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A world away from their homes in London, International Woolmark Prize 2016/17 winners Ben Cottrell and Matt Dainty of COTTWEILER recently came Down Under – via a visit to AWI’s Wool Resource Centre in Hong Kong – to see an Australian wool-growing property and get an in-depth understanding of Merino wool production.
The design duo were hosted by the Picker family from Bigga in the Southern Tablelands of NSW – and cousins Sam, Ben and Cameron Picker gladly showed the designers around their family property ‘Hillcreston’ and the process of growing superfine Merino wool.
Matt and Ben said the trip was incredibly informative in providing them with an understanding of where and how Merino wool fibre is grown and its suitability for premium apparel.
“This trip, from London to Hong Kong to Australia, was about educating ourselves about wool from the raw product right through to the fabric; it was about finding the source; and it’s been really inspiring to see the whole process,” Matt said.
“Traditionally the brand has used a lot of technical synthetic fibres but since we won the International Woolmark Prize we have explored and educated ourselves more on wool and introduced technical wool fabrics into our collections.”
COTTWEILER is well known for its clash of sportswear and streetwear with the use of highly technical material. For its winning 2016/17 International Woolmark Prize menswear collection, the design duo incorporated Merino wool into its clothing for the first time.
The collection comprised sheer Merino wool base- layers, windproof mid-layers and quilted waterproof outerwear, with wool-blend fabrics ranging from 18.5 microns through to 19.5 microns, and recycled wool scraps used for insulation.
The International Woolmark Prize is designed to generate long-term incremental demand for Australian Merino wool by increasing the knowledge of and lifetime loyalty to the fibre amongst the competition’s designers and alumni around the globe.
For more stories from Beyond the Bale head to www.wool.com/btb
