catwalks of Milan last year by Zegna's creative director Alessandro Sartori. 'Knitwear has become hugely important in every part of a man's wardrobe now, it's not just for casual attire anymore. There's no reason a man can't wear a light knit with a suit.' The standard shirt-tie format has died a death in the wake of the work-at-home new normal for many, and light knits have stepped up in the shirt's place. The key is to make sure it's thin of gauge and sombre of colour, to make it work effortlessly under your jacket. Add a singlet or thermal cover-up underneath.
Merino crew neck sweater, £89, Suit Supply
The thrown-over knit
This is a particularly raffish approach that you'll see on the streets of Pitti Uomo and among the dark grandeur of places like Venice; large knitted shawls thrown over as oversized scarves. There's something pleasingly Renaissance about it; swept over your shoulders and left to drape over your overcoat.
'A cashmere or woollen throw to use as a cover-up is very Italian,' says part-time Venetian resident Steven Moore, Antiques Roadshow presenter and style authority. 'I bought one in the Venetian store Belvest in 2001 and its vast size means it's a constant travel companion. In the deepest Venetian winter, it becomes a demi-cloak of sorts.' Not all knitwear has to be a trusty old sweater.
There's also a Gen Z trend for knits over jackets; that is, a knitted sweater tied around your neck, atop your jacket. Not necessarily 'Italian', but rather preppy and an easier way to cart a sweater around with you, should a chill grip your bones.
Wool wrap, £160, Toast
The under-gilet knit
Italians have successfully wrested the gilet from the muddied hands of us British and taken it from a countryside garment to one of urbane refinement. Less Barbour, more Bar Basso. They tend to be lightweight and padded, easily slipped under a suit jacket and – crucially – worn with a lightweight quarter zip underneath. It's more dynamic and filled with vim, rather than a sedate old sweater for slumbering quietly.
Half-zip sweater, £60, Gant