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| Light Gray |
After a two year hiatus, during which time it was replaced by the dreadful roll-neck version, L.L. Bean has (once again) "brought back" the Ragg Wool Crewneck Sweater. (One can wonder about the crack decision making of a management team that replaces an item that sells out every year with its taste-bereft mutation.)
We wear these sweaters constantly throughout the year as a workhorse (we alternate with the wonderful
Wool Overs). They are surprisingly comfortable, wash well in the washing machine (lie flat to dry), and are made of a soft lambswool. (While we wore and liked the Ragg sweaters of thirty or forty years ago, they certainly were itchy.)
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| Our family is of the buy-more-sweaters-and-less-heating-oil orthodoxy. |
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| The classic Oatmeal color is still my favorite, but the new Light Gray is right behind it. |
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| Negatives: they are made in China (rumors of L.L. Bean changing their name to L.L. Mart are heretofore unfounded) and they wear out quickly at the elbows. Patches are an aesthetically appealing workaround, but that can blunt their easy-to-wash attribute. |
My family has a long tradition of buying wool sweaters from L.L. Bean. I expect to carry that tradition on for weeks at least, and maybe longer.
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| My Father (hunting in the North Woods of Maine in 1951) |
This sweater, $49.95, is not yet in their catalogs nor is it online. And if you type in the item number, you will be told it is unavailable. However, if you call them up (1.800.221.4221) and give them the item number (ZZ237769) you will be able to order it, as it is in stock. Seriously.
31 comments:
Thank goodness it's back in with a crewneck! I lost mine, which I'd had since college, but just could not wear the horrible roll-neck version. Sorry to hear the quality is not what it was (my lost one, despite its age, still looked like new). I will call them immediately and order. Thank you for the heads-up!
The shallows thing I'm going to say all day is that this is the best news I've heard this week. STALKING...STOCKING UP!
Muffy,
Great post! Nothing gets me more excited than sweaters. I may have to add one of these to my collection. I wonder when it will be added to the online catalog?
This odd secret phone availability also applies, or applied 5 or so years ago, to Bean's Boat Tote Duffel, if anyone cares.
I'm glad to see the return of this sweater, but sad to say that though I know my size I'll have to purchase in person after an unfortunate recent incident where I unwittingly bought a Bean sweater with one sleeve about 6 inches shorter than the other. (I had, of course, de-tagged and washed it by the time I noticed.) The tone of this post evinces some similar experiences with Bean's Chinese knitwear.
This is a great bit of information. I need/want one. My husband's family is of the same mind on heating oil, once it is bought it is gone but when you buy a sweater you may have it for a while.
Sadly the quality on LLBean's sweaters has declined across the board. I have worn the same rag wool and Norwegian sweaters for the past 25 years.
Muffy - Do 'ya think that anyone from LLBean is following your blog? ;) :)
WRJ- do we just call and ask the person on the phone what is NOT online or in the catalogue?
p.s. I still prefer anything made in the USA/Great Britain...but, I will give LLBean credit for moving slightly forward...by, moving slightly backwards. (if that makes any sense..lol)
Yeah !!!!
Well I happen to run across this article the a few weeks ago as well.
http://www.valetmag.com/the-mix/081909.php/
Maybe, there listening?
I think, based on many of the product specific comments that have appeared here at various times, that it's safe to say that the quality of L.L. Bean products across the board is NOT what it once was. I have become VERY SELECTIVE about what I buy there. As for Lands' End, I started to cut back on my purchases from them after SEARS bought them and now,due to seriously degraded quality, buy NOTHING from them.
All of these issues that folks here comment on bring to mind that old Latin saying "Caveat emptor." Let the Buyer beware!
I like your comment that you will purchase from them for weeks, not years. It is entirely too hot here in Georgia to even fathom needing sweaters.
Many thanks for the heads up! I just placed an order and the size I wanted is backordered until September 22. However, since I live in Texas, that will work just fine.
Thanks again, Muggy!
Muffy, so sorry about the mispelling of your name. I was so excited about the sweater that I didn't check my comment before sending it.
I do apologize!
Joyce N
L.L Bean finally opened a store in northern NJ (in Paramus, Bergen County). However, due to Bergen County's insistence on maintaining "BLUE LAWS" the stor is NOT open on Sundays. If one wants to shop there, they must do so from Monday thru Saturday.
Thank you very much for this post. I had no idea that the sweaters were back. You write that a negative point is the wearing of the elbows. Do you think that these sweaters would only last a season?
One reason I continue to buy clothing and boots from LL Bean is their 100% guarantee. If the elbows are wearing through in only one year, they will replace the sweater. I think if enough of us returned items that wore out too soon, then the company would have to recognize that the inferior quality was costing them more than having them made here in the U.S. or with higher quality wool. Giving away 2 or 3 sweaters for the price of one would be ridiculous!
Wouldn't you know it? Can you believe I've develpoed a wool allergy at this stage in life? There goes all my Birds Eye cardigans, Norwegian cardigans and cashmere cardigans. Looks like I'll be making a visit to eBay.
Thank goodness they have returned. I had a few from a number of years back that each somehow fell to odd incidents (don't ask) two winters past. When I went to get replacements I was taken aback to find those rollneck catastrophes and simply couldn't bring myself to get on..that look is just so...good grief.
This is good to hear; hard to find all wool sweaters, and me, I like the itch.
Why not the old Shaggy Dog best-selling "Natural Light Tan?"
Thank-you Muffy! I just ordered my sweater. If many of us are ordering sweaters, do you think customer service is wondering how the heck so many people found out about a sweater that is not in the catalog? Hehe.
the cotton crew necks are posted on the website.
Since I am back in Japan, does anyone have any experience with Bean shipping overseas? There are quite a few items I want to get, and there's actually an LL Bean store here in Fukuoka, but the markup is ridiculous (three times what LL Bean is in the States), and I know shipping won't be that much...
Kionon, to answer your question about shipping, I have ordered overseas. I just called customer service; everything arrived swiftly with no problems.
I'll start by saying that I love this blog and find Mrs. Aldrich's taste to be generally unerring and inspiring. Having said that, I protest.
A somewhat shoddy Chinese sweater that happens to have an L.L. Bean label is still a somewhat shoddy Chinese sweater. If the same sweater had a J. Crew label (or more likely a J. C. Penny label), Mrs. Aldrich would rightly ignore it.
I, like all true New Englanders, dislike change and seek out continuity and tradition. So, I too have an irrational attachment to L. L. Bean. However, continuity of label means little compared to continuity of craftsmanship, design, and taste. And L. L. Bean abandoned these latter kinds of continuity years ago.
Furthermore, there are a number of purveyors of excellent sweaters: Cable Car Clothiers, Ben Silver, J. Press, O'Connell's Clothing, etc. So I cannot see the reason for purchasing Bean's latest sweatshop special.
@Matt - I can't really argue your points. There are only a handful of items left which I still buy from Bean's - Norwegian sweaters, flannel shirts, chamois shirts, ragg socks, Bean boots, and totes. Having said this I do genuinely like these sweaters. It would be easier if I didn't. And thank you for the list of alternatives.
To add to Matt's comments, I've just ordered an oatmeal heather Shetland sweater from Brooks (MS00248) that was made in the land of 'Imported'. I know that it won't match up to my Bean version that was made in Scotland (yes, it's that old), but it will be a decent backup to the real thing.
These days, I find myself keeping old favorites made in England and Scotland in reserve and putting ones that are easily replaced into the daily rotation.
It should be noted that each and every one of the apt alternatives suggested by Matt are three to four times the price of the Bean version. As a workhorse sweater, then, it may still hold some value.
I love oatmeal as well. I have a pocketed sweater in that color from Winona Knits that is 20 years old. It never wears out!
Muffy, you're the best! Thank you for these tips.
I just ordered a large Oatmeal Men's Ragg Crewneck Sweater, the only color choice in that size in stock as of December 29th. It's rainy and chilly today in Los Angeles, so a wool sweater would be comfortable. Ordinarily, in my opinion, wool sweaters in Southern California are too heavy, but I really like the look of this L.L. Bean classic and your review really sold me.
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