Nicholas Daley Waffle Crewneck – Navy

Waffle is a structure rather than a fabric: a grid of raised squares that holds a layer of air between the cloth and the skin, which is why thermal underwear has looked like this since the nineteenth century. Daley's spring 2025 version is the most designed of the waffles he has made. Where the earlier crews are a plain body with long cuffs, this one is panelled, meaning the body is assembled from sections rather than knitted as one, so seams run through the garment and break the grid at intervals. The cuffs are raised rather than extended. The pockets are set into the seams. And the ribs at the edges carry a small percentage of elastane, which the earlier pieces do not, so the collar and cuffs recover rather than slowly widening.

It is a mid-weight rather than a heavyweight, which places it in a different part of the year from its siblings. This is the spring and autumn waffle. The heavy ones are for winter.

Styling and care

Under the Fonte Jacket, or over a tee with any trouser he cuts. Navy is the easiest of the waffles to place. Wash cool and dry flat rather than hanging, and keep it out of a hot dryer, which degrades elastane permanently and costs you the recovery that makes the garment work. Our fabric care guidance covers the rest.

We took this because the elastane in the rib solves the one thing that eventually goes wrong with a cotton waffle, which is a collar that stops coming back. At a mid-weight in navy it is also the easiest to live with if you want one waffle and only one.

Body one hundred percent cotton, mid-weight waffle. Rib ninety-five percent cotton and five percent elastane. Knitted in Portugal. Panelled body, raised sleeve cuffs, in-seam front pockets. Colour: Navy.

Cut to go over a tee and under a jacket. A mid-weight waffle sits closer to the body than the heavyweight versions and layers under tailoring more comfortably. The elastane at the rib means the collar and cuffs hold. Take your usual size.

The Crew Neck Waffle in black and the Waffle Crew Neck in red and ivory are the earlier crew necks in this cloth. The Waffle Roll Neck in chocolate takes it to a rolled neck, and the Wide Leg Cargo Pant in navy is the trouser with it. Everything we carry from Nicholas Daley is listed together.