Established in 2011, the London Cloth Company is the first micro-mill to open in London. Specializing in quality woven wool cloth, they produce on an ever-expanding range of carefully restored shuttle looms from the 1870’s. Employing decade old traditional techniques, the London Cloth Company weave fabrics to order, as well as carry a small stock in their online shop.
The London Cloth Company came into being when founder Daniel rescued a rusting loom from an old barn in rural Wales. With absolutely no training or knowledge of weaving, Daniel learnt as he went, fully dismantling and reassembling machines that hadn’t been used for over thirty years. A quick learner, he familiarized himself with all the intricacies of the various parts. Within a year, Daniel acquired two more looms, two pern winders and a warping mill, and the collection keeps on growing. Moving to a large space in Clapton to accommodate the ever-expanding machinery, Daniel produces a range of 100% British Wool Tweed.
The London Cloth Company’s cloth is the textile equivalent of farm to table, tracing the fabric provenance directly back to a specific flock of sheep on an individual farm. Daniel is among a handful of individuals fighting the onslaught of cheap Australian and New Zealand wool, along side the likes of Izzy Lane and The North Circular, with 97% of all wool used in the UK imported. All wool used by the London Cloth Company comes from small flocks of sheep within the British Isles, Daniel works with ecologist Heather Webb and shearer Michael Churchhouse to source wool from conservations flocks. The yarn is spun in Halifax, which results in 100% natural, undyed British wool. Yarn is never dyed but instead blended to reveal its natural beauty and tonality, meaning that the cloth is actually designed around each individual breed of sheep, revealing the depth and breadth of tonality and a full spectrum of colors.
Website: www.londoncloth.com
