Q&A with Felicity Gleeson

Emerging fashion designer Felicity Gleeson will showcase a selection of beautifully crafted wool garments at Macquarie Centre during Wool Week Australia. Felicity was awarded a scholarship from The Woolmark Company towards her University of Technology, Sydney graduate collection, which allowed her to explore the potential of wool in combination with laser cutting.

The Campaign for Wool caught up with Felicity to find out why she loves wool.

1. Please tell us a little about yourselves and how your day to day life involves wool.

I am a fashion and textile designer. My work explores texture and tactility which I translate into beautifully crafted garments. I work with wool often to develop my original textiles as it gives me room to explore tactility and form.

2. What does the Campaign for Wool mean to your brand?

The Campaign for Wool brings awareness to this beautiful fibre – there are so many unique, natural and sustainable benefits offered by wool that can easily be forgotten. My hope is that the Campaign for Wool begins to make wool fabrics more readily available here in Australia as a designer, sourcing wools can be a challenge.

3. How does using woollen cloths differ to man-made materials?

The tactility and feel of wool is like no other fibre I have worked with, it lends itself so beautifully to suiting, jerseys for draping, fluffy, voluminous fabrics and even just the raw wool tops – there is a huge versatility to what can be created with wool which cannot be recreated by other man-made fabrics.

4. Why is it important to support initiatives such as the Campaign For Wool?

Supporting the Campaign for Wool is so important because it supports the wool industry here in Australia and brings awareness to the sustainability and beauty of wool.

5. How does wool inspire your design/merchandising team?

The versatility of wool inspires my designs, that I can work with the raw fibre and work this into a final piece to working with a pre-existing fabric. From its raw form as wool tops, hand-dyed into a woven/knitted piece or laser cut which gives a beautiful graphic burnt edge. There is a freedom that working with wool gives me.

6. What lies at the heart of your brand?

An original approach to creating beautifully crafted fabrics with a very thoughtful fashion application. A sense of the hand that made it is very important too.

7. How would you describe your brand in 3 words?

Tactile, feminine yet modern.

8. What is your favourite woollen item from your latest collection and why?

The mint green wool wadding pieces are a favourite, I enjoy the fact that it is not immediately obvious what these pieces are made from. I also enjoy watching people interact with them and that need to touch the pieces.

9. What’s your ideal winter outfit from your current collection?

It’s not a particularly wintery collection but I think the wool wadding coat is perfect for cooler weather – it is like wearing a big, fluffy cloud.

10. Why do you love working with wool?

Wool is quite a sustainable fibre and this is an important consideration when I design. I love working with wool because of the versatility of the applications it can be used for – from its raw form to a beautifully woven suiting. It also has at its core a heritage here in Australia.