Sub Zero Sweater

Our Sub Zero range started with a simple idea – could you build a cardigan that could outperform a puffer jacket in a cryochamber? You normally test arctic vehicles or missile components in cryochambers. Not cardigans. So we chucked our slightly worried test subject into a room being blasted by arctic conditions while wearing a cardigan for protection. 

Of course it wasn’t a normal cardigan. It was purpose-built for the experiment out of 1.3kg of lambswool and superfine alpaca wool – which meant it was designed to outperform most puffer jackets. So in an entirely predictable anti-climax he was absolutely fine. And now we’ve turned that cardigan into a sweater to do exactly the same job. 

Engineered from two incredibly powerful natural insulators – lambswool and superfine alpaca wool – the Sub Zero Sweater is designed to help keep you warm even in sub zero temperatures.

Alpaca fibres are hollow. So when it’s cold they are highly effective at trapping and retaining heat. When it’s hot, they quickly absorb and wick away sweat much faster than other natural materials, with some studies showing alpaca fibres outperforming Merino wool fibres by more than 80%. This makes alpaca wool one of the most versatile and adaptive natural materials on the planet. The hollow fibres also give it a high ‘thermal capacity to weight ratio’, so even a small amount of alpaca wool keeps you warm. 

Examine a fibre of lambswool under a microscope and you’ll notice that it appears coarser than alpaca, with more pronounced scales on the surface. These scales latch onto each other and lock the fibres together, giving lambswool its springy quality. Alpaca has a higher tensile strength than wool, but its smoother fibres give it a lower elasticity, meaning that it doesn’t retain its shape as effectively when stretched. So we use a 50:50 blend of superfine alpaca and organic lambswool to combine the best qualities of each natural material.

The yarn in our Sub Zero Sweater is spun by Sesia, a carbon neutral mill in the foothills of the Italian Alps. Known for their responsible approach to fashion, they specialise in organic natural materials and hold multiple ethical and environmental accreditations from bodies including OEKO-TEX, ICEA, and the Better Cotton Initiative. The wool is certified free from the harmful practice of mulesing and the yarn is left totally undyed, so the colours seen in the sweater are the colour of the alpaca and the sheep’s natural fleeces.

The Sub Zero Sweater has a regular fit to trap warm air close to your body. It’s built with a mock neck to seal in the warmth – it sits higher than a crew but without the bulk of a roll neck. It’s also engineered with stretchy ribbed knit at the cuffs and hem just like you’d find on a bomber jacket so warm air can’t escape at your wrists or your waist.