Ann Arbor’s starting to thaw out, so I thought it smart to highlight a garment suitable for the awkward Midwest transition between winter and warmth: the cardigan.  Admittedly, not necessarily what you’d think as transitional, but a lengthy treatise begs a logical segue to kick-start discussion (even at that, too, a windbreaker may be more appropriate; however, that I spent $52 on one from American Apparel and it leaves me numb in the cold – suave as it may be, though some may dissent – it quantifies the windbreaker as one of the least practical, illogical purchases to date).  Photos serve sufficient as well (from GQ’s “week in style”):

True, the guy from the The Notebook (Ryan Gosling, featured in the slideshow) probably will serve as a stronger deterrent than magnet for the cardigan; adequate compensation provided, perhaps, by the RDJ rep- guy was great in Tropic Thunder. Still, though, in our hyper-fluctuating meteorological conditions, the cardigan proves versatile: a thin cardigan from H&M is sufficient for Spring; my chunky (regrettably) fire-engine red throwback from Lacoste (whose legitimacy – I bought it from a questionable vintage store – has been under fire) ensures survival during the December, February, and March (and April). And if we’re talking weather than, yes, you could buy a light jacket or a North Fleece; or, you could honor the timelessly elegant Mr. Rogers and grab a cardigan.

Talk about staple status: the cardigan’s been outfitting old men (some creepy, some dashing), hipsters, and anybody in between for years.  The fact fiends at (yes, appropriately) Cardigansweater.com report that cardigans were first worn by 17th century fishermen in the British Isles; naming rights, though, are accredited to (in some circles, I’m sure) pop culture icon James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan:

If those fishermen knew the sartorial path they would blaze– poor maritime chumps.  Not that the path’s been smooth; wearing a cardigan in high school would probably get you popped in the jaw.  However, the cardigan’s seemed to have experienced a recent surge in popularity, no less thanks to King James and  Jay-Z ; luckily, “Jersey Shore cardigan” yields no relevant results.  Not that wearing any item – much less a cardigan – should be contingent on which celebrities decide to wear it; but, if it’ll give one the necessary gall to do so – there’s, truth be told, a grandfatherly air it exudes – then I’ll shamelessly plug and plug away.

Not only may aesthetic observations abound, but the cardigan can be charged as limited in its scope of versatility.  Doesn’t the sheer irony of wearing something from your grandfather’s closet just wear thin?  Doesn’t the Ivy schoolboy look get stuffish?  A V-neck sweater is just that- a sweater; a button-down is just a button-down; nothing ironic, nothing kitschy; just classic.  Maybe; and, maybe I’m just biased toward the cardigan because I own too many, and wear them all too often.  But the cardigan revives the traditional clothing with a splash of whatever a bunch of buttons on a sweater may provide.

The pinnacle of fashion- the cardigan.  Worthy of runways and red carpets.  And, at that, my 2010 Oscars cardigan count: zero.