Yarnstandards.com is the end of ski sweaters and fisherman's ganseys. I am not saying that the Standard Yarn Weight System is the cause of the end of ski sweaters and fisherman's sweaters, any more than a bridge is the cause of the end of a road, but when you get to the end of the road, there is the bridge.
Nobody skis in sweaters any more, for one very good reason - Modern sweaters are too loosely knit. A real ski sweater needs to be tightly knit and close fitting. (Recently, I went downhill skiing, and was the only one on the slopes wearing a sweater. There were many people in the lodge, the restaurants, the shops, and the town wearing "ski sweaters," so I know "ski sweaters" were around, but I was the only person actually skiing in a sweater.)
Modern designers assume that their creations will be worn in modern heated environments, and therefore should not be too warm. These days, skiers wear their sweaters in the car, and in the lodge, and not schussing down the slopes. Thus, modern ski sweaters are knit loosely and have a loose fit that keeps them from being too warm.
Likewise, nobody wears fisherman's sweaters fishing any more! So, designs that were traditionally knit tightly to be very warm are now knit loosely, so they are not so warm. (Fine stitch patterns are now done large and look crude.)
We have established a feedback cycle. Our knit goods are designed to be cooler, so that they can be worn in warmer environments. Then, when somebody wants real cold weather gear, they select a pile jacket rather than the available knit goods. If people are not wearing knit goods in really cold environments, then there is more tendency to design knit goods that are not so warm -- that is: loosely knit and loosely fitting. Today we design sweaters for folks that are going to the mall, rather than for folks that are going to fish, or to ski or sailing , or to follow the hunt. We have abandoned the sports wear market. We make imitation sports wear.
The needle recommendations in the yarn standards are to knit fabrics that are loose, and not too warm. As long as we follow those recommendations, our knitting will be porous to the drafts, and flutter in the breeze. And worse, they will sag. And they will not be so durable, after all, the standards assume that you want a "cool" fashion statement.
Save your man from frostbite. Knit him a ski sweater out of worsted weight wool on #3 needles. Keep your boy warm by knitting him a gansey out of DK weight on # 1 needles. (Then, send them off skiing and fishing. They need the exercise!) And then, make yourself a cup of tea with water heated on a fire fueled by a your print out of the Standard Yarn Weight System, because the price of energy is going up and we are going to need warmer sweaters.
Aaron