Ahhhhh….the statement cardigan. My spring transition wardrobe hero! Although my soul is completely ready to be rocking my white tee – good denim – comfortable sandals uniform, it’s unfortunately a little brisk for just a cotton tee with no top layer these days in Philly, so the statement cardigan walks in and saves the day. Hero, I tell you.
If you missed it, I did a little cardigan sneak-peek last week featuring my favorite of the bunch I tried. It happened to go on major sale, and I didn’t want you guys to miss out on the sale price. The sneak-peek includes detailed pros and cons of this specific MOTHER cardigan –it’s a good one –and it’s still on sale!
Cardigan | Denim | More Washes | Birks
In the process of statement cardigan research, I narrowed it down to three categories of statement cardigans I often wear in the spring —colorful spring statement cardigans, striped cardigans, and neutral-colored cardigans (that are statement-y because of some type of interest or contrast).
Spring Cardigans That Are Both Exciting & Worth The Splurge
Often for statement cardigans, my search starts and ends at Anthropologie and Free People. They usually have the best selection of interesting statement cardigans (many featured below in the roundups), but this year as I mentioned in my MOTHER cardigan post, I branched out and decided to try some higher-end brands. In spring, I wear statement cardigans almost daily, so it felt like it would be worth the splurge for my particular day-to-day wardrobe if I found one (or more than one) I truly loved.
A few of the fancy-schmancy cardigans I tried are on sale, woohoo! (make sure to read the pros/cons, though…not all of them were wins). I also rounded up a bunch of alternative fabulous statement cardigans that I’ve had my eye on. So many good ones that could happily step in and take on their role as a spring transition wardrobe hero.
1. Colorful Spring Statement Cardigans
At Nordstrom | At Intermix | At Neiman | At Bloomies |
At MOTHER
The tie-cardigan above I thought would be the “one” when I placed my big cardigan order. The colors are amazing for spring, and the tie-cardigan style and shape are perfect. It shed quite a bit, though, and the black yarn wasn’t as high-quality and soft and luxurious as I wanted it to be. That being said, though, it is currently on MAJOR sale, so…it’s definitely giving me second thoughts…especially over jeans. Wearing an XS.
Cardigan | Denim | Bag | Wedges | Joggers | Sneaks
More Colorful Spring Statement Cardigans
2. Striped Statement Cardigans For Spring
Max Mara Cardigan | Budget-Friendly Alternative
I thought there was no way I would keep this one. WAY too expensive, for this style of cardigan. Especially since I figured it would be easy to find something for much less $ from another retailer. But…I KEPT reaching for it when putting outfits together…and I kept wanting to wear it as I walked out the door…and I kept searching and searching for something similar and just wasn’t finding the quality and thickness I was looking for. I broke down one morning and decided to rip off the tags.
I traveled with it for spring break and it was wonderful. SUPER soft, not at all itchy, looks great with jeans and a tee, was cozy enough to snuggle while snoozing on the airplane, and I know it will get a ton of wear. I love stripes…I love things that are soft…I love cardigans…I’m obviously still rationalizing my purchase. Wearing an XS.
Cardigan | Cami | Denim | Bag | Wedges | Joggers | Sneaks
More Striped Statement Cardigans
3. Neutral Statement Cardigan
At Theory | At Neiman | At Amazon
This is an interesting cardigan. If I was in an office setting more often, this cardigan would have hands-down been my favorite of the bunch. Classic, so pretty in person, soft, and would work great over various simple office-wear basics. The style and neutral colors are timeless, but the contrasting black trim and multiple pockets make it just enough different that it feels special and interesting.
It’s not as thick as the other statement cardigans I tried, so it’s not quite warm enough to serve as a jacket alternative top layer for my early spring walking-the-city casual looks, but it’s still a fantastic piece. Wearing an XS.
Cardigan | Cami | Denim | Bag | Wedges | Joggers | Sneaks
More Neutral Statement Cardigans
What other Spring Statment Cardigans am I missing? Any others that are working as YOUR personal spring hero piece?
-Linzi
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What would you recommend as a good cardigan for California Bay Area? We are in from the cost so it just cools down in the morning and at night. The days are shoot I can’t remember I spent the last couple springs in the hospital.
Elena..I have always been happy with the Anthropologie or Free People cotton or cotton blend cardigans for that type of weather…instead of the wool-based ones. Maybe like this one? https://shopstyle.it/l/bGwqT
Can you please point me toward a budget alternative for the cute Michael Stars tank with the buttons? I love that type of sweetheart neckline but I am just not going to pay $70 for a TANK TOP.
Totally understandable! Let me look around and see what I can find. 🙂
Abercrombie has some adorable tanks, but they’re often too short/cropped for me. Love this one that has a similar button-tank style https://shopstyle.it/l/bGwra or this one that has such a sweet neckline. https://shopstyle.it/l/bGwr7. I also wear and like the loft double v camis and they’re VERY budget-friendly, but not a sweetheart neckline https://shopstyle.it/l/bGwrm. I ended up with the expensive cami b/c I was having a hard time finding exactly what I was looking for (the buttons and sweetheart lines), but these are at least similar. Will let you know if I find any others. Thanks for commenting!