I really, really love a sweater vest. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the sweater vest might just be my favorite menswear item—and as a menswear writer, that's high praise.
It's just that there's something so effortlessly chic and stylish about it, yet practical, too. A sweater vest is the easiest way to look like you know what you're doing, and look like you know what you're doing you will. Layering is almost always essential; a boxy tee or button-up take a sweater vest from good to great with virtually no effort required, and with baggy trousers or skinny jeans or, hell, even work pants, the sweater vest is easily the most seamlessly versatile item in your closet.
It's not a tank top. It's not quite a traditional sweater. It is perfect for this weird, in-between weather, where it isn't as chilly as winter usually is, but it's definitely not as warm as spring likes to be. If you don't know what to wear, reach for a sweater vest; if you do know what to wear, then you'll be reaching for a sweater vest anyway, plain or printed, cotton or cashmere. Let me take you through 15 of my favorite sweater vests below.
Halfway between a tank top and a sweater, the sweater vest is man's best springtime-weather friend. Ahead, our top picks, at all price ranges.
