From London to Hollywood and Iceland to Portugal, cardigans have often been associated with celebrities and their fashion styles. Whether it is a famous person from the world of film, music, theatre, or even the political arena, this garment found its way in almost every celebrity’s closet. Our parents probably associate cardigans with Mr. Rogers. He was a super cool guy who gave the cardigan that leisurely look and purpose. Mr. Rogers had several of these front zipped cardigan sweaters in different colors, his signature one was the famous red cardigan (pictured) but he sported the blue one, brown one, and various other shades of those colors. His famous red cardigan was donated by his foundation to the Smithsonian museum. One noteworthy detail is that November 13th is the National Cardigan Day also known as “Mr. Roger’s Day” or “Kindness day” so please, remember to wear a cardigan every year on November 13th. Yes, Mr. Rogers, so many of us wish we could be your neighbors. If you’d like to get a high-quality replica of Mr. Roger’s cardigan made by Inca Fashions, click on the link below.
National Cardigan Day in honor of Mr.Rogers
Marylin Monroe made cardigans timeless
From the icons of an early Hollywood like, Gene Kelly, Marylin Monroe, Steve McQueen, to more recent ones like Kurt Cobain, Heidi Klum, David Beckham, Rhianna, were all seen sporting a cardigan on many occasions.
Considered one of the most famous cardigans in the history of Hollywood, Marilyn Monroe’s hand-knitted, belted, wool cardigan is truly a timeless piece of fashion that is as stylish today as it was fifty years ago. It recently sold at an auction for $167.000.00 Marylin owned a few of her favourite cardigans but the iconic belted one that she wore on Santa Monica Beach in California, captured by George Barris in 1962, became one of the most famous knitwear pieces in history. An icon of allure really made knitwear look amazing. Sadly, the original cardigan Marylin wore, sold to the highest bidder at an auction recently, but don’t despair! A high-quality replica is available for purchase for the rest of us who would want to try to replicate her irreproachable style. Click on the link below the video to check out one of the best replicas of Marylin’s famous belted cardigan.
Macho sex symbols of Holywood in cardigans
Another fella that made cardigans look great needs no introduction. Known for his irresistible macho style, this is an inspiration even to David Beckham who in a comment about him said “I’ve always looked at people such as Steve McQueen for influence. The clothes he wore, his sense of style, the way he looked in pictures, the way he was as a personality.” How cool is that? I think that Becks is a modern version of Steve and that you really must try a bit harder to “Wear it like Beckham” in order to look as cool as him. Although Steve wore thin cardigans as well on a few occasions, he loved this shawl neck ribbed cardigan that really suited him well. Not much changed today. Men who know style, love these ribbed cardis. They last long and even if they look a bit worn out or have a tiny rip here and there they still look cool. Wearing them on a denim shirt, a tee shirt or a plaid shirt with your favorite pair of leather chukkas is always a winning look. Check out a similar ribbed cardigan to the one Steve wore by clicking on the button below.
Cardigan Sweaters and Politicians
Political and public figures like JFK and Michelle Obama, amongst others, also looked amazing in this kind of knitwear. They love them for their simplicity and luxurious style. Cashmere cropped cardigans have been extremely popular amongst young women in Hollywood, young actresses, singers, and models have been sporting them a lot lately. Men have been wearing thin ones but also long men’s cardigans and shawl cardigans that veterans of style like aforementioned, David Beckham and Daniel Craig love.
One contemporary public figure that made cardigans famous again is Michelle Obama. With her modest but highly stylish and tasteful outfits, former first lady made American women fall in love with affordable cardigans. She really wore them well. They were not expensive and unaffordable brands but she made them look like a million bucks! As NPR reported : “And she didn’t just wear the sweaters behind closed doors at 1600 Pennsylvania. For a March 2009 Vogue interview about her new job, she wore a papaya cashmere cardigan with a soft ruffled blouse. When the Obamas made their first official trip to England, she donned a jeweled cream silk cardigan over a pale green pencil skirt when she visited 10 Downing Street. The London-based international press noticed. IDTV described the effect this way: Her upbeat ensemble stood out alongside the British Prime Minister’s wife’s navy outfit.” Take a listen to this short audio podcast by National Public Radio below.
Mrs.Obama really liked crewneck button-down cardigans made by JCrew but she owned a variety of stylish and simple cardis that were not too pricey. If you’d like to steal her animal print cardigan, visit this page. If you’d like to get a similar crewneck style thin cardigan, click on the link below.
Cardigan Sweaters and Musicians
Musicians were known to often sport cardigans. One famous figure from the recent past that made a cardigan an unforgettable fashion statement of the ’90s which resonates to this day was Kurt Cobain. He wore his olive-green cardigan sweater during an MTV performance just days before his death and that sweater will always be associated with artsy and creative minds. That very olive-green sweater made from acrylic and mohair fabric was recently sold for $334.000 during Julien’s auction making it the most expensive cardigan ever sold. We can certainly consider it a true “Celebribilia.” Now a quarter of a century later, many fashionistas and artists are still trying to replicate that look of a creative artist in a cardigan perhaps only Kurt was able to pull off successfully.
A company by the name of Vetements even attempted to re-create a Cobain oversized cardigan. Cobain’s timeless “artsy hipster” look is proof that a cardigan won’t make you look older but on the contrary, It can only make you look cooler. You can visit the company’s official Instagram page by clicking on the image.
Cardigan Sweaters in songs
A lot of contemporary musicians are not only wearing cardigans but also signing about them. From Don Toliver’s song “Cardigan” to Taylor Swift’s worldwide hit also titled “Cardigan“, these young Hollywood talents make their fans associate cardigans with youth and creativity and that is quite positive. Taylor Swift not only uses a cardigan as a metaphor for a favourite item to wear while comparing it to herself and young love but she also designs limited edition cardigans that can be purchased on her website. She gifted quite a few of these cardigans to various celebrities. Marketing move or not, we would certainly like to get our hands on one of these collectible sweaters. Cardigan-inspired songs are not a new trend. Bends like “Kikagaku Moyo” and various other songwriters often sing about cardigans in their songs.
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