The Mega Knit Ascends

At his first fashion show for Alexander McQueen, Creative Director Seán McGirr spoke to fashion journalist Suzy Menkes about his springboard for Fall 2024: compression. His power quadruple-collar jumpers were in black and ivory hand-knitted wool, while hooded funnel-neck jumpers donned brown and blue acid-dyed wool. Labelled "knitted statuary," these mighty, sculptural forms are fast being adopted by the fashion world as "mega knits."

Mega knits also appeared at Sacai, Stella McCartney, Gabriela Hearst, JW Anderson, Duran Lantink, and Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda. Cozette McCreery, one third of cult knitwear brand Sibling, said that McGirr's work reminded her of similar things her colleague Sid Bryan did for McQueen in the late 1990s. Sibling, with late Joe Bates, were pioneers in oversized and creative knitwear; their injection breathed new life into knitwear's presence in fashion.

From the likes of Giles Deacon's Fall/Winter 2007 collection, which features designs such as the "Hug in a Mug" balaclava with attached gloves, to Sister by Sibling's rippling, textured pieces in Fall/Winter 2013, knitwear is finally becoming wearable art. Oversized knits tapped back into maximalism's reemergence today and away from minimalism for a new take on luxury, stylist Shala Rothenberg said.

Duran Lantink's last collection worked with enlarged forms in collaboration with Knitwear Lab, that has resulted in bulging shoulders and also boxy Nordic knits. At Sacai, Abe Chitose's collection by hybrid knits to explore the idea of emotional protection as "knee-length coats and oversized sweaters combined with knits, as a definition to comfort paired with armor-like aesthetic." Stella McCartney has styled her collection as a "message from Mother Earth," and only cashmere knit loop ropes surrendering to swinging generous rope-like heads, flaunting bold, built-up shoulders.

"Swaddling" and "Hibernation" is what Li Edelkoort predicted to happen for Fall/Winter 2024. According to Simar Deol, foresight analyst at The Future Laboratory, "Uncertainty and insecurities push people to seek comfort," which also explains designs moving toward protective, embracing knits. Trends like "Doom Dressing" and "Spiritual Cosplay" are becoming expressions of emotional desire for warmth and nostalgia, while technology and AI alarms touch the angle of saving traditional skills, like knitting, at an increased rate.

No less steeped in heritage, knitwear is full of the maker's touch and of nostalgia. JW Anderson led the way on the runway with dresses created out of giant balls of knitting wool. At least Dolce & Gabbana's recent Alta Moda shows paid tribute to Sardinian craftsmanship, models draped in wool capes, fringes, and braids underscored the impossible art of traditional weaving.

The mega knit is not just another trend; it's a movement. It is part of the texture of the current fashion landscape—the one that takes craftsmanship, comfort, and so much more seriously than at any other time in history. It is, as McCreery said, all about "people wanting to know how things are made," and knitwear certainly embodies that craft-driven curiosity.