The Incrediwools: Wool and the Gang

Designer Jade Harwood co-founded Wool and the Gang in 2008 with Aurelie Popper after the pair met at Central St Martins in London. With knitting as their starting point, the duo have established a community of makers to help create their products. The company’s ethos is all about helping people make high- quality fashion at home in a sustainable way.

Can you explain the ideology of Wool and the Gang?

Wool and the Gang by the essence of its name is all about the gang; the community is at the heart. It’s all about this idea of being part of something that’s larger than yourself. It’s about participating in what we feel is a new movement that’s happening in fashion: feeling like you belong. We feel that we’re bringing back values to the fashion industry because we think that people have lost connection with clothes and how they are made.

How does it work?

We started with knitting as we were bored with throwaway fashion and mass-consumption and we wanted to do something different. We have since moved into crocheting and other crafts. When we launched, we went to knitting shops and they’d be full of mushy-pea colours and old knitting patterns that looked like Morse Code. They’d give you a headache. We wanted to strip it back. So we spent a long time making patterns on our website more contemporary, and we started with our signature wool, which we called Crazy Sexy Wool. It’s really chunky and from Peru. It basically allows people to knit really fast. Once you’ve decided what you want on our website, you can either make it yourself or we have a whole network of knitters who will do it for you. It’s like bringing back a cottage industry.

Can anyone join in?

Anyone can be in the gang. We have just over 3,000 people in our network of knitters. We’re only in the UK now but later in the year we’ll be rolling out in the US.

Is there a renaissance happening in wool?

Absolutely. Wool had a dusty image. But there’s a re-education going on about how great and versatile wool is. Knitting is perfect for the Millennial generation: we live in such a plugged in, online world. This is about going hack to basics.

What are your plans for Wool and the Gang?

We want to branch into new things. We like the idea that your entire fashion wardrobe can be available in kit form, whether it’s a leather bag or perfume. We would offer the whole experience. It can go way beyond wool.