From street style to Massimo Dutti: the cardigan is back as the most useful garment of winter and these 12 are our safe bets/we love them

It is repeated so often that history is about to grow a layer of pills. The cardigan that the Duke of Cardigan popularized changed its identity because of Alfred Hitchcock. When the director gave his approval to Joan Fontaine's wardrobe in Rebecca, the garment was renamed. If it was made of wool (or any substitute material that looked like it had the potential to keep you warm), had a row of buttons running through it and a round neck, it was a cardigan. The advice given by mothers and grandmothers before going out on the street wore out its name. With its popularity overshadowed, the cardigan, with its excessively Anglo-Saxon sound, reformulated its baptismal name. And, in recent years, its connotations. From Prada to Gucci with a stop at Loewe, the great European fashion houses have brought back the cardigan. There are three ways to update it without resorting to the accessory shortcut: layering vibrant colours (under a chocolate brown cardigan, a fine pink knit jumper), the collar of a white T-shirt that peeks out or the bow of a blouse that counteracts the natural informality of the jacket. With these dozen options, the first step is taken for sure.