Rick Owens Peter Cardigan

Putting the fastening on the collar rather than the placket changes what a cardigan is. A conventional cardigan closes down its length, which means the front is a vertical line of buttons and the garment reads as a shirt made of knit. This one fastens only at the neck, with silver snaps set along the collar, so the body below hangs open and free and the only structural moment is at the throat. What it produces is closer to a wrap that can be secured than to a cardigan that can be undone.

The weight supports the decision. This is knitted light for virgin wool, so there is not enough mass in the body to want holding shut, and the drape is what the garment is for. Metal snaps against a fine wool are also a deliberate hardness: a small bright interruption at the neck on a garment that has no other detail anywhere.

Why we selected it

The lightweight cardigan is the most useful thing in a wardrobe and the least interesting to buy, because almost every version is the same garment. This one is not, and the difference is a single decision about where the fastening goes. We would rather sell one considered version of a plain thing than three unconsidered ones.

The house’s knitwear tends to move a garment’s fastening somewhere it does not belong, and the Peter is the cardigan version of that habit.

Materials and construction

One hundred percent virgin wool, made in Italy, in black. Lightweight knit with silver snap buttons set along the collar.

Fit notes

Cut to hang open, so the fit is about the shoulder and the length rather than about closure. Fine virgin wool relaxes with wear and recovers with rest rather than with washing, so it will feel slightly fuller after a season and come back if it is left flat between wearings. It layers over a tee comfortably and over a shirt with room to spare.

Styling

Over a plain tee with black trousers, snapped at the neck so the body falls open in two panels. Over a milk or dust tee if you want the contrast. Under a coat, where a light knit is the layer that actually fits.

Care

Fine wool is worn several times between cleanings rather than washed after each, and it should be rested flat rather than hung, since the shoulder will carry the weight permanently if it is left on a hanger. Hand wash cool with a wool detergent at most, and dry flat. Our care guidance covers wool in more detail.

Related pieces

For the house’s knitwear in cashmere, the Maglia Naska Lupetto. For a plainer knit, the Raglan Crewneck. Underneath it, the Basic SS T. Everything we currently hold from Rick Owens is listed together.