Wearing a Sweater in Hot Weather | Looking Cool When it's Warm Outside

We've all had that situation where you dress to kill.

Then you step outside and you can immediately feel you've dressed too warmly.

Then you have to take off the sweater and now the look is just not the same.

This was a real concern for one of my readers, Lachlan from Australia.

It was enough of a concern that he commented on one of my Youtube videos 5 Tips on Matching Jeans and Sweaters :

“Antonio, I like your latest video on jeans and how to wear them with sweaters. However I live in North Queensland, Australia, a hot humid environment. How can I pull off this look where I'm living?”

Before I begin I'd like to point out that as you can tell from this very article that I love interacting with you gentlemen. A lot of men comment on my Youtube videos but I get just as many questions and comments through my website and articles.

So if you have any comments, questions or queries please let me know and I'd love to answer you.

This article is especially dedicated to all my Youtube video commentators.

Click here to watch the video Wearing A Sweater In Hot Weather on Youtube.

Can You Wear a Sweater when the Weather is Warm?

Getting back to the question Lachlan emailed me I'd like to point out that I understand the problem 100%.

I spent some time in Darwin, Australia so I know that you gentlemen down there are dealing with a tropical environment that's hot and humid and doesn't leave much room for wearing warmer clothing.

For those of you who've never been there you're looking at temperatures of a minimum of 17 C / 62.6 F and that's on cool evenings in July – which is winter in the Southern Hemisphere. There's a reason crocs like living there.

So initially my response was that it simply wouldn't work but after thinking about it a bit and doing some research I came up with a few ways you can pull off the jean / sweater combination in warm temperatures.

How to Look Cool in Hot Temperatures:

1. Buy Hot Weather Items

How do you buy a hot weather sweater? A hot weather fabric is simply a fabric that's made from a lighter material and has a wider weave.

So your first clue is simply to look at what the garment is made from. You're looking for material that's not made from anything that insulates well like wool or cashmere.

That being said you can get some very lightweight wool or cashmere items, or pieces that are made from fabric blends that incorporate linen or cotton.

The ideal is to go with something made entirely from linen or cotton which are both materials that are good at dissipating heat. That's just a fancy way of saying these materials have a wide weave that allows heat to be released from your body instead of being caught between your skin and your clothing.

The reason this works brings us back to the wider weave I mentioned earlier. If you look closely at linen and cotton you can actually see the spaces between the threads which is what allows the heat from your body to escape through the material.
By following this advice you can go for the look but it'll just be a bit more lightweight but unfortunately that heavy-weight Aran sweater not for you and is simply not going to work especially if made from 100% wool.

So just to confirm: make sure it's made from the right material.

Even with jeans there are some hot weather jeans so make sure what you pick isn't intended for a colder climate.

My personal favorite for light-weight breathable jeans that can be worn in hot weather is Buckley Demin from Atlanta Georgia.

2. Wear the Sweater At The Right Time of Year

This advice may sound obvious but it's not as simple as it seems. The trick is to have the right clothing ready to go for each season.

So for your sweater/jean look you should look at having it ready for the June/July/August period which is where you'll have some days or even weeks you can pull this look off.

So instead of a last-minute frantic search for your sweaters and jeans make sure you get them ready a few weeks beforehand so that you have them at hand whenever the weather allows.

3. Wearing A Sweater When Traveling

Today many of us travel and overall it's become a very small world. Whether it's for business or pleasure you may find yourself jumping on the plane and going down to maybe Sydney Australia or Vancouver, Canada.

If that's the case for you it's good to have a few warmer pieces in your wardrobe and it also gives you the opportunity to show off your jean/sweater combinations.

I often get emails from men traveling from tropical to cold-weather environments and they usually want a basic, simple wardrobe they can wear over there to stay warm.

My advice to you is to make sure you go with a few timeless classical pieces that may cost a little more and make sure you match them with other items in your wardrobe.

This allows you to not only wear these pieces in colder places but also enables you to layer your existing pieces (even items meant for warmer climes) correctly. You'll also get more miles out of them and consequently get more money's worth out of those clothing items.

So Lachlan I trust that answers your question and for the rest of you readers hopefully this helps you in dressing the way you want in warmer climates.

If any of you have any tips or comments about wearing warmer clothing in a hot environment please feel free to contact me and share your stories with me.