Cashmere: Lightweight. Soft. Long-lasting, so each piece will be a staple in your wardrobe for years.
Also kind of difficult to harvest — you’re importing these fibers from actual goats, often located in remote countries (see: Mongolia). And it takes about four goats to make one sweater.
So affordability was never in play. Until now.
We’re gonna credit Naadam, the direct-to-consumer cashmere brand behind our favorite zip hoodie (so…comfy…). Earlier this fall, they debuted the very literal Essential $75 Sweater, a 100% Mongolian cashmere beauty that cost about a third of what you’d expect to pay and still felt like one of their beautiful core products.
It, of course, instantly sold out.
Not to fear: Below, we offer an array of new affordable cashmere jumpers, gloves, beanies, jackets and accessories that offer all the fiber’s benefits sans the sticker shock.
American Trench Kennedy Collection
An array of grey double-striped gloves, beanies and scarves, crafted from just under 100% recycled cashmere yarn (with a hint of spandex) and knit in Texas. ($88-$185)
Mott & Bow
A denim brand we love just debuted a line of sweaters crafted from 100% premium cashmere (sourced from inner Mongolia), available in four colorways as either a crew or v-neck. ($149)
Bonobos
This affordably elevated menswear brand (recently purchased by Walmart) combines their cashmere with cotton and wool — adding a bit of breathability and warmth, respectively. Available as half-zips, hoodies, shawls and v- and crew neck sweaters. ($148-$228)
Note: If you’re reading this on Saturday, there’s still time to get some sub-$100 deals on a cotton cashmere polo and cotton cashmere half-zip.
Uniqlo Wool Cashmere Chesterfield Coat
Uniqlo’s wrinkle-resistant wool-cashmere blend long coat is great for inclement weather, but one buyer notes it’s “not great for big butts.” While not the highest quality (expect pilling), the brand also offers cashmere sweaters, gloves and scarves for under three digits. ($149)
Everlane Cashmere Crew
Another direct-to-consumer basics brand we dig, Everlane’s cashmere crew sweaters arrive in twelve different colors and come with reinforced ribbing at the neck and cuffs. ($100)
North & Mark Luxcore Collection
At $295, these cardigans and zip sweaters don’t immediately come across as “affordable.” But North & Mark — which infuses performance tech into upscale menswear staples — blends thermo-regulating Climayarn from Switzerland with Italian cashmere, so you’ll stay warm and reap temp-regulating/sweat-wicking benefits. Also, unlike almost all cashmere, you can machine wash these garments, so you’ll save time from hand-washing and money from dry-cleaning. ($295)
Todd Snyder
The New York designer’s new cashmere store? Not cheap. But TS is seemingly always throwing a sale, and we found cashmere T-shirt sweaters and a cashmere turtleneck for over half off. (Starting at $99)
Main image via Uniqlo; inlines via the respective stores.
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