COOL WOOL IN NEW LUXURY DIVISION

Linen and cotton suits may be fine and dandy for the heat of tropical climes but for the man who wants to look smooth and elegant there’s nothing to beat  wool, as any tailor will tell you. That he can also remain cool is thanks to the many lightweight cloths now available, and promoted under the banner of Cool Wool.

Launched last year, this campaign by the Woolmark company has seen many of Europe’s leading weavers producing lightweight merino suitings, now to be found in bunches at a tailor near you.

Latest development in this sector is the Coolstretch suiting in Charles Clayton’s bunch, a light pure wool cloth with a 10 per cent inbuilt natural stretch, developed by W T Johnson.  As one of the world’s leading textile finishers, they have come up with a range of finishes that provide lightweight wool fabrics under the Cool Wool banner. 

The resulting cloth comes in 100per cent merino wool, weight 240gs/8.5oz, and really is light and comfortable for summer, with the added advantage of the 10 per cent natural stretch.

Charles Clayton now comes within the newly established Luxury Fabrics division of SIL Holdings in Yorkshire. SIL is a  family-run company that may be seen as something of a saviour for the hard-pressed British wool industry. Many famous old British mills have disappeared in the face of international competition but SIL has taken under its umbrella a number of venerable names noted for high quality menswear cloths, as well as others concerned in the processing of wool, cashmere, mohair and other natural luxury fibres.

Its new Luxury Fabrics division concentrates upon cloths from Charles Clayton, John Foster and William Halstead.  These will all be familiar names from bunches now hanging in tailors’ shops and will continue to be seen, though with an updated and coordinated appearance under the direction of Philip Seal, grandson of SIL’s founder.

Cut lengths from the mills are now available through Luxury Fabrics to tailors world-wide, as well as through established overseas distributors. Amounts from as little as a trouser length up to 17 metres may be ordered.

“We sell what we make,” said Seal. “Everything is made on our sites. We’re a British company with a global reach, specialising in luxury textiles.”

He reports that mohair is another popular choice for this year, with some fine examples from William Halstead. This is the only weaver in Europe licensed to use Camdeboo mohair from South Africa, seen in a 100per cent kid mohair blazer cloth.

And for top luxury, there is  Escorial wool from New Zealand, available in cloths from both William Halstead and John Foster. Watch for  a worsted suiting bunch from John Foster, while Reid & Taylor have supplied some distinctive jacketings in other Escorial bunches from Luxury Fabrics. www.luxuryfabricsltd.co.uk

At top, a pale grey/blue stripe on grey, Super 120s twill, and a dogtooth check, both from the William Halstead bunch; and another grey stripe from the Escorial bunch in super 150s. Above right, two patterns from John Foster. Above left, two from the lightweight Coolstretch collection by Charles Clayton.