Clothing made in the UK – British clothes manufacturers and British Made Clothes – UK made clothes and accessories. Who made your clothes?

British made menswear, British made womenswear, British made children’s clothes.  Clothing made in the UK.

Is ANYTHING you’re wearing made in Britain?

#BuyBritishMadeClothes  #UKMadeClothes  #ClothesMadeInTheUK #BritishMadeClothes

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I sense a revival of British clothes manufacturing. Much has gone, but there is still a fantastic choice of British made clothes out there, whether you want to spend a lot or not very much money.

Here you can find links and information, in no particular order, about British made clothes, for men, women and children. This article is ongoing and I will add to it when I discover more British clothes manufacturers and suppliers. Only companies that actually make or supply clothes made in the UK will be featured here, not simply companies that used to make clothes in the UK or are just selling clothes in the UK. The products I list here are genuinely made in the UK, not simply labelled to imply British heritage or manufacture.

British made hats and British made scarves – Hats Made in the UK – Scarves made in the UK

“If you want to get ahead, get a hat”

I have heard it said that a hat worn well is part of a British gentleman’s heritage. For ladies it is said a hat for every occasion is required. These days it probably won’t be a bowler you choose, but perhaps it’s time to rediscover the hat?

Get ahead, get a British made hat!

British made watch caps, beanies, wooly hats, trapper hats, Jinnah caps, pork pie hats, flat caps, dress hats, trilby hats, fedoras, homburgs, bowlers, top hats, panama hats, tweed hats, military headwear, baseball caps, etc.

Eribé – Colourful Luxury Scottish Knitwear

Eribé – Colourful Luxury Scottish Knitwear.

Knitwear made in Great Britain. Hats, scarves, jumpers and so on.

http://www.eribe.co.uk

Wool week: the best woolly furnishings and top events – Telegraph

Wool week: the best woolly furnishings and top events – Telegraph.

Should have posted this link for Wool Week 2013 really!

Wool – a versatile super-fabric.

http://www.campaignforwool.org

Axminster Carpets Rescued « Axminster Carpets

Axminster Carpets Rescued « Axminster Carpets.

Following the bankruptcy of Axminster Carpets and subsequent redundancies in February 2013, I understand the firm has now been saved from closure by a management buyout. According to this BBC article Axminster Carpets (2013) intend that “carpets would continue to be designed, developed and produced in east Devon”. The Axminster Carpets website confirms this and their intention to “work closely with other British manufacturers”. The 2 outlet shops in Axminster and Buckfast remain open. Good luck to the new company Axminster Carpets (2013).

http://www.axminster-carpets.co.uk

Axminster Carpets going into administration also led sale of the Devonia Tannery in Buckfastleigh to Eastern Counties Leather (please see this BBC article). I am not sure what Eastern Counties Leather intend to do with the Devonia Tannery. They have their own tannery in Cambridgeshire, where I get the impression they still manufacture coats, gloves and footwear but in recent years have specialised in sheepskin rugs and chamois leathers. They also import and it is not clear from their website which of items they sell are manufactured in the UK.

http://www.devoniaproducts.co.uk

http://www.ecltrade.co.uk/about_us

http://www.leatherandsheepskin.com/about-us/

British Made Blankets and Throws – Hainsworth Textiles and Scarlet and Argent / John Lewis Blankets / Melin Tregwynt Mill / Witney Blankets / etc.

Founded in 1783 Royal Warrant holders A.W. Hainsworth & Sons Ltd. manufacture a wide range of wool and textile products for both home and international markets. Best known for manufacturing the scarlet cloth from which the Queen’s guards uniform is made, Hainsworth manufacturers – protective fabric for fire services and military personnel; snooker and pool cloth; woollen coffins; car headlining cloth for the likes of Jaguar, Austin and Bentley; blankets; Newmarket horse blankets; interior fabrics; curtain fabric; military uniform cloth; ceremonial uniform dress cloth; tribal blankets; textiles for the theatre and cinema industries; specialised industrial cloth such as biscuit cloth, a woollen baize used for conveying biscuits; academic scarf cloth; blazer fabric; fabric for clothes making; fabric for making into re-enactment clothing; uniform caps; hats and badges; hot air balloon fabric; table coverings; floor coverings, hotel blankets; laundry textile products; piano baize for companies like Steinway and Renner; gaming and card table cloth; cabinet linings; etc. As far I can tell all their fabrics are made at their mill in West Yorkshire. Trade but they also have a retail site selling finished products. Hainsworth also manufactures the historic Hudson’s Bay Point Blanket, which has iconic status in Canada. I am not sure how much Hainsworth use British wool.

Hainsworth is one of the few companies still making blankets in the UK.

Hainsworth also make Newmarket Horse Blankets in England.

Hainsworth equestrian blanket

http://hainsworth.co.uk/

Hainsworth’s retail site is Scarlet and Argent – http://www.scarletandargent.co.uk

Each Scarlet and Argent piece is created exclusively and entirely in their specialist Yorkshire mill.  Woollen blankets, throws and accessories (cushions, teddy bears and hot water bottle covers) made in England.

What’s the link between one of the oldest textile mills in the UK and the Royal baby? – See more at: http://makeitbritish.co.uk/gifts/what-is-the-connection-between-one-of-the-oldest-textile-mills-in-the-uk-and-the-soon-to-arrive-royal-baby/#sthash.TvXYBwfy.dpuf

Scarlet and Argent Chamber Blanket – grey. Made in England.

John Lewis blankets

John Lewis wool holey blanket. Made in Britain. Photo by author.

John Lewis wool holey (cellular) blanket. Made in Britain. 2. Photo by author.

John Lewis pure new wool blanket. Made in Britain. Photo by author.

John Lewis merino wool blanket. Made in Britain. Photo by author.

Some John Lewis blankets are made in Britain. John Lewis is one of the few retailers still selling British made blankets. John Lewis UK made blankets are excellent quality and reasonably priced.

Are the Office Supplies and Stationery in your Workplace, School, Club, and Home made in the UK? Plus British made fridge magnets

British made stationery.

Manufacturing in the UK allows companies to control supply, guarantee quality, offer flexibility and to be ethical and environmentally sound.

You and your company or organisation or club or school or university can support British companies and British jobs and be environmentally friendly (by reducing your carbon footprint through reducing the miles goods are transported) by buying British at home, at work and for school.

A good starting point is to buy only British made stationery (pens, pencils, staplers, paper clips, scissors, paper, files, etc.).  Don’t order stationery unless you know where it is made.  Refuse to buy cheap foreign made stationery.  Buy British stationery for your workplace and home and it will last longer and so save you or your company money long term.  Most stationery these days is foreign made but you can insists on buying British made stationery.  Just say 10 years ago most stationery was made in the UK, but sadly this is no longer the case.Most stationery these days is foreign made but you can insists on buying British made stationery.  Just say 10 years ago most stationery was made in the UK, but sadly this is no longer the case. We all know those cheap Chinese made staplers don’t last 5 minutes, whereas the old made in England stapler that has been floating around your office since who knows when is still going strong!  My old made in England Rexel stapler is superb quality; modern Chinese made Rexel staplers are very poor quality and do not last very long at all before they are broken.

An old made in Britain Rexel stapler. Still going strong after many many years. Photograpgh by author.

An old made in Britain Rexel stapler. Still going strong after many many years. Photograpgh by author. Base view 1.

An old made in Britain Rexel stapler. Still going strong after many many years. Photograpgh by author. Base view 2.

A vintage box of made in UK Rexel No.56 staples. Sadly Rexel / Acco staples are now foriegn made. Photograph by author.

Sub Zero outdoor gear – made in England (well most of it) / Fleece Jackets / Ussen, etc.

Performance Thermal Underwear, Thermal Baselayers, Thermal Midlayers, Fleece and Waterproof Jackets.

Sub Zero Technology Ltd. manufacture thermal underwear, thermal baselayers, thermal midlayers, merino wool base layers, childrens thermal underwear, softshells, balaclavas, hats, windproof hats, gloves, socks, walking socks, ski socks, tube ski socks, fleece and waterproof Jackets in England at their Leicester factory. Not everything they sell is made in England, but mostly they do label which items are UK made on their website so you can easily find their UK made stuff. Their own brand items are usually UK made. If it does not say made in the UK then it is probably made abroad. They say on their twitter “Pioneer in outdoor clothing, Design Council ‘Millennium Product’ & multiple award-winner. Proud to say our products are Made in England”. Available at the Sub Zero online store – http://www.subzerostore.co.uk

It is hard to find a UK made fleece jackets these days (companies like Berghaus and Karrimor now make all their products abroad; they used to manufacture in the UK). Sub Zero still make their fleece jackets in the UK. There is a review of a jacket here. Some other companies make fleeces in the UK are:

John Arbon Textiles and Fibre Harvest

John Arbon Textiles, based in Devon, England – http://www.jarbon.com – make and sell British-made socks for men, women and children.  They also sell yarns.  Fibre and yarn is produced at their sister company Fibre Harvest – http://www.fibreharvest.co.uk – where it is processed and spun in their Mill based within Coldharbour Mill.  John Arbon Textiles socks are unisex and are made from various percentages of wool, alpaca and nylon.  They also sell cotton socks.  For example, their Shetland wool socks are 90% wool and their traditional Icelandic patterned merino wool socks are 100% wool.  John Arbon also sell tea and egg cosies, rugs, scarves and knitted ties, as well as yarns, yarns from Falkland Islands Merino, 100% British Wool, alpaca yarns and fibre tops.  They have a shop in Lynton.  You can also visit Coldharbour Mill – http://www.coldharbourmill.org.uk.  All John Arbon textiles and yarns are made in Britain.  I love this company’s philosophy and customer service.  I have some of their British wool socks and they are fab.

John Arbon Textiles merino-icelandic-2012 – 100% merino wool

John Arbon Textiles shetland-wool-socks-2012 – 90% Shetland wool / 10% nylon

John Arbon Textiles stripy-socks-2012 – 54% UK Alpaca / 18% merino / 28% nylon

John Arbon Textiles welly-boot-socks-2012 – 80% British wool /20% nylon

John Arbon Textiles organically-farmed-merino-100% Merino wool

John Arbon Textiles wool-shooting-hose-2012 – 90% wool / 10% nylon

John Arbon Textiles persion-grey – 100% pure new British Wool – 70% Exmoor Blueface / 30% British Bluefaced Leicester.

Alpacas in Devon, c.2012

 

Exmoor Horn, c.2011

Exmoor Blueface sheep on the hills above Lynmouth, Devon, c.2011

 

 

 

Jacksons of Reading – in praise of a good old fashioned department store

Jacksons of Reading

Jacksons of Reading is a rabbit warren of a department store in Reading, Berkshire, England where you can get all those things you can’t find anywhere else and in a fabulous environment with lots of wood panelling, wood and drawers and counters.  For example gifts, accessories, sewing stuff, knitting stuff (I found acrylic made in England from companies like Robins but sadly no British wool), linens and haberdashery, textiles, a good shoe department (specialising in wider fittings) and a large crafts section.  They have a massive school and scout uniforms department, dancewear, bowls clothes, lingerie, nightwear, ladies fashions and a superb menswear department.  Yesterday (8.12.12) the store was quite busy and I came across UK made HJ Hall socks at very reasonable prices and lovely James Aubrey men’s duffle coats.  You’ll find brands like Peter England, Tootal, Somax and Double Two here too, but these days such brands manufacture abroad. Plus they have a great suits department and they sell things like British made braces.  Look for the giant Jacksons Corner neon lights!  Open Mon-Sat 09:00 – 17:30. The store unashamedly markets itself at the over 40s and prides itself on serving customers. This is most definitely not a self-service store.   It is a beautiful building inside and out, with a fabulous pneumatic tubes system to handle cash.  Founded in 1875 and still family run, this store is a must visit place when shopping in Reading.

http://www.jacksonsofreading.co.uk