Output details

Sustainable British wool for contemporary apparel

McDougall’s research focuses on seeking out new sustainable sources of wool, predominantly from England, for use in the apparel sector, which generally sources wool from Australia or New Zealand. Working in collaboration with the British Wool Marketing Board and harnessing new spinning processes that refined the quality of the previously coarse yarns, McDougall was invited to develop new textile design collections for use in contemporary menswear that would reposition and promote the British wool industry and its products, and create additional markets and expanding employment within the industry.

Drawing on archival research undertaken at the Fox Brothers Woollen and Worsted Archives in Somerset, McDougall deconstructed and analysed the patterns and structures of a series of English fabric designs from the 1770s and 80s, and designed and developed a series of contemporary reinterpretations that used more complex ‘thread ups’ than the generic patterning of herringbones and tweeds. These comprised ‘Explorers’ (launched in June 2011), ‘Shetlands’ and ‘Romneys’ (both launched in 2012), which involved drawing out the structure and materiality of the textiles and applying new colour combinations to accentuate structure and detail. They concentrated on menswear heavy suiting and outerwear. They were exhibited at the Wool House and at the first Future Fabrics Expo 2011 (organised by The Sustainable Angle) and promoted as a British Wool designer product. Now in commercial production, these collections have been used by international fashion designers, including Stella McCartney. They have also been bought by companies including Tweedies, Pachacuti, Nicola Harding, Philip Treacy, Roundhouse Design, Eye Love London, Oliver Benjamin, Graham Browne, Welsh and Jefferies, W.W. Chan & Co Ltd., Carradice of Nelson, and Duchamp. McDougall is currently in discussion with the Japanese company Evisu to explore the translation of the designs into denim and extend their development and market.

SEE DIGITAL OUTPUT.