Ways To Wear: Cardigan Cool

Cardigans, they've been somewhat shunned of late. The "It" sweatshirt had stolen the limelight for seasons past and before that we dabbled with serious shoulders on trophy jackets (remember those?). Cardigans, they got lost along the way. Until Sienna Miller put a strong case forward for them when she stepped out the morning after the Golden Globes in a navy blue one, neatly buttoned and fitted nicely to loose pinstripe trousers beneath. Suddenly, granny's favourite had been rekindled into something sophisticated and the epitome of daytime dressy without going over the top. And a little further catwalk investigation suggests designers are thinking the same - be it in the vein of loosely belted styles, prim and proper or buttoned up with fun slogans. It started when Nineties grunge came back into the style fold: cardigans worn long and sloppily perfectly captured the mood, Hedi Slimane the man behind the movement (left). Suddenly we remembered we had this item hanging up in our wardrobes and it looked great with stompy-clompy boots and a little Nirvana angst-ridden dress. There was nothing granny about these. But we've been wallowing in teen spirit for some time now - and it's time to grow up. Which is why Sienna struck a chord. Why it works now? Absence makes the fashion heart grow fonder. And who doesn't like an item that straddles smart-casual dressing? And so step forward the cardigan which (worn correctly) is neither as potentially sloppy as a T-shirt or jumper, but not as formal as a jacket.