The Great Northern Cloth: British Merino Cloth on Kickstarter

This is a very exciting project by my friend, bespoke tailor Brita Hirsch, to market a British merino cloth and I'm looking for your support to help her financially. 

The finest suiting is made from merino, a wool which is imported from Australia, New Zealand or China. Sadly British sheep in general do not produce wool fine enough for the best cloths, but Brita has found a UK source of merino to make a British cloth from British fleeces from British sheep. However, she needs funding and has launched a Kickstarter campaign through which you can support her in return for various benefits. Please see the video below and pledge support by clicking here at Kickstarter.

Book review: Herdwick Common - for all who care about a way of life

Adam Atkinson is the founder of Cherchbi whose high quality leather goods and bags are bought by those who really appreciate British craftsmanship. The tweed for his products is made from the wool of that remarkable breed, the Herdwick sheep. This book, with superb photographs by David Ellison, celebrates the Herdwick, its shepherds and farmers and the beautiful Cumbrian countryside which has been the Herdwick's home since they were introduced, some say, by Viking settlers.

The life of the Herdwick is interesting. As lambs they become 'heafed' to their piece of fell and there they stay from year to year. If the farm is sold the flock stays, as they are part of the land. The Lake District looks as it does because of their grazing and they are so much part of life and the environment that their disappearance would have far-reaching consequences. 

Unfortunately their fleeces are not highly regarded for wool, which is why it's good to see Cherchbi using it for their tweed. However, their meat is exceptional and their hardiness helps strengthen less robust lowland sheep breeds.

The book contains an introduction by the most famous of Cumbria's farmers, James Rebanks, in which he movingly and persuasively describes the vital importance of this ancient breed and the way of life it requires. And yet the average annual income of a fell farmer is £8,500. Read about a fascinating and vital way of life.

Herdwick Common is available from Cherchbi priced at £25 and also for sale is a collection of the best prints from the book (an example is pictured below).

Spring & summer knitwear from Realm & Empire, made in Britain

The recent spring cold snap shows how true is the old saw, 'Ne'er cast a clout 'til May is out'. Whether 'may' refers to the month or to may blossom is unclear, but the truth is that, in the UK anyway, spring and early summer can't be trusted and a warm layer should always be on hand.

Realm & Empire's lightweight knitwear is made in the UK in merino or lambswool. Below is the denim-coloured Mona merino cardigan, inspired by the Duxford cardigan which I wrote about here, but made lighter for spring/summer use.

Realm & Empire Mona Merino Cardigan £120

Below is the Digby merino waffle crew which can be worn over a shirt or base layer. Available in denim blue or silver grey, it's designed and made in Leicestershire to be a versatile and lightweight knit for warmer weather (link to buy below).

Digby merino crew in denim blue or silver grey (below) £100

All  are ideal with jeans, summer trousers or even shorts with deck shoes, Converse or canvas shoes. Available from Realm & Empire or various stockists. 

Summer jackets 3: keeping cool with Richard James

I tried very hard to think of ways to sneak away with these three items from Richard James, but I suspect they would have noticed their absence rather quickly. I loved all of them. 

The cool pink check linen suit, below, would need (for me) a little courage to wear, but it fitted like a glove and on holiday somewhere sunny it would be an essential for the cocktail bar.  It was fun to wear, made me smile and I was reluctant to take it off after the shoot. This suit made me realise what a genius Richard James is. Clothes are to enjoy, not be serious about. I guessed its price to be some £1800; it's actually £825.

Richard James pink check linen suit £825
Linen shirt Dundas London
Brogues Loake
Socks Pantherella

This pale blue cotton gingham jacket (below) is light and comfortable. It would be ideal for beach or pool-side party and is casual enough to wear with shorts. I liked this one very much. Sarah Gilfillan's genius styling and sense of colour, pairing the Marwood tie with tan trousers and pale blue Dundas shirt, are clear from this photograph.

Richard James blue gingham jacket £595
Shirt as above
Tie Marwood

This sand lightweight fine wool poplin jacket (below, part of a suit) would be equally at home worn while thrashing out a business deal in a Bahamian boardroom or helming one's classic 1965 Riva across Lake Como; its crisp, tailored shape is perfect. On reflection, this is the one I would keep (the whole suit preferably).

Richard James sand fine wool suit jacket £825 (for two-piece suit)
Shirt Smyth & Gibson
Tie Marwood

Jackets like these are versatile. They may be part of a formal suit, or be worn with lightweight trousers, chinos or genuinely-faded denims. They go with t-shirts, cotton tops and linen or more formal shirts, with or without a tie. Here I wear a light blue linen shirt from Dundas (a brand to watch), a cotton shirt (made in Northern Ireland by Smyth & Gibson) and two ties from a favourite made in England brand, Marwood. Bright summery socks in fine Egyptian cotton from Pantherella. Brogues from Loake.

Suppliers:

Richard James

Dundas Shirts

Marwood

Smyth & Gibson

Pantherella

Loake

With infinite thanks to:

Styling - SartoriaLab

Photography - Nick Maroudias

This feature is not sponsored.

Country of Origin: knitwear hand-framed in Scotland

I had the opportunity to try some beautiful knitwear hand-framed in Scotland recently when the good people from Country of Origin asked me to take part in a photo-shoot. 

The jumpers have to be worn and felt to be truly appreciated; the lambswool is thick and soft, very luxurious and warm. They are made to order on a vintage hand-powered Dubied knitting machine that adds character and individuality to each limited-edition piece. 

No mass-produced jumpers here. Go to Country of Origin for more information and to buy.

Harry's tweed collar and lead are from LoveMyDog.

Quinton & Chadwick: knitwear designed and made in Britain

I've crossed paths with knitwear designers Quinton & Chadwick several times. Most recently, I saw their collaboration with Dashing Tweeds and reported on it here in a previous blog post.

Jane Chadwick and Jess Quinton came together fifteen years ago to launch their knitwear label using only British manufacturers. Their products are stocked worldwide. Both have textile, as well as fashion, backgrounds. Jess worked for Italian fashion house Missoni after graduating from the RCA and Jane ran her own label and consultancy business.

Both work hard to keep traditional knitting skills alive in the UK. They use small specialist factories in Scotland and Nottingham and a co-operative of hand-frame knitters in Cornwall. They describe the style of their knitwear as having being 'traditional modernist' and having a 'modern edgy twist on heritage knit patterns...inspired by colour and the play of scale and pattern, each new collection moves with current trends yet enhances their strong quirky graphic style.'

To find out more, or to buy their colourful knitwear, click on Quinton & Chadwick.

Knitwear from huntergather

Huntergather was founded by stylist David Bradshaw (ex-GQ Style, Prada and Jil Sander) and Chris Bailey, who worked with Jigsaw Menswear in the nineties; so this is a newish brand with a pedigree. I'll return to Huntergather at a future date, but wanted to mention their Aran and Shetland knitwear, which I came across recently. 

huntergather Aran crew neck jumper, available in grey and biscuit

I've become very keen traditional knitwear; its simplicity of shape, material and design makes the humble jumper a classic that will endure. 

Trying on a blue Shetland crew neck jumper from Huntergather, also available in grey, pink and yellow

David Bradshaw, Partner & Creative Director, sees things this way too, commenting to me that:

'In matters of style men always seem to need some kind of validation. So, if somewhere there's a photo of a style icon, say Steve McQueen, wearing a particular piece of clothing, say an Aran sweater, it will always be used as a tool to persuade us that something we might have considered dowdy is really rather cool...

...and [David Bradshaw continues] there was a time when every self respecting mod, Paul Weller included, considered a Shetland sweater essential to coolness - and lets face it, when it comes to style, and Liam would no doubt agree, Mods know what's what.

At huntergather we will always bow at the temple of cool... hence our Aran and Shetland sweaters.'

The jumpers are priced at £145 and seem to have captured that spirit of classic cool that traditional knitwear imparts.

For more on huntergather, their knitwear and other menswear, visit their website or shop at 68 Wigmore Street or Selfridges, London.

London Cloth Company x Hardy Amies collaboration at Selfridges

Visitors to Selfridges can see wool from London sheep being woven on a loom until 17th November.

Daniel Harris runs The London Cloth Company, the only cloth mill in London. It's a fascinating place to visit, full of looms dating between 1870 and 1970 that have been rescued from Scotland and Northern England to be restored and run by the self-taught Daniel. Since being founded in 2011 the Company has woven a varied range of woollens and cottons for brands all over the world. 

The loom in Selfridges

In a recent project, wool has been taken from sheep in city farms in and around London. Amazingly, it turns out there are a large number of farms in London and they managed to collect 160kg of fleece from Stepney, Spitalfields, Mudchute, Kentish town, Freightliners and The Woodland Farm Trust. The wool was them spun up into yarn.

Daniel at London Cloth Company - image Grey Fox

At this point, Hardy Amies came in. Daniel Harris told me:

'[Hardy Amies] were visiting the mill to look at our cloth and when we told them about the City Farms wool they fell in love with the idea. [They] wanted to make sure that the project got the exposure it deserved, and arranged for one of our looms to go into Selfridges, so that the scarves could be woven by me in-­store. 

It is being woven on a loom that dates from the 1920’s, but was built entirely from parts,. This is why many of the pieces are different colours and from different eras (It is almost impossible to find one complete loom these days so they have to be constructed from several looms put together). 

We have a 100% traceable yarn that has been sourced exclusively from within London and is now being woven into a cloth at 400 Oxford street! Next we would like to expand this to within the whole of London and see if we could source enough yarn to do a large run of cloth'.

Hardy Amies will use the London cloth for its own collections. To see Daniel and his loom visit Selfridges,  Find out more here about London Cloth Mill.

London Cloth Company - image Grey Fox

Selected Wool Week Wonders for Men - Quiggleys AW14, M&S Best of British, Noood scarves,

This is Wool Week. I've selected a few woollen items of menswear to celebrate. See The Campaign for Wool for more information about the week's events.

Marks & Spencer 

Two British-made wool items from the M&S Best of British collection.

M&S Best of British - black check wool overcoat

M&S Best of Britannia - Grey cable knit roll-neck jumper

See Marks & Spencer's website for information and to buy.

Quiggleys AW14

This Scottish knitwear brands is one of my favourites and I'll be showing some more from their collection later in the autumn. Meanwhile, here's a rather wearable reversible sweater with a definitely Nordic vibe - the North.

The reversible North from Quiggleys

See Quiggleys for information about their AW14 collection of knitwear.

Noood London is a luxury British accessory label from innovative designer Novello Noades. The hand-knitted Noood is an open weave scarf/hat/shawl or snood created from 100% pure natural wool, cotton or cashmere. Perfect for the coming cold weather.

The Noood

The Noood is available from Nooodlondon.com

Johnstons of Elgin: the best of British manufacture since 1797

After visiting Johnstons of Elgin I came away fired up with the creativity and skills that go to make British manufacture. We're not good at appreciating the treasures made here in the UK, but if consumers had the opportunity to visit a factory like that in Elgin, they'd be buying British tomorrow.

Johnstons of Elgin - the site of their original factory from 1797 - all images Grey Fox

For over 200 years Johnstons have been weaving wool on the banks of the River Lossie in Elgin, making a variety of products, from cashmere and vicuña scarves to beautiful estate tweeds. Their knitwear is made much further south, in Hawick in the borders.

The wool store

Tucked away about seventy five minutes drive north west of Aberdeen, Elgin is in an area of Scotland that benefits from clean water, flowing rivers and soft lowland scenery. The features that brought mills to the area (water to clean wool and to power looms) also brought the great Speyside whisky distilleries; but unfortunately there wasn't time to visit both.

Dying the wool

The factory is a fascinating mix of tradition and technology as the wool is prepared from raw material to finished cloth. Many of the looms and carding and spinning machines contain parts that would have been recognisable in Victorian times, yet they work away alongside those using laser technology. Teasels are still used in the cashmere-weaving process to achieve a soft finish. Here it's a question of recognising what works and not changing for change's sake.

Spinning

Two parts of the visit stood out for me. Firstly, speaking to the design staff brought it home to me what high esteem Johnstons is held in internationally by the world of high fashion. Household names come to Johnstons to collaborate and to take advantage of their outstanding manufacturing and design skills.

Menswear from Johnstons of Elgin

Johnstons are understandably quiet about their contacts and collaborations, but their recent work with Burberry is a matter of public record and their involvement in developing the monogrammed poncho that rocked the catwalks for AW14 is well-known. To see British design and manufacture having such status on the world stage is gratifying to say the least

Weaving tweed

The second highlight for me was their archive. A room full of beautifully-bound books containing samples of tweeds and woollen fabrics from the nineteenth century. There to provide inspiration to modern designers, the collection is breathtaking in its range. I'd love to get in there and design a range of Grey Fox tweeds.

The factory shop is full of their products, tweeds, knits and home wear, gorgeous rugs and cushions. The tea shop rounds off a fascinating visit and leaves me full not only of cake, but of hope for the future of British manufacturing.

See Johnstons of Elgin for more information or to buy.

The people, without whom the looms would be silent

The archive

Nineteenth century tweeds in the archive

Wool School 2013 - woollen jumper design competition - video

I'm a great lover of woolly jumpers, so here's some good news.

The Campaign for Wool, of which His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales is a patron, has announced the return of WOOL SCHOOL for 2013. Margaret Howell, Topman, Christopher Raeburn, Folk, Barbour, Brora and Albam will work with fashion, textiles and design students across the country competing to design wool sweaters to be sold in stores nationwide in the Autumn to celebrate Wool Week 2013.

Designs for the Wool School competition 2013

The campaign received over 100 entries from each of the 12 collaborating universities with the retail outlets joining forces to select their winner. For the second year running the project sees students introduced to a retail partner and given the opportunity to design a wool jumper for their company keeping this year’s theme ‘knitwear traditions of the British Isles’ front of mind along with the retailer's brand identity. One student per retailer has been selected and their jumper design will be developed, manufactured and will be available in stores to coincide with UK Wool Week: 14th-20th October. 

The companies involved are largely menswear retailers, so we can expect some exciting designs to go on sale later this year.

Merino wool - why is it ideal for fashion fabrics and tailoring?

While at Wool House last week I met Lesley Prior, Artisan Project Manager at The Campaign For Wool and owner of Devon Fine Fibres, where she produces English merino and cashmere wools. Lesley is obviously passionate about the properties of merino wool, among the finest and softest from any sheep breed. Lesley explained to me the properties which make merino ideal for fashion fabrics and tailoring.

Image Woolpower.se

Below you can see a small sample of wool from one of Lesley's sheep. As you can see from the photo, the fibres are naturally and very finely crimped, extremely soft and several times thinner than a human hair. The properties that make it ideal for luxury clothing include -

• It regulates body temperature very well by wicking moisture away from the skin and providing warmth without overheating the wearer.
• It absorbs water well, but remains warm.
• It contains lanolin which make it antibacterial and water resistant.
• Its structure helps it to trap air, making it an ideal insulator.
• It's very soft and elastic, so that, when woven in to a cloth, it has good crease resistance.

Quite apart from these advantages, of course, it's a renewable resource. A sheep provides fleeces for many years without depleting scarce natural resources, as do many man made fibres. Merino wool is popular for everything from athletic base layers to high-end suits. One day I'll have a merino suit, I hope!

And here is a bespoke jacket made by Timothy Everest from a mix of merino, lambswool and cashmere.

Image Timothy Everest

Image Timothy Everest

Wool House at Somerset House

A few days ago I visited Wool House at Somerset House in London. Taking place from the 13th to the 24th of March and organised by The Campaign for Wool,  it's billed as the world’s biggest ever celebration of Wool. The 12 day showcase has been curated by renowned designer Arabella McNie. From interiors, and crafts, to the world of fashion, all aspects of our favourite natural fibre are explored. There are various events scheduled over the next week which are worthwhile checking out, including a tweed tea party and tailoring demonstrations by Henry Poole and Co.

Here are some of the photos I took. Naturally I was most interested in the men's and tailoring fashion exhibits, but the interior design and crafts showed the remarkable resilience and adaptability of this natural fabric, with glowing colours and fascinating textures everywhere. If you're in London, I suggest you visit.

Somerset House is itself fascinating, with a history going back to the 16th century. The beautiful neo-classical buildings once housed the Admiralty Board and various government departments. It now contains galleries showing many important works of art.

But it's these guys that Wool House is all about: