☞ BESPOKE: Men's Updated Sweater Style

This weekend New York Times style section featured Harlem's celebrity restauranteur Marcus Samuelsson's colorful daily fashions but didn't give credit to the sweater worn with the accompanying photo (at top by Evan Sung).  The traditional sweater motif such as the ski sweater worn by Mr. Samuelsson or Fair Isles that originates from one of the Shetland Islands have been trending heavily for the past few seasons.

The Nordic countries have always had patterned ski sweaters in their dress vernacular but the Fair Isle motifs from Scotland (lower photo by Tommy Ton via GQ) only gained popularity in the early 1920's when the Prince of Wales started to sport knitted vests with the geometric repeats. Older folks might find the design too traditional but younger gentleman have been wearing brightly colored updates of these sweater patterns along with a contemporary form-fitting silhouette .  Spring 2011 is not quite here yet but the right patterned sweater with a little bit of color helps transition the winter drab hues into warmer weather dressing.  Read more about Mr. Samuelsson's daily looks in the New York Times: LINK