I love olive green, a colour I believe is massively under utilised and under appreciated. Lucky for me, Collectif have taken up the charge for championing it this season with several olive toned pieces in their AW17 line, one of my favourites of which is this Jessie floral cardigan.

Cardigan:Jessie Floral Jacquard cardigan by Collectif
Dress + Belt: Black Jade dress by Collectif
Necklace:Emerald birthstone necklace from Alwaysfits.com

The olive tone of this cardigan, the white simple flowers, the little white knit-covered buttons are all perfect. It’s a middling kind of length, not truly cropped enough to finish above the waistband of a dress or even more bottoms, but not as long as the standard cardigan you’ll find on the high street. If Collectif were to copy this cardigan style over into a second style that finished 2-3 inches shorter I’d be absolutely thrilled, as there’s a distinct lack of patterned true cropped cardigans even in our vintage style realm, but as it is I’ll still find ways to get plenty of wear out of this piece.

I have the Jessie gingham cardigans from last summer’s line so I’m already familiar with this piece, but I was thrilled to discover that this winter re-imagining of the Jessie is a thicker, warmer piece, adapted for the colder months. It features full length sleeves, not three quarter length, and the fabric is a soft pure cotton. It’s a great piece for adding layers to plain separates or dresses in winter as the pretty floral pattern adds a level of interest.

I ordered this in the size 16/XL. The bust measures 40 inches flat, able to stretch to 46 inches without gaping between buttons. The waist is 37 inches flat and 40 inches before there’s gaping. From shoulder to hem is 20 inches, the sleeves are 22.5 inches from shoulder to cuff, and the armholes are 20 inches flat. To me I’d say that means this 16 fits more like Collectif’s usual size 18 if you wanted a tight pinup fit, but for layering this addition looseness comes in handy. I will say that the pearl buttons of the Jessie gingham cardigans from this past summer sometimes had a habit of slipping out of the button holes while I moved about, but the knit-covering of these slightly larger buttons stop that from happening.

The Jessie Floral Jacquard cardigan comes in sizes 6-22 and is on sale for £26.25 down from £37.50. Collectif ship internationally and have stockists all over the world.