There’s nothing cosy about spring. It’s light. It’s breezy. And so, as it happens, is the knitwear this season.

Of course, you’d naturally be forgiven for thinking the phrase “spring knitwear” is oxymoronic. The traditionally split fashion calendar has brainwashed us all into believing that we should lock away anything remotely woolly at the first glimpse of sunshine and restrict ourselves to a wardrobe of T-shirts and sandals for the following six months. The only problem is, weather doesn’t work that way.

Dressing for spring and the warmer months requires an adaptable course of action that takes the changeable temperature into account. This, we refer to as layering: a modular approach to getting dressed in which multiple layers can be piled on or stripped off in accordance with the prevailing conditions. Knitwear is a key component in this strategy.

Read on for six stylish and spring-appropriate options to see you through the warmer months.

With the emergence of sweat-wicking technical fabrics, the rationale for wearing knitwear to play sports has faded. But, hey, menswear did pretty well out of it. Henleys, polo shirts and other garments that originated as sportswear now count themselves wardrobe classics, capable of transcending the seasons. There’s no argument, then, that says you shouldn’t wear a cricket sweater pretty much all year-round: they were, after all, designed to be worn on English playing fields. But during mercury spikes, you’re liable to overheating in a traditional cable-knit variety.

The above option, the “Cricket Sweater, Light” if you will, from Brunello Cucinelli is a welcome alternative. As with all of the Italian brand’s ultra-refined designs, the last thing you’ll want to do while wearing it is exert yourself – though if you do, it’s knitted in a finer gauge from slub cotton blended with touches of silk, cashmere and linen for lightness.

How’s your French? If the words “la maille pêcheur” mean nothing to you, don’t worry, we had to copy-paste it into Google Translate, too. Essentially, in English, it reads “the fisherman’s knit”, which was the mainstay of Mr Simon Porte Jacquemus’ debut menswear show last June. Modelled after the nets used in the designer’s native Marseilles, they’re knitted from cotton and linen in an open stitch, so they’re looser and more louche than average and are best worn oversized to capture the easy, beach-bound vibe of the SS19 show.

Given its relaxed, breezy structure, this is also the ideal pick if you’re worried about overheating. And, good news, it’s not just Jacquemus peddling these extremely wearable wares this season. You’ll also find Loewe and new brand AMBUSH® are doing fine things in this department.

Does anything shout “sun’s out!” quite like tie-dye? Happily – especially for our Editorial Director, who has adopted the pattern as his strict uniform over the past few weeks – it’s practically inescapable this season. There are the usual suspects of course: Stüssy, The Elder Statesman and AMIRI are the reigning champions of traditional tie-dye, but more than a few surprising players have thrown their hat in the ring recently, too.

From the psychedelic to the sophisticated, there are a wealth of options to choose from. Searching for something more grown-up, perhaps even office-appropriate? Balmain’s silk and linen-blend pullover comes in a faded watercolour dégradé for a sun-bleached effect. Summer can’t come soon enough.

The legacy of Take Ivy – Mr Teruyoshi Hayashida’s photographic ode to American collegiate style – has been lasting in Japan. After the book’s publication and runaway success in 1965, brands began to emulate the East Coast look en masse until the chinos, Oxford shirt and navy blazer became part of the sartorial scenery.

Tokyo-based Camoshita is one brand that still finds a way to make the tried-and-tested preppy formula seem fresh. Take this varsity-inspired sweater, for example. For starters, it’s short-sleeved, which ups its suitability during the warmer months for obvious reasons. But the brand has also paid an unusual degree of attention to the fabric to keep it really lightweight – there’s breathable cotton, feathery rayon and even paper (yes, paper) in the mix.

Like anyone currently redecorating their home, fashion designers understand that the perception of colour has an awful lot to do with what you call it. It’s why the tones in their collections are often christened with monikers seemingly plucked from the pages of a Farrow & Ball catalogue. It’s a successful tack, of course. Why choose plain old pink, for, example, when you could have “Sulking Room Pink” or “Porphyry Pink” or even “Dead Salmon”? OK, we’ll pass on that last one, but the point still stands: call it nominative determinism, call it savvy branding, we’re suckers for this kind of thing.

This season, the inspiration appears to come from a decidedly summery, if unlikely, source: ice-cream flavours. Mint green, vanilla, strawberry and other pastel shades have cropped up in most collections. It’s enough to make Mr Wes Anderson blush. It’s also one of SS19’s key trends we’ve earmarked for your special attention and, as it happens, works particularly well in knitwear form. For further proof, look to Mr Thom Browne’s pink cotton cardigan – cleverly, it’s knitted using a Milano stitch which lends it a similar appearance and structure to lighter woven fabrics, and the smart, snug fit makes it a cheerful choice for the office. Now we just have to decide what to call the sugary shade. Candy floss? Sherbet? Rose-water macaron?

There are many things RRL, Ralph Lauren’s Wild West-inspired line, does very well: selvedge denim, leather jackets, buffalo-checked shirts… But shawl-collared cardigans are, to our mind, the brand’s crowning glory. The label’s rustic pieces add a certain ruggedness to any look, rain or shine, but come spring their usefulness increases exponentially: by virtue of design, they’re easy to slip on and off in accordance with the whims of the weather. But you knew that already.

It’s easy to overlook, however, that they also have pockets which makes them a viable and convenient alternative to a jacket when there’s one of those quintessentially springlike breezes in the air. Again, it’s the choice of lightweight yarns – cotton, linen and silk specifically – which distinguishes the above example. That, and the excellent Navajo-inspired pattern, of course.

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