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When the temperature dips outside the first thing we find ourselves doing (apart from downing the odd litre of hot chocolate) is swaddling ourselves in the cosiest of knitted wraps. When it comes to Winter warmers size really does matter: a scarf is good, but an oversized blanket wrap is better! To avoid any street urchin comparisons may we suggest you choose your wrap carefully? Colour-blocked, patterned or bright colours will make a statement-piece out of your cover-up, or try a tonal effect in classic grey or black. I said brrrrrr! It's cold in here. Time to nix those goosebumps in style. 

It's safe to say that Rebecca McGeoch is a touch obsessed with cashmere. The Sydney-born, Hong Kong-based designer launch her luxury knitwear label — Gasparre Cashmere — back in August of 2010. Since then she's set up a desk in her local production factory and spends her days developing ingenious new techniques and refining her vision for everyday luxury.

Rebecca's enthusiasm for quality knits is infectious, and upon seeing her most recent S/S '13-'14 collection (which, btw has been snapped up by Neiman Marcus), we caught the cashmere bug, too. From yarn ratios on labels to the best regions to buy from, she's a true expert. Step inside to a) drool over the latest line-up — which will drop into select boutiques and online come July/August — and b) get schooled in the mystic arts of this luxurious yarn. Your cashmere education starts here. . . 

Our love affair with cashmere has stepped up a notch, especially as we now know the brands who do it best, and took a 101 in cashmere care. To keep in line with this week's luxurious knitwear theme, I asked our editorial team (thanks ladies!) to nominate their top two, must-have cashmere picks from the season. You might think that given the heftier price tag, that the POPSUGAR crew stuck to safe colours and classic shapes. Well, you'd be wrong! Heart-motif crews, too-cute-to-cover-up socks, bright-as beanies and luxed-up loungewear; the results were anything but boring. Le-go!

International shoe giant Aldo is jumping on the designer collaboration bandwagon, bringing high end heels with high street prices to our door via their Aldo Rise line.  This is not the first time Aussie customers will benefit from Aldo's collaborative efforts, this making the joint capsule with UK design team Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi from Preen by Thornton and Bregazzi Aldo's third. Previous team efforts have included killer ollections with JW Anderson and Mark Fast. Let us be clear, this stellar six piece offering is not for wallflowers. Pointy-toed pumps spliced with snakeskin, sharp two-strap stilettos and no-nonsense hardware suggest that these heels are made for walkin', not talkin'. Selected stores nationally will be receiving the drop come August and, at a price point of $189.95, we're guessing they will disappear faster than you can say "Size 37 please."

With the temperature hitting proper-cold, Winter levels we've got a sudden interest in all things warming: hot chocolate, homemade soups and cosy knits. But not any old acrylic blend. Nuh-uh! The most luxurious yarn of all is cashmere, and this week we're going to investigate why it's worth it's weight in Max Brenner chocolate drops. This luxurious yarn is essentially the underlayer of fleece collected from the wool of the Cashmere (or Kashmir) goat. It's strong, very warm and exceedingly soft to touch — making cashmere a brilliant insulator and velvety-smooth to wear. Can you hear those cash registers ringing? Ka-ching!

Once you wear cashmere, it's hard to go back. Whether you're a cashmere collector from way back, or are yet to invest in your first piece — let us walk you through the best brands to buy from. These labels know their knits, so you can rest assured that these classic crews will pay for themselves in the chilly months to come. Cost per wear, remember? Winter, come at us! 

During this week's Leather Only research trip, we've come across some newbie brands that deserve a little extra attention (much appreciated, Instagram). Thanks to fashion's continuing obsession with this durable fabrication, a number of start-up brands are producing leather-only or leather-focused collections. The consequence of this more focused approach is the production of leather pieces that not only fit better, but are priced better too. Step inside to meet the five fresh-faced fashion labels who are showing the old school crew how it's done. 

Fashion community service announcement: Have you met West 14th? No? Well, let this serve as your official introduction to the Bondi Beach-based brand. Specialising in leather (which we can't get enough of this week), the home-grown label is nailing that modern yet luxurious mix when it comes to this traditionally old school niche. Designer Violeta Tentomas takes inspiration from the streets of New York City's meatpacking district, but you can see the fresh, athletic influence of Sydney's beach culture in her clean designs too. Wanna see? Step inside to view the latest A/W collection from this label on the up. . .