In the just completed Autumn/Winter season in the Northern Hemisphere, wool played a key part in both fashion apparel and in interiors, with the continued trend towards cosiness and cocooning added to interest in natural, ethical products driving awareness of wool as a fibre.
This trend extended from interest in hand-knitting, through to a greater presence of wool in women's wear and knitwear (both a turnaround from the previous 5 years), to the use of wool as themes for the windows in the flag-ship stores of leading retailers.
In the US, Europe and Japan wool featured in knitwear, including women's sweater dresses, layered over leggings or skinny jeans of both fine, light weight to chunkier looking knits (but still lightweight), knitted skirts, knitted accessories (notably bags), oversized and unstructured cardigans, as well as waistcoats and capes.
For men, wool appeared in both fine gauge knits for layering and chunky knits. The concept of layering looks like it will be a key feature in the Southern Hemisphere this coming Autumn/Winter (June-August).
Wool also had a strong presence in outer coats, notably in women's wear. Wool also was strong in the trend towards tuxedo jackets, matched with white shirts, for women, and in 'gentlemen's club' styling in men's wear.
The one disappointing market for wool in apparel was in China, where wool's presence was less than in the previous Autumn/Winter, particularly in casual lifestyle stores such as Meters/Bonwe and Espirit.
In interiors, wool appeared in wool felt accessories, such as cushions, note book covers and even magazine racks, cosy wool throws and rugs.
Australian Wool Innovation Limited
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