My Hunt for a Good Going-Out Blanket
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AsHolly Golightly did with a bedsheet, I’d like nothing more than to wrap myself in a blanket and just go about living. (Could this be a primordial desire to feel coddled out of the womb?) But I can’t help thinking that doing so would draw comparisons to Linus fromPeanuts. The next best thing might be in the category we’re calling “going-outblankets” — the operative words here beinggoing out— which are wraps, shawls, ponchos, etc.
I know I’ll sound like Eloise bossing around Plaza staff, but here’s the list of things I’m looking for in the going-out blanket of my dreams. It should come in a fabric that’s soft— softas in the back of a kitten’s ears,Samantha Parkington’s mohair teddy bear, you name it. Brownie points for natural fibers, but no deductions for synthetics, as my favorite blanket — theSophie Faux Fur Throw BlanketfromAnthropologie— is 100 percent pure, unadulterated polyester. It must be big enough to cover most of my torso — otherwise, it’s no better than atriangle scarf. It shouldn’t look like something I actually rolled out of bed with. I wouldn’t mind feeling like a “very sleepy Portuguese aristocrat” (like Salter House’s nightgowns feel, to borrow from Café Forgot’s Lucy Weisner). I was willing to try anything that seemed to meet this criteria — and I cast a wide net for this hunt. For reference, I’m about five-foot-two (shorter than Napoleon Bonaparte reportedly was — do with that information what you will), and all options are “one size fits all.”
My Top Picks
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It's the perfect weight for year-round wear and the right size to be versatile.
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A much more affordable option, but Quince's cashmere is as good as everyone says.
The Not-Quite-Rights
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Toast doesn’t come cheap, but it’s a favorite among those who work onSecret Strategist. (“The clothes have a kind of simplicity to them that make you feel and look good without trying too hard,” says our senior editor Winnie Yang. “But they also don’t look generic.”) I can understand every single dollar in this poncho’s $325 price tag, and there isn’t a doubt in my mind that it’s well made (judging by the yarns used and how it’s knitted). I went in for the prospect of a “cocooning poncho,” according to the copy. I thought it would be more Emily Dawn Long look book than Hannibal Lecter’s straitjacket, unfortunately it was just too constricting for me. Especially through the arms (as evidenced by the picture) — a deal-breaker for someone who talks with their arms. It doesn’t help that the alpaca–merino-wool blend (55 percent alpaca, 35 percent cotton, and 10 percent merino wool) felt itchy.
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I couldn’t help thinking this knit has the makings of something great. It’s Eileen Fisher. It’s Italian cashmere. It’s a shape that drapes (measuring 30 inches by 32 inches), not unlike how I imagine the togas of Julius Caesar. But it just hung on me like it would on a hanger. Not really doing anything for me.
(I also tested out Eileen Fisher’sCotton and Recycled Cashmere Hooded Poncho. Not bad, but it readsbathrobe-y on account of the hood. It wasn’t a serious contender for that reason.)
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As our contributor Erika Veurink says, “What makesLands’ Endso good? The quality. That’s obvious. And the lack of any real tether to trends … It feels cool to wear something that’s impossible to identify.” That’s what I kept thinking about with this ruana. I’d never guess it was from the same place whereNancy Meyers’s family buys their bedsheets. Not really. If anything, it does look like an item from a recreational equipment store, likeL.L.Bean. It’s as if a picnic blanket came to life. Could I survive the Great Outdoors in it? Possibly. It’s awfully warm. (Is this how a butterfly in a chrysalis feels?) Unfortunately, it’s a lot of fabric on me. I’m swimming in it.
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All I can imagine with the combination of the hood, open front, pockets, and dropped-shoulder sleeves is a Jedi apprentice. I don’t necessarily want to be cosplaying a Jedi apprentice on a regular Thursday.
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I can understand whyHilary Duffloves Barefoot Dreams. If Barefoot Dreams’ blankets are soft, Barefoot Dreams’ blanket wraps aresoft-soft. This blanket wrap is part of the brand’sCozyChic line(which includes knits “made of a polyester microfiber, and though I am usually grossed out by polyester and microfiber fabrics, it actually has a very natural hand feel,” explains our contributor Wendy Mullin). It’s the stuff of cuddles. The great thing about it is that it’s a glorifiedSnuggie; the bad thing about it is that it’s a glorified Snuggie. I couldn’t leave the house in it without feeling like I stepped out of mypajamas. Not even the ribbed-cuff sleeves can save it from being considered loungewear. (It’s the same deal with theCozyChic Lite Weekend WrapI tried as well.)
The Close and Closers
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CashTouch is to Lands’ End whatCashSoftis to Gap. While CashSoft is 53 percent cotton, 24 percent nylon, and 23 percent acrylic, CashTouch is 100 percent polyester. Both are meant to be cashmere-like (they literally have “cash” in their names) at awaycheaper price. I don’t know if anything can replicate cashmere, but CashTouch is fleecy. Absolutely toasty. Because of the brushed texture of the wrap — meaning “loose fibers transferring onto other garments is possible,” according to the brand — it’s suggested that you wash it before wearing to “reduce fiber transfer.” I didn’t do that! I noticed red fibers all over a white T-shirt — which happens even with cashmere — but it was nothing a lint roller couldn’t fix.
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If I resembled an umbrella in Toast’s poncho, I’d say I resembled a waterfall inJ.Crew’s. It flows on the body. That’s all in the way it’s cut — or maybe it’s the half-cashmere, half–merino wool blend. (No fewer than three members of the Strategist team — myself included — recommendJ.Crew’s cashmere.) However, it’s more delicate than other J.Crew cashmere blends I’ve tried. I fear what would happen if it snagged.
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There were three wraps that I tried that were all pretty similar: Tuckernuck’s Cashmere Blanket Scarf,Petite Plume’s Cashmere Wrap, andWhite & Warren’s Cashmere Travel Wrap. Tuckernuck’s was the most layerable for me. Petite Plume’s was shorter than I wanted — I can’t wrap it around in quite the same dramatic fashion as other wraps. White & Warren’s, while the same size as Tuckernuck’s, made me hotter around the collar. Like J.Crew’s Cashmere-Wool Blend Poncho, Tuckernuck’s Cashmere Blanket Scarf is incredibly lightweight. I wouldn’t say it’s flimsy in the slightest, but it is on the thinner side. I wish it were atadweightier. That said, those who tend to overheat: Look no further. Plus: You can get it monogrammed (the only one here offering the courtesy — for an additional $15).
The Winner’s Circle
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Do you remember me quoting the words “very sleepy Portuguese aristocrat”? Doên’s Rouen Pashmina iseleganteindeed. If I’m going to be dining alfresco at a fancy seafood restaurant, this is what I have on before the oyster tower comes. I threw it over myself any time I could. I briefly worried that it wouldn’t stay put (especially as I’m cursed with being broader-shouldered). But there’s structure here, in no small part thanks to the 40 percent wool (from Italian textile mill Manteco), 30 percent lyocell, and 30 percent polyamide blend. It’s just so luxurious — when you’re spending $298 on a pashmina, the term “luxurious” can’t be left unsaid.
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I finally understand all the ado about Quince cashmere. Thisgrade-A Mongolian cashmereis exactly what you want cashmere to be. It sways! It dances! I have a fantasy of sitting on the beach in it asJane Fondadid in what I believe to be a still fromGrace and Frankie.Ideal for when the spindrift’s coming at you. For some reason, Quince’s 100 percent cashmere poncho feels more substantial than J.Crew’s 50 percent cashmere-blend poncho.
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Out of all the wraps I tried, C by Bloomingdale’s wrap was my favorite. It balances weight (the cashmere’s in between a light- and mid-weight) and size (at 36 inches by 74 inches, it can be a shawl, wrap, or scarf, but none look too short or too long) better than the others. Very helpfully, Bloomingdale’s includes a diagram of different ways to wrap it around yourself. No matter what way I wrapped, I wasembraced,like a love letter in an envelope. That’s what makes C by Bloomingdale’s “a versatile choice for changing seasons and year-round warmth,” as our writer Brenley Goertzen (who’s tried itssweaters) says. It’s so comforting — the equivalent of vanilla extract in a Barefoot Contessa recipe — too.
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