Oui jumpers in chocolate brown, and how we wear them head to toe

Of the new Oui jumpers in chocolate brown, the one we hand to anyone who tells us she never wears a high neck is the wrap neck. The front crosses into a soft V and leaves the throat clear. Next to it sits the roll neck, in exactly the same deep brown, and it is the better choice if the cold always finds your collar first.

Both came in with Oui's September delivery, much of which arrived in one shade the label calls chocolate torte. Trousers, a faux fur gilet and a chunky scarf came in the same brown, so a whole outfit can be built from it.

The short version:

• Wrap neck: a soft V, fitted through the body, easing at the hip. The pick if you avoid high necks.
• The roll neck is relaxed, with a dolman sleeve and small side vents.
• For something softer than brown, the funnel neck comes in taupe melange with low patch pockets.
• Pleat front trousers, a faux fur gilet and a chunky scarf complete the look in chocolate torte.
• Whitecap grey trousers and a camel and grey leopard blouse lighten it.

• Oui jumpers by neckline
• Chocolate brown from head to toe
• Softening the brown with grey and camel
• Fitting and care

Oui jumpers by neckline: wrap, roll or funnel

On the wrap neck, the two fronts cross and settle into a V, so there is nothing to fasten and nothing close to the chin. The knit is fine and fluid with a little stretch. It follows the body before easing off at the hip, and a close rib keeps the cuffs neat.

The roll neck is warmer and looser. It is a smooth, fine gauge knit with a dolman sleeve, cut deep from the body and narrowing into a ribbed cuff. It falls to the hip, with small side vents that give it room when you move. The neck can go up on a cold morning and fold down once you are somewhere warm.

The third shape is a funnel neck, and it comes in taupe melange rather than brown. It is the most relaxed of the three: dropped shoulders and a boxy body, in a fine rib. Two patch pockets sit low at the hem. The funnel stands up against the cold by itself, which saves reaching for a scarf.

And if you would rather not think about necklines at all, the Sirah arrived in chocolate torte too. It is a weightier cable knit with a scooped crew neck and raglan sleeves, and it sits at the waistband, which suits a high rise trouser.

Chocolate brown from head to toe

Build the brown outfit up from the pleat front trousers. They have a high rise and a single front pleat that folds softly down a wide leg, running the full length to a clean hem. A hook and bar fastening keeps the waistband flat. Under the wrap neck, the V at the top and the pleat below draw one long line from collarbone to floor.

The faux fur gilet is what stops all that brown looking flat. Its pile is deep and soft, and the lining lets it slide on over a long sleeve without catching. A two-way zip opens from the bottom when you sit down. The hem finishes at the hip and has a drawstring for pulling it in.

The chunky knit scarf is the easy last piece. It is a thick rib with real weight to it, long enough to loop twice around the neck. Looped over the wrap neck, it fills the open V on a cold walk into town. We would leave it off the roll neck altogether, as that is a lot of knit in one place.

Softening the brown with grey and camel

The quickest way to lighten the look is the same pleat front trouser in whitecap grey. It is a pale grey with warmth in it, closer to ivory than a true grey, and a chocolate jumper over it looks crisp rather than heavy.

Or keep the brown trousers and change the jumper. The taupe melange funnel neck sits between a neutral and the darker brown, and its length is designed to finish at the waistband of a high rise trouser. That leaves the top of the pleat on show.

For an evening, the camel and grey animal print blouse brings in a little black. It is a sheer leopard print with a ruffle at the high neck and a smocked yoke across the chest and shoulders, made to be worn over a camisole. Under the open gilet, with the chocolate trousers, the camel in the print ties straight back to the brown.

If you like the shapes but not the colour, the wrap neck also came in gardenia and the roll neck in off-white.

Fitting and caring for Oui knitwear

The three jumpers here run from UK 8 to 14, converted from Oui's German sizing, and the trousers and gilet go up to a UK 16. How each one is cut matters as much as the number:

• The wrap neck is fitted through the body and sleeves, so if you are between sizes, try both.
• Roll neck: relaxed, falling to the hip, with side vents for movement.
• Take the funnel neck in your usual size. It is boxy on purpose, and sizing down loses that shape.
• The trousers sit high and fitted at the waist, then relax through the leg.

For washing, go by the label sewn inside each piece, because the yarn changes from one style to the next. For the rest of this season's Oui delivery, including the two-in-one jumper, see our earlier post on Oui clothing in the UK.

Everything here is in the Wetherby shop and online: our jumpers, the wider knitwear edit and the full Oui collection. To have a jumper put by in your size, call us on 01937 585429.

Shop Oui at Olivia Grace

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