HARRIS TWEED : FROM LAND TO STREET, BY LARA PLATMAN

"Our world is increasingly one devoid of reality and humanity. As our lives are played out over the ether - by electronic mail and instant message, in online shops - we are becoming detached from what is real and substantial and true," writes Patrick Grant in the foreword to this stunning book of photographs by Lara Platman.

The book was published to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Harris Tweed's trademark Orb stamp and is a fitting tribute to the only fabric that has its own legislation. 'Harris Tweed means a tweed that has been hand-woven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides' goes the definition which became statutory when it was passed in 1993.

Having endured a fall in demand during the 90s and early part of this century, the Harris Tweed industry has steadied, meaning there is demand for weavers once again.

Covering the entire process - from wool to mill to weaver and on to finished article, Platman introduces the reader to some of the people who have benefitted from the resurgence of this beautiful material. Alongside some good portrait photos of the weavers, mill workers and farmers, are short descriptions of their daily lives and working ways.

The book provides a suitable entry level of detail. Details on the different sheep breeds tell the reader about Blackface sheep - dating from the 12th century and the original wool source for Harris Tweed. Nowadays Scottish cross breeds and Cheviot sheep from the Borders are used. These allow for softer tweeds to be produced, meeting modern demand for such fabrics.

"I hope... that my depiction of those who work with Harris Tweed will be a reminder of some of the skills that are alive in Britain today," writes Platman in her introduction. Harris Tweed: From Land to Street is more than a reminder. It is a celebration of the production of one of Britain's finest items. And it certainly has the substance and truth that Patrick Grant mentions in his foreword.

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Harris Tweed: From Land to Street is published by Frances Lincoln

With thanks to Emma at Frances Lincoln

WEEKLY DIGEST

A handful of news items on UK making from last week:

The government has launched the Make it in Great Britain campaign (Make it British)

On the same story, Vince Cable believes 'the UK still has outstanding manufacturing companies, large and small' (Public Service)

Lara Platman's photos of the making of Harris Tweed in the Outer Hebrides (BBC)

Photo by Lara Platman

PROTECTION FOR FAIR ISLE KNITWEAR

A recent short article in The Economist highlights the all too familiar issues surrounding the production of Fair Isle garments. Here are a couple of choice quotes:

'Only 70 people live on Fair Isle itself and only four of them knit. Each sweater takes about 100 hours; the island's annual production is about 30 sweaters, 200 hats and 30 scarves. These are sold only in the island shop, which is cleared out when the summer's first cruise ship calls, says Mati Ventrillon, a French-Venezuelan who runs the craft co-operative.' (The Economist)

'My ladies are in their 70s and 80s. They learned it from their grandmothers, but no one is learning from them.' (Ms. Teresa Fritschi, an American who runs a Scottish luxury-goods website and believes the island's knitters could earn much more if Fair Isle products enjoyed the same legal protection against imitation as Harris Tweed.)

Image from Reel Knitting

D.S DUNDEE: A SHORT INTERVIEW WITH JIM PICKLES, DIRECTOR

Earlier this week Manufacture & Industry had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Jim Pickles, director of D.S DUNDEE at the inaugural Stitch menswear trade show at Old Billingsgate Market.

Pickles founded the traditional heritage label in the mid 90s in Scotland with Ollie Pilcher, a fashion photographer. After doing their own thing for a few years they relaunched the label in late 2007 and are now based in Dalston, London.

We were immediately drawn to the brand's 'Made in the UK' labels so asked them a few questions:

M&I: Where are you selling your wares?

JP: We've our own store on Spitalfields market, opposite the Ten Bells pub. It's been a pop-up situation but we're hoping to make it more permanent. We've been there since mid-December and it's gone brilliantly, we've virtually sold out.

M&I: Why Spitalfields for the store?

JP: A, it's a mile down the road from the studio and B, it's on the edge of the city so we get a good mix of the city boys, the tourist trade on Sundays and you also get the hip East London guys too. It's becoming a bit of a destination now with a few other mens brands having moved in, the new Covent Garden, I think.

M&I: Can you explain a little about how you source and produce your collections in the UK?

JP: Since we set out on the relaunch we've been all about sourcing traditional heritage fabrics and have been working closely with a lot of the tweed and woolen mills that still exist in Scotland, Yorkshire - the traditional roots of the industry. By visiting them we look through their stock collections and we've come across some really nice traditional fabrics like the Melton, the tweeds; we're now working with Harris Tweed on one of our styles. So we're getting hold of these traditional fabrics and putting them into a more contemporary fit and styling.

M&I: What is the importance of having a connection with the UK for the brand?

JP: It's really important to have a link to the UK in terms of either the cloth or the manufacturing. It's very difficult from a business perspective to have both because then it becomes a very expensive product and a lot of the time it is very difficult to find the manufacturers who will help you out, especially when you're dealing with smaller numbers as you're starting out. Sometimes you just can't find manufacturers full-stop. In terms of the knitwear, we're working with a factory up in the Scottish borders that produce for us. The tailoring, all the manufacturing we get done in Portugal but using the UK cloths. The footwear, we're working with Cheaney of Northampton, that's been fantastic for us this season, we've had some very good orders placed on those. The Fair-Isles are hand-knitted up in the Shetland Isles, by a company called Jamieson's. They've been going down particularly well with the Japanese market.

M&I: What are the benefits of D.S DUNDEE being made in the UK?

JP: You've got the menswear consumer who works against the high-street, mass-produced, sweatshop thing. They want to buy into a brand like us, where they can buy a piece that will last them season after season. They'll maybe spend the same amount on one piece as they would on several high-street items, but they will only last a couple of years before being out of shape and ruined in the wash.

M&I: Do you work to a seasonal cycle?

JP: We do the two main collections, Spring/Summer (S/S) and Autumn/Winter (A/W). With the fabrics that we use, because it's British stuff, it is heavier cloth as the sheep are more hardy. Therefore the A/W season is stronger for us but we're going to try and make the S/S season just as good by focussing on accessories and a Scottish nautical theme. We'll be doing luggage, we're doing a collaboration with a UK trainer manufacturer, Mors. We're keen on the dual UK brand thing.

D.S DUNDEE's store can be found at 105A Commercial Street, Spitalfields Market, London E1 6BG

For a full list of stockists click here.

Also worth a look is the D.S DUNDEE blog, we particularly enjoyed the field trip to Marling & Evans.

Picture from D.S DUNDEE's flickr resource.