From laughing stock to style must-have: How the Christmas jumper roared back into fashion

By Jill Reilly


Fashion must-have: On Friday, This Morning presenters Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield presented the show in their Christmas jumpers


The novelty Christmas jumper used to seen as a cringe-worthy festive present knitted by a great aunt, and regarded by the fashion police as the ultimate crime.

But now the festive pullover has done a U-turn and gone from a fashion mistake to a fashion must-have.

Popular with men and women alike, the high street is swamped with novelty jumpers and it seems that shoppers can’t get enough of their woolly antlers, snowmen and snow flakes.


Triple trouble: The duo looked cheery as they paraded their festive finest


Festive fun: American singers Justin Bieber and Pink have both been showing off their festive knitwear, although Justin wore a modern take on the tradition in a festive cardigan

Bang on trend: McFly boys Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones proudly showed off their festive pullovers on their way to Fearne Cotton's Christmas party


The recent surge in popularity could be due to the famous faces who have been snapped wearing jumpers adorned with festive patterns.

Both Radio 1 DJ Fearne Cotton and singer Kelly Rowland have been spotted wearing a reindeer jumper.

McFly boys Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones arrived at Fearne Cotton's party this week proudly parading their Christmas knitwear.

Popstar Justin Bieber was also seen wearing a modern take on the tradition in a cardigan.

Although his festive wear was a ‘red Junya Watanabe Nordic Varsity Jacket’ which reportedly cost a rather unfestive £1,000.

On Friday, This Morning presenters Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield presented the show in their finest festive wear, while cast members of TOWIE have also been snapped in the trend.


Warm for winter: Cee Lee Green and Fearne Cotton snapped in their Christmas jumpers

The only way is Christmas: Joey Essex and Maria Fowler both opted for eye-catching bright red festive pullovers


Some fans would argue that one of the most famous of the Christmas jumpers is the 'Sarah Lund', famously worn by actress Sofie Grabol in hit TV crime drama The Killing.

Her jumper is sold for online for £327, although it doesn’t seem likely the detective would have parted with that amount of cash.

High street shops from Topshop to Primark have reported massive sales of the jumpers, with some festive knits flying off the shelves within minutes.


Here come the boys: Zachary Qunito and Joe Jonas have been wearing more muted versions of the Christmas jumper


Proud: Matt Damon and Ashton from JLS are just two of the many male celebrities who have embraced the Christmas look this season

Subtle: Shenae Grimes and Kate Garraway opted for brown and cream versions of the fashion trend


Online retailer ASOS is awash with hundreds of novelty jumpers ranging from bright red patterns for the brave to more subtle black and white knits, more suitable for those who are slowly embracing the trend.

Fashion experts believe that the rising popularity has been sparked by the recent revival of patterned jumpers which they say has merged into festive patterns for the winter season.

The fashion elite have jumped on the bandwagon and pricier options include a Jonathan Saunders snowflake sweater and an oversized reindeer knit by Phillip Lim.

The novelty pullover has managed to make its mark on the office and many workplaces have had a ‘festive jumper’ day with workers competing for the title of the 'Best Christmas knit.'

It seems that some people still view it a fashion step too far and the BBC unveiled a wide range of seasonal jumpers in their Christmas advert, although rather than causing amusement, lots of Christmas jumper lovers will simply be wondering where they got their knitwear from.

It’s all a long way from the day Mark Darcy caused hilarity by turning up at a Christmas party wearing a reindeer jumper in the film Bridget Jones’s Diary – this year he would be considered a firm fashion follower.



source:dailymail
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