Flamborough Marine Gansey Review

[JBarwick]

I have been a member of Dappered for quite a while and with it has came changes to my personal style and what I value from a product. When I was starting to up my style game, I went with the standard brands or BR, J Crew, and AE. I’d also slot in the Dappered icons like Stafford Deacons and a Navy Suit Supply Napoli suit.

Since joining my tastes, income, and job situation changed so I adjusted how I bought things. Shoes became more expensive but I would only buy them to celebrate a big milestone like job change, promotion, or the like. Also my current role is in a casual work environment so I had to up that side of my style. I have been putting more value on products that I love and are of a great value...how can a $600 sweater be a great value?

This brings me to this sweater. My office is freezing so a merino wool sweater, OCBD, and undershirt are not enough. I was going to buy a few cable knits then I read this PTO article about a Gansey sweater.

https://putthison.com/the-greatest-s...-a-generation/

I was intrigued by the story and loved the DDL style. I loved the seamless design as that is where most of my clothes wear first. It can be worn with either side as the front due to how it is knitted. Lastly it is made with 5-ply wool. Would this be warm enough? Then Derek at Dieworkwear put out and article on the sweater he purchased. More detail and the words “like two boiled shetlands fused together.” Warmth at last for a cold blooded guy.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/diework...an-sweater/amp

Well I put in my order on December 3, 2018. You email back and forth with Geoffrey to nail down pattern, color, and sizing adjustments. I adjusted the Staithes pattern to carry down the pattern onto the arms like DDL. This similar style can also be seen on brands like SNS Herning and other fisherman sweaters. I then set up a call to discuss these changes with a woman who works for the company. We talked arm and body length and finalized the pattern so it was clear.

Then the wait started. I was told due to the Holiday orders it may take a little longer and this was on top of the 6-8 week lead time even during the off season. These take many, many hours to knit and a couple of YouTube’s videos pin the time around 100hrs which when you consider the price is a bargain.

On Wednesday we got a note from USPS that we missed a delivery. The note said the sender was Marine LTD...my Gansey was here! When you get your package the knitter’s name is attached. Thank you Marion Adamson!

Well I finally had some daylight to take some pictures. The pictures from further away are the best color representation.







Seamless sides...this area stretches and is not a weak spot...

[3piece]

This more of an unboxing than a review

[JBarwick]

This more of an unboxing than a review

I guess I can add more of a review.

Fit:
-You provide sleeve measurements during the ordering process so these are spot on. Due to the hand-knitted nature of the garment they are pretty slim but will likely stretch out due to wear
-The length of the Gansey is a little longer than other sweaters. You can adjust the body length during the ordering process but I liked the standard length as I have a longer torso. If you are thinner you can wear it slouchy in the midsection a la DDL which is likely what I will do.
-The body fit really depends on if you get a more detailed pattern or not. The more detail in the pattern, the larger size you will need as the pattern will eat up some of the size. I am not a knitter but it seems to make some sense. I bought a 42" sweater and I would compare the trimness to anything medium or slightly larger in the US. Again I expect this to change as the Gansey ages.

Fabric:
-This wool is rough. It is a special wool which is used in the harsh climates for sailors. I have worn it for a few hours around the house and a long sleeve shirt is necessary. It is not itchy around my neck.

Pattern:
-I chose this particular pattern because I like the idea of being able to "reknit the bottom is something happens". It is more from a historical perspective than anything that you can reknit a Gansey after enough wear. Similar to the argument of re-craftingg GYW shoes. How many have actually done that yet?
-Also with the pattern, I liked the simple design vs. something like the Falmborough design with a very intricate pattern. Within different Gansey books there are stories for the different patterns. Some are said to be stairs, cable knit with the rope nets are made of, different shapes define different aspects of the sweater.

Overall:
-I fell into the lore of the Gansey and love this thing to death. The 3 months of waiting also helped. I would classify this as a sweater for temps below 50*F because it is heavy.
-Again, this is a $600 sweater but I expect to have this for a long time. Taking into account in the price is that the wool alone is roughly $175 and shipping is $35 which is part of the price. $600 minus $210 means someone spends 100 hours for roughly $3 an hour. A couple of the articles note that these are older women knitting these and that he expertise is going away as fewer and fewer people learn to knit.

I will add some more comments as I wear this thing more.

[Token]

This awesome, hope you enjoy it for years to come!

[JBarwick]

[MENTION=14773]Token[/MENTION] - Thanks. Next up are a couple shetlands from OConnells and a Drakes cashmere cable knit.

Also I got some pics of me wearing the sweater this morning.

[jamesl339]

Beautiful Sweater and fantastic fit.

Any updates on how it's worn since you first received it?

[JBarwick]

Beautiful Sweater and fantastic fit.

Any updates on how it's worn since you first received it?

I've already worn this thing a ton so far this fall/winter and maybe have 20-30 wears on it. Every wear I try to rotate which side is the front to get some even wear in the elbow region.

From a stretching standpoint, this thing still fits like I am putting it on for the first time. Other sweaters seem to stretch a bit after a few wears but this thing is still tight and fits relatively close to the body similar to the pictures above. As for other wear, I haven't noticed anything but again this is a very substantial sweater made for taking a beating due to the 5-ply yarn that was used to stitch it.

Would I buy this again if I didn't have one? Yes. This would be in the Top 5 things I would keep if restarting my wardrobe.

There are a few other sweaters on my wish list which I have noted below:
1. O'Connell's 12-ply Cashmere Cardigan but damn that price - https://oconnellsclothing.com/sweate...1537-navy.html
2. O'Connell's plain or cable shetland - https://oconnellsclothing.com/sweate...-med-grey.html
3. Monitaly turtleneck (can be worn both ways like my gansey) - https://nomanwalksalone.com/clothing...rino-wool.html
4. Drake's 4-ply Cashmere Cardigan (may try to find a used one as they used to be 6 ply) - https://www.drakes.com/usa/clothing/...ollar-cardigan
5. William Lockie (maker of Drake's) 4-ply cashmere cable knit - https://williamlockie.com/product/ch...ble-crew-neck/

[jamesl339]

I've already worn this thing a ton so far this fall/winter and maybe have 20-30 wears on it. Every wear I try to rotate which side is the front to get some even wear in the elbow region.

From a stretching standpoint, this thing still fits like I am putting it on for the first time. Other sweaters seem to stretch a bit after a few wears but this thing is still tight and fits relatively close to the body similar to the pictures above. As for other wear, I haven't noticed anything but again this is a very substantial sweater made for taking a beating due to the 5-ply yarn that was used to stitch it.

Would I buy this again if I didn't have one? Yes. This would be in the Top 5 things I would keep if restarting my wardrobe.

There are a few other sweaters on my wish list which I have noted below:
1. O'Connell's 12-ply Cashmere Cardigan but damn that price - https://oconnellsclothing.com/sweate...1537-navy.html
2. O'Connell's plain or cable shetland - https://oconnellsclothing.com/sweate...-med-grey.html
3. Monitaly turtleneck (can be worn both ways like my gansey) - https://nomanwalksalone.com/clothing...rino-wool.html
4. Drake's 4-ply Cashmere Cardigan (may try to find a used one as they used to be 6 ply) - https://www.drakes.com/usa/clothing/...ollar-cardigan
5. William Lockie (maker of Drake's) 4-ply cashmere cable knit - https://williamlockie.com/product/ch...ble-crew-neck/

Thank you for the reply. I've been a bit knitwear obsessed of late and your review of the Gansey made my trigger finger more than a little itchy...

I own a vintage Guernsey, but would love something custom with the sort of history that Flamborough Marine supplies.

I was just saying to my wife yesterday that a luxurious cashmere cardigan was on my clothing bucket list - the 12 ply from O'Connell's was exactly the knit I had in mind.

Thanks again for replying, even if it means I'm just a little bit closer to having to shell out more cash to feed my hobby.

[paintflinger]

I've already worn this thing a ton so far this fall/winter and maybe have 20-30 wears on it. Every wear I try to rotate which side is the front to get some even wear in the elbow region.

From a stretching standpoint, this thing still fits like I am putting it on for the first time. Other sweaters seem to stretch a bit after a few wears but this thing is still tight and fits relatively close to the body similar to the pictures above.

That right there is one of the main differences between hand knit and machine knit sweaters.

[MIS997]

Gorgeous sweater. Worth every bit of $600 if you ask me