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Once, Christmas jumpers were the preserve of primary school teachers and kooky grannies. Now, they’re pretty much obligatory as December’s silly season dawns, with even serious-minded fashionistas deigning to swathe themselves in technicoloured wool, jingly bells, and the odd flashing light or two when Christmas Jumper Day rolls round.
Still, David Attenborough wouldn’t be very impressed by the carbon footprint of a sweater that only gets a couple of wears a year. Luckily, a new Covent Garden pop-up shop is here to help.
Kids charity Save the Children is opening a pre-loved Christmas knitwear store on Friday December 1, at 5-7 Shorts Garden, Covent Garden. It’ll house a collection of second-hand knits that are perfect for anyone looking to make a splash on their school or office Christmas Jumper Day – an event that’s raised £35 million for Save The Children since it began a decade ago.
But there’s also a twist. The shop is called Story Knits, because each jumper on sale will tell the story of a child that Save The Children has helped. These tales include those of Junior, who’s been taught to grow climate resistant crops on the Solomon Islands, and of Kiki, who uses a Save The Children-supported food bank in the UK.
The store will be open for just one week in the run-up to Christmas Jumper Day (on Thursday December 7) and will run from 11am-2pm and 4:30pm-7:30pm. Sweaters will be priced at £30, with all funds going straight to Save The Children. Can’t make it down? There’s also an online shop where you’ll be able to pick out a festive woolly from the comfort of your sofa.
All in all, that means there’s basically no excuse not to swathe yourself in kitschy knitwear, ideally featuring cutesy snowmen, red-nosed reindeer, or puns that'll have you cringing all the way into the New Year.
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