PURLS TO PUT US IN A SPIN
Forget damaging plastic, an Irish knit is for a lifetime and not just for Christmas
Every December, millions of novelty Christmas jumpers are bought and then discarded in January never to be worn again. The majority of these novelty knits (up to 95 per cent according to a 2019 study) are made from acrylic, which is essentially a plastic that can take more than 200 years to biodegrade. Acrylic also sheds micro plastics at an alarming rate when laundered, so even if you do keep your jumper to wash and wear again, this potentially contaminates our water table.
While Christmas knits are thought of as an expression of festive cheer, what they are doing to the environment is far from funny. The Christmas jumper has become a toxic polluter that exemplifies everything wrong with fast fashion and its throwaway culture.
So instead of a plastic jumper made in a Chinese factory, this Christmas why not focus instead on native Irish knitwear? A jumper should be for life, not just for Christmas pub crawls, and Irish knitwear has never been more beautiful or more fashionable after the starring role of the handknits in the Banshee of Inisherin. A piece of Irish knitwear is a perfect Christmas gift — it will always be gladly received, will last years and with modern yarn blends containing merino and alpaca, there is negligible itch factor. It is sustainable, stylish, and now super sexy too. It is being worn by celebrities who have fallen for the Celtic charms of cosy Irish knits
— Patrick Dempsey is a fan of Inis Meáin, Hozier wears
Edmund McNulty and Gigi
Hadid loves Hope McAuley.
The roll call of Irish knitwear brands is impressive: Fisherman
Out of Ireland, Ireland’s Eye, Inis Meáin, the Sweater Shop, Moss and Cable, Pearl Reddington and Stable of Ireland offer traditional Aran knits reimagined for modern times.
If you adore vivid colour and knits with an unconventional twist, then there are the colourful styles of Urban Aran, Hope McAuley and Miss She’s Got Knits. If you are a style maven with an appetite for life’s finest luxuries, then you can swathe yourself in sumptuous cashmere from Ros Duke,
Lucy Nagle, Laura Chambers, Sphere One and Lainey Keogh. Knitwear made by small designers such as these is a serious investment but made for a lifetime’s wear.
New Irish brand Cayo who create knits from 100 per cent Peruvian custom-made alpaca wool, say their alpaca knitwear is one of the softest, most luxurious, and longlasting items you will ever own. Another sustainable Irish knitwear brand, Ériu, make their knit sweaters, accessories and blankets from wool from native Irish sheep. They even sell yarn kits so that you can take up the needles yourself if feeling crafty.
Natural yarns like wool and alpaca possess antibacterial and anti-allergenic qualities, are temperatureregulating, and are a 100 per cent renewable, compostable and sustainable natural resource.
They are also tactile next to the skin, comforting and part of our heritage. Irish knitwear brands make beautiful things and deserve our support. This Christmas think Irish, shop local and give enduring style with a Gaelic geansaí that gives polluting plastic the push.