The Local Wool Initiative
Our Mission to Create a Jacket Made From New York Wool
At the heart of our brand is a commitment to creating stand-out, high-quality American fashion while supporting our local community. Our area, Upstate New York, is rich in agricultural diversity, home to nearly 800 sheep farms producing beautiful, high-quality fiber. These farms are within a few hours of our studio, but local wool is not readily accessible in woven form for garment production - yet.
We are proud to introduce the Local Wool Initiative, a project years in the making, dedicated to developing a jacket sewn from New York wool. Through this initiative, we aim to strengthen our regional supply chain, celebrate local agriculture, and create fashion that’s inextricably connected to the place it comes from.
A Lasting Foundation
The sheep and the farms that care for them are the epicenter of the Local Wool Initiative. We are privileged to be using some of the finest wool fiber produced in NYS by Anchorage Farm Romneys and Bear Farm Corriedales. Not only did these farms provide beautiful fiber for this project, but they welcomed us to meet their flocks, helping us to understand the challenges and rewards of responsibly raising sheep. Together, these partnerships are the cornerstone of the Local Wool Initiative and the foundation of what we hope will become a much bigger movement in the fashion industry.
We strongly believe in the sustainability of grassland agriculture and are thrilled there is another generation behind us with the same vision.
- Carole & Mark Harth, Bear Farm
Crafted in Collaboration
To create this textile, we needed help - fiber farmers, processors, dyers, manufacturers, designers, and artisans, dedicated to strengthening the local textile supply chain and making projects like this possible.
Beginning with the yarn - high quality fiber deserves high quality processing, so we're extremely privileged to have Clean Fleece and Battenkill Fibers in our local supply chain. Their knowledge of New York breed fibers is unsurpassed, and it's their expertise that transformed the raw wool into premium yarn, ready for dyeing and weaving.
We wanted this jacket to have a signature color entirely its own, so the yarn made a short journey from Battenkill Fibers to local dye-house, Yarn Designs Unlimited. There, it received careful, hands-on attention from color expert Kelly Schultes, until the shade was perfected.
The next major milestone—weaving at Lilly Marsh Studios—contributed another unique layer of craftsmanship and regional connection. With extensive local fiber experience, master weaver Lilly Marsh applied her signature talent, translating the yarn into a beautiful, thoughtfully constructed textile.
Be Part of the Movement
Over the next few months we'll be transforming this one-of-a-kind textile into a limited edition release, called The First Cut, and we're looking for visionary women who believe in this mission of supporting local manufacturing as much as we do.
You can also become part of the movement and help us promote local fiber in fashion by sharing this story with friends. Together, we can support local agriculture and economies through beautiful, traceable, quality clothing.
Special Thanks
We'd like to thank the Hudson Valley Textile Project, without whom this project would not be possible.
Thank you to Mary Jeanne Packer of Battenkill Fibers and Lilly Marsh of Lilly Marsh Studios for giving their time and expertise to educate and facilitate.
A very personal thank you to Kristina's son, James @j_c_films, for capturing the beautiful footage at the farms.
And special thanks to the New York Fashion Innovation Center for support through their grant program.