The most important part of Monkstone goods is that they are ever changing, and we want you to feel part of the story. The design process is linked with the farming methods of the principles of permaculture. Design methods have been adapted to work with wool in a way that is sustainable and natural, enhancing the biodiversity of the natural source. Low impact and made locally. The yarns are all sourced from trusted farms, we use local shearers, experienced spinners and a great local factory to create the final garments. We also have a wonderful group of hand knitters who help to spread the joy of working with such natural yarns. The current collection uses wool from the Monkstone flock.

Part 1: The Black Welsh Mountains; A pedigree flock of sheep ideal to the farm’s developing system. A hardy breed with excellent durable hardy warm wool. With good resistance to the elements and diseases, the Black Welsh Mountains share pasture easily with the cattle and demand less with regards to additional winter feed, housing and unnecessary management. Good lambing and mothering instincts form part of the breed's characteristics.

Part 2: The Dorsets; Smaller in numbers on the farm but larger in size and personality these sheep are a very adaptable breed fitting in well with the overall system. Their big fleeces produce excellent wool for clothes and knitwear. Within the Dorsets on the farm are a number of coloured ewes. For wool production these colours are highly desirable and the process of dying is not required. Additionally their friendly inquisitive nature has a positive effect on the Black Welsh Mountains meaning the flock as a whole is approachable and manageable out in the field.

We shear on a yearly basis and if the weather is warm we will shear a little early. We pay attention to the sheep’s needs at all times making sure they are looked after to the best of our ability here at Trevayne.

We use experienced local shearers to get a good quality fleece, we then bundle the fleeces based on breed, keeping the fleeces separate to make cleaning and spinning the wool a lot more accessible. This also means we can design accordingly, based around the amount of fleece we get per breed keeping style in mind.

After the washing and spinning process, which takes around 2 months, we divide the kilos of wool. We divide it into oiled on cone, washed on cone (for machine knitting) and hand knitting yarns in 50kg balls. We tend to get 5-8 kilos per sheep. Our ram ‘Rambo’ had a fleece of 7 kilos.

When the yarns come back to Monkstone Studio we then send the yarns to our hand knitters, and the wonderful factory we use which is only 42 miles away from the farm.

We work with the most incredible local knitwear factory. We work with their team to create our bespoke jumpers, scarves and home wear. We trust their skill set and years of knowledge in UK manufacturing the very best products that are made to last.

During the process of washing and carding we are able to save some fleece to create bundles of felting yarn that are perfect for craft and making. The wool is a natural source and is perfect to be used for dying and creating your own crafts.

Our products are washed, spun and made in Wales, all within 42 miles of the farm where our sheep graze. We use a selection of hand knitters and artisans. We make many of our pieces to order and so sometimes there is a little wait.

We believe in making products that last using the most incredible yarn we can get our hands on. There are only two wool sources left in the UK and so we hope to grow our collective of farmers who want to keep their yarn closer to home. Our process is not fast, it’s a slow production. We believe slow is best.

From fleece to product - shearing, grading, carding, combing, spinning, weaving, dyeing and finishing.

Our manufacturing methods always consider the lowest environmental impact we can achieve. We are always striving to make this better. Our aim is to manufacture and create by achieving the lowest impact on the Environment, the most natural and highest quality products we can, made to last. When the garments eventually come to the end of their lives they can be composted.

We use a number of hand knitters to create our designs. We make our own patterns and develop the range based in the amount of wool we get after our yearly shear. The colours of the yarn are often a little different due to the new sheep we welcome into the flock each year so it’s interesting to see the tones and textures we can achieve.