Giving Fair Isle: Choosing a Patterned Jumper for Someone Else
Every December, thousands of people look at a Fair Isle jumper, think "he would look good in that", and then buy him a plain navy one instead, just to be safe. It is understandable. It is also a shame, because the patterned jumper is very often the one he ends up wearing most. This guide exists to make giving Fair Isle a calculated decision rather than a gamble.
Why the pattern works as a gift
Most men buy themselves plain clothes and receive interesting ones. Left to his own devices, he will assemble a wardrobe of navy, grey and black, and then wear the same three combinations all winter. A Fair Isle jumper breaks that loop without breaking his taste: the pattern is traditional, the colours are muted, and it gives every plain trouser and coat he owns a new partner. Crucially, it also reads as a considered gift — nobody gives Fair Isle by accident. For the background on the pattern itself, our Fair Isle guide is worth five minutes.
Choosing the colourway
This is the decision that matters most, and there is a simple way to make it: look at the coats and shoes he already wears. Fair Isle colourways such as ecru and navy sit comfortably with almost everything — navy coats, grey trousers, brown boots, black shoes. The quieter colourways are the versatile ones; the bolder the contrast in the pattern, the fewer things it will join up with. When in doubt, go quieter and let the pattern provide the interest rather than the colour. Browse the options in our Fair Isle collection with his wardrobe, not yours, in mind.
Getting the size right
Knitwear is the most forgiving category you can buy for another person — it has natural give, and a quarter-zip style is designed to layer over other clothes, so there is tolerance in both directions. Three reliable methods: check the label of a jumper he wears often; ask someone who shares his house; or, failing both, size for his usual letter size and favour the fit he prefers in his other knitwear — closer if he wears things trim, standard if he layers. Our Fair Isle Quarter-Zip (£35.95) is cut to sit comfortably over a shirt or tee, which makes it one of the safer knitwear gifts going.
The quarter-zip advantage
If you are choosing between a patterned crew neck and a patterned quarter-zip as a gift, choose the quarter-zip. It can be worn open over a T-shirt, zipped over a collared shirt, and layered under a coat — three lives instead of one, which means three times the chance it becomes a favourite. It also sidesteps the fit question at the neck that makes some men fussy about crew necks.
Timing and presentation
Order early enough that the gift is in your hands, not in the post, when you need it: WARDLEY orders are dispatched within 1–2 working days and delivered in 6–10 working days from order, so Wednesday 9 December is the calm deadline for Christmas. When it arrives, fold it rather than wrapping it on a hanger-shaped guess, and if you are unsure to the last — keep your order confirmation; returns run for 30 days, which covers the sizing conversation in January.
When he already owns jumpers
The common objection — "he has plenty of knitwear" — misunderstands what a pattern adds. A man's existing jumpers are almost certainly plain, and plain knitwear all does the same job: it accompanies other clothes. A Fair Isle does something different; it leads an outfit. One patterned jumper therefore does not duplicate his wardrobe, it multiplies it, because every coat and trouser he owns gains a new combination. This is also why the gift lands well with men who claim to be hard to buy for: you are not guessing at a gadget or a hobby, you are upgrading something he already does every day. Choose the colourway against his coats, size it by his favourite jumper, and let the pattern do the rest.
Then give it with confidence. The man who receives a Fair Isle jumper receives two things: a good piece of knitwear, and the pleasant discovery that somebody thinks he can carry a pattern. He usually can.
Shop the range
If the size is a guess, give around the jumper instead: the WARDLEY gift card (from £25), the herringbone scarf (£9.95), the ribbed beanie (£8.95) and the wool-blend boot socks (£21.95) all land without a fitting.
More knitwear to give is in the knitwear collection; the full shortlist is gifts for him.
For the broader shortlist, more jumpers worth giving are gathered here.