The Journal

The Sunspel Shetland Collection

Rooted in centuries of heritage, this collection is crafted by a mill that helped define the Shetland style with its distinctive texture and rich, nuanced shades.

Sunspel has always championed British craftsmanship. For our knitwear, we work with the country’s finest spinners and knitwear specialists, preserving the rich heritage that has long defined Britain’s wool-making industry. Our designs draw on the distinctive regional styles that exist throughout the British Isles in places like Guernsey, Yorkshire and the Aran Islands. Originating on the Shetland Isles north of Scotland, the Shetland style is one of the best known, and this season we’ve created our very own collection.

What is a Shetland Jumper?

What makes a Shetland jumper unique is its textured, woolly look. This comes from the ring-spun yarn which blends many colours, and the brushed finish. Traditionally performed with teasels picked from the hillside, brushing the garment pulls some of the fibres out, making the wool softer on the skin and resulting in the distinctive finish that makes the Shetland famous.

Preserving A Unique Tradition

Originating on the Shetland Isles off Scotland’s north coast, Shetland jumpers were traditionally made with the fleece of Shetland sheep. These animals have coarse, thick fleeces which although well suited to the harsh conditions, do not make for comfortable clothing. In the 1940s and 50s, small Scottish mills on the mainland began pioneering techniques to make
softer, more wearable Shetland sweaters. In the decades since however, almost all of the pioneering Shetland mills closed, taking their knowledge and expertise with them.

To create our Shetland Jumper, we sought out the only surviving Shetland mill from this period. On an idyllic hillside in Aberdeenshire, it traces its roots to the late 1700s and is run by a seventh-generation knitwear specialist. Today it continues to harness traditional ring-spinning techniques and colour-blending machinery to create its special textured yarn.

Inspired by its heritage as a water mill, it draws its energy exclusively from renewable sources and works hard to preserve the health of its surrounding ecosystems. Today the stream that runs through it is home to otters, brown trout, sea trout and wild salmon.

A Unique Blend of Colours

The unique textured colour of the yarn is one of the reasons Shetland jumpers are so beautiful. Combining many different shades, it has a depth and richness that is said to reflect the Scottish landscape. Historically, the dyes themselves came from the surrounding landscape, with madder and indigo creating blues and reds and various lichens making other shades.

We have four shades available for our Shetland Jumpers, all of which take their inspiration from the landscapes around the mill. The ruddy brown and purple of the heather, the yellow of the dry grass and the darker shades of the peat all go into our Midnight Melange.

The Softest Shetland Jumper

Once the yarn is spun, it’s knitted by specialists in Dumfriesshire where it is washed in spring water. Because Scottish water is so naturally soft, thanks to the fact it’s filtered through peat, this special process brings the yarn to life, opening up the fibres and transforming them from tough and stiff to soft and luxurious. The final piece is then brushed which gives a lightweight, woolly feel and the beautiful woolly finish that makes the Shetland style so special.