Top 5 Summer Footwear

I’m not sure if officially summer started before mid June, but it feels like its only recently perked up!

So keeping with the mood of summer lovin, we thought we’d pull together a hit list of our top 5 favourite footwear for women this summer. All made by the delicate hands of the men and women at Celtic Sheepskin. Thank you to everyone involved!

In no particular order (we couldn’t possibly choose one pair over another!)


…the clog. Oh SO trendy this summer. Our sheepskin equivalent is very often picked as a slipper, but they’ve got a hardwearing sole and they’re machine washable (use wool cycle) so we think they make ideal beach footwear, or back-garden BBQ slip-ons.

Then there’s THE Celt Sandal. So delicate and so easy to wear with anything. I personally road-tested these the other day to a meeting, and can vouch that they look every bit as comfortable as they feel…

Up next are two pairs of our gorgeous hand-made - I know everything here is handmade but it’s such a great quality, I’m going to keep plugging it - Sheepskin Boots. What! You may question my line of thought here. Who would wear a pair of boots in the summer? Well, I counted one girl/lady every 5 minutes as I walked through the town the other day. In cities too the “festival fashion” has taken a hold and dainty dresses are commonly going hand-in-hand with boots.

Leaving our fifth in the TOP FIVE to our gorgeous Nubuck & Suede Flip Flops (if you haven’t already got a pair, get them quick while you can!). They come in 6 different colours, and the soft nubuck leather that forms the toe post is heavenly.



If that doesn’t tempt your appetite, why not have a play on our new holiday shop tool. Our Graphic Designer’s been very busy with this app, and it’s quite fun to see our summer range in 8 easy groups. Click HERE

Charlotte Cole, Celtic Sheepskin

Looking ahead at trends for Autumn Winter 2010

Before I continue I’d like to apologise for the delay getting this blog up. Normally it’s up for midday but we’ve been busy sorting out the new catalogue before it goes to print and the last 2 days have run away. Sorry!

The task has inspired me to write about the Autumn Winter season however. I know that we are now only just starting to enjoy summer and to think about winter is extraordinary, but I want to give you all something to look forward to. A reason to smile when you think ahead to the glorious sunshine disappearing, and the flowers turning to, um, dust?

THE AVIATOR JACKET. Sheepskin is tipped as very fashionable for Autumn Winter 2010, which of course makes all of us at Celtic Sheepskin quite excited, but even more so when the Aviator Jacket came out in full force particularly on the Burberry catwalks, and who wouldn’t want to have a similar line to them? Not us! We had an inkling this may happen and so were on the ball to get our Aviator Jacket re-shot on one of our gorgeous new models featuring in the new autumn catalogue. That’s the image you see above, as I thought you might appreciate a sneak preview!

You can grab yours now to be ahead of the rush if you like CLICK HERE It’s the real deal, designed to be worn in an open top car or on the back of a bike, keeping you snugly warm as you speed through the country lanes (at the correct m.p.h. mind). Of course for some of you this may stretch the purse strings a little too much, so why not accessorize with an Aviator Hat instead? Currently available from us in men’s sizes, I’ve just tried on the medium and think it’s suitable for women (you can view the measurements of our hats by clicking here). If you like the idea of the hat, click here to go online to see it, or if you can bear to wait there are to be some great new styles coming out in the new catalogue.

Just don’t say I didn’t warn you when October comes around and the Aviator is everywhere and you’ve not been saving up for one!

Charlotte Cole, Press Officer for Celtic Sheepskin

A Beach Check List...

Living in Cornwall I get a unique opportunity to walk down the road from my home and step out onto a white, sandy beach to fall in love with the sea again and again as it glistens in the sunlight. It’s a beautiful scene that only a handful of people can enjoy from their bedroom window, so I felt extremely lucky this weekend when I stole a quick afternoon to enjoy soaking up the rays at Godrevy (click here to learn about Gorvey Beach)

In my lazy state I started to observe the “fashion” my fellow beach babes had chosen for the day and as you would expect it was mostly bikinis with a couple of haphazard sarongs that were presumably worn for modesty (although I think a pair of shorts would have looked much better!). Now I know that the beach is meant to be a laid back, easy affair, but surely a little panache and elegance doesn’t go a miss? So I thought I’d pull out five of Celtic Sheepskin’s best beach buys that anyone could use to help add some casual style to a beach trip.

Starting from the top…

Natural Basket Bag £29 - £34
A traditional, stylish way to bring all your bits to the beach!

Shearling Flip Fop £39
Made by hand in Cornwall, these will kiss your sun-burnt feet better as you walk home for the evening.

Straw Shell Hat £21
The only way a lady should shelter her head from the sun!

Organic Longline Cowl £45
Much better than a sarong, this beach dress is lightweight and very flattering.

Organic Pointelle Hoodie £56
To use when the northerly wind picks up, or you realise your arms are catching a little too much sun.

Written by,
Charlotte Cole
Press Officer for Celtic Sheepskin

Finding out more about the price of wool…

Last week our blog announced that Celtic Sheepskin is supporting the Campaign For Wool. Fast forward a few days later and sitting at my desk I find myself intrigued to learn more about the current market situation for sheep farmers, but in a way that me - a non-farmer - can comprehend. Is the situation really as bad as they say it is?

In the news recently there was an feature on a Devon farmer who had introduced a flock of self-shearing sheep (click here to read article) The-self-shearing-sheep-save-farmers-thousands-pounds.html. This reached BBC news as well as some national papers and went in some way to highlight to Joe Bloggs just how little the farmers get per sheep and the lengths they are going to try and increase their return. It is always the small detail like the cost of feed that make a significant difference to farmers because the return is so low. As the service industry is the dominant sector in the UK, the majority of people who wear knitwear and buy woollen rugs are working in offices with complimentary tea & coffee machines and have the freedom to buy lunch at a tiny fraction of the wages earnt per month. It is therefore no wonder that we don’t choose to buy natural wool over cheaper synthetic fibres as we can’t relate to the different processes involved in the two and see the justification to why wool costs that little bit more.

After continuing to browse the internet for articles of interest on this subject, that I was surprised to read in Farmers Weekly Interactive dated 14th June, that wool prices are predicted to reach a 10-year high! (click here to read article) Quite a contrast to the Daily Mail article that paints a grave picture of costs. And in fact three days previously The Farmers Guardian had published a similar positive story that wool producers are set to gain from price rises. In this they pointed out “That is not the only good news. Based on recent prices achieved at auctions held at the BWMB’s Bradford headquarters there is every indication that next year will also see a “considerable” price increase” (click here to read article)

So is there still a need to “Campaign For Wool” and get everyone involved in a wool week this October?

After the delight of these articles passed, I remembered that I stumbled across a feed in January when the Campaign For Wool was hitting headlines, and found a number of farmers discussing the price of beef & sheep farming. The feed ended with an interesting comment that summarised just how well the farmers see the industry is doing;
“The present high wool prices should be sustainable for the better wools (white) and should at least mean the value of the wool will cover the cost of shearing most sheep this year” (click here to read the feed)

Similarly, at the end of the Farmers Guardian article, a farmer wrote “eeeerrrr....we have 250 ewes, just been notified that my chque will go up a lot, from about £250 to £400....not sure I'll book a world cruise just yet!!!!” The type may have been charmingly simple, but the point is pretty clear; the increase isn’t yet making enough of an impact to our farmers.

According to Jo Dawson, and CEO of H. Dawson Wool, International wool suppliers in an article written by Wool News.netit was 18 months ago that Prince Charles became aware of the very low prices being paid to wool farmers and with that the accelerating drift of farmers from sheep production both in the United Kingdom and in many important sheep producing areas of the World. (click here to read article)

So the efforts on the 26th January, when Prince Charles invited over 140 wool industry stakeholders together and all agreed to recreate good sustainable demand for wool, are still of great importance to the farmers now. The campaign will help to continue this rise. The wheels have started to turn in the right direction, but it will take consumers to push for natural wools and the joint efforts from all the industry’s stakeholders to ensure this message stays prominent. Only if wool prices continue to rise will the farmers receive the profits they deserve.

Introducing Alfie Whitworth introducing the new factory!

To show off the latest edition to the director’s household and to begin his training to take over from Todd’s excellent dog modelling career, we put puppy Alfie on the case to show you the factory Celtic Sheepskin extended into last week. (In case you aren’t aware, the new factory is to house the manufacturing of our slippers and boots, and the old building remains the location of our warehouse and factory shop.)

So we began in the press office, and Alfie started to practice his “cute look” skilfully showing just how much the environment means to him too by posing next to the recycling paper bin –great PR Alfie, top marks!


The next photo didn’t go to plan, and instead of showing our dedicated Britishness wall he rushed passed into a room yet to be unpacked and pointed to a great big box instead. This is where we start to realise that a puppy’s perspective is not going to show off the best bits of the factory! Oh well, we might as well carry on now, he’s still very, very cute to watch :-)

So with the offices done, next on the agenda is the staff kitchen, and more importantly the cupboard where the tea towels are kept. We think he’s trying to show off his adeptness in the second of these shots, so we can see how well he can do action shots and not just the cute ones! How clever you are Alfie…
Then we went out into the main factory to try and find more fun boxes for Alfie to explore. Plus there was a big door to admire – so big in fact we have had to circle Alfie in the second picture as his brown & white fur becomes lost amongst the builder’s tools!
It was at this stage that Alfie decided enough was enough, and took to discovering that playing with a broom that has a long handle can lead to trouble - the handle fell down just after the shot was taken! Although I’m sure you’ll be pleased to learn that the handle was closer to hitting the photographer than Alfie – he was already off to explore another corner before it landed on the floor!! It started to look like the shoot was all over, because by this point Alfie began to completely ignore the camera, preferring to sniff as much as he can while he had such rare freedom to run around in the factory and go wherever he chose! We couldn’t blame him for trying.

So it took daddy to come along to get Alfie to show off just how cute he can be…

…and it looks like the tour will have to be finished another day; it’s time for bed for this little one now, this modelling work is tough :-)

Celtic Sheepskin is getting involved in the HRH Prince Charles “Campaign For Wool”

Prince Charles is championing Campaign For Wool, an initiative launched in January to boost the popularity of natural wool. At the launch Prince Charles explained:
“The sad truth is that around the world farmers are leaving sheep production because the price they get for their wool is below the costs of actually shearing it."
Adding that “the future of the fibre was looking very bleak indeed”

The Campaign For Wool has been rapidly gathering over 130 textile stakeholders from the world of wool including merchants, scourers, spinners, weavers, manufacturers and major retailers and also iconic designers and are currently in the process of planning a Wool Week to take place the week begining 11th October. During the week consumers will have the opportunity to learn about all the different uses of wool including carpets, fashion & insulation at an exciting exhibition. Details are yet to be announced, but if you’d like to learn more about the Campaign For Wool, click here

Exactly how Celtic Sheepskin will get involved is to depend on the schedule of the exhibition, but we were delighted to meet last week with the PR company who are overseeing the campaign. Celtic Sheepskin is best known for our hand-made sheepskin footwear, but the demand for our knitwear is ever increasing with almost 35% of sales in 2009 attributable to clothing. This is an acceptable figure bearing in mind the original purpose of the business, but we’d like to see more people looking to buy natural knitwear as they do our footwear and outerwear, so the initiative couldn’t come at a better time.

We always strive to manufacture close to home, so the local farmers of Britain and Europe and our talented knitters will see the immediate benefit should consumers make a conscious movement to wear natural wool rather than the cheaper synthetic alternatives. After all, the substitutes last only a few months and take far too many years to decompose at the end of their life cycle. As far as we’re concerned, it makes good sense to go natural, and Celtic has always been a great advocate of “the natural choice” so we look forward to seeing where this campaign will take Britain.

Sticking to the fashion trends with Celtic – Nautical Style

You may have noticed that in almost every shop this summer there is at least one piece of clothing that’s shouting “wear me and you’ll look like you’re going sailing”. What you have to understand however is that this fashion trend isn’t about actually GOING sailing, it’s a way to feel like you’re on the open waves when you’re wearing the clothes. After all, who would wear a pair of three-inch cork wedged shoes on a boat?

Sticking to fashion trend isn’t as tricky as you may think. I’m a great believer in adapting a theme to suit you, and nautical is a great trend to practice with as there are few rules; navy/black blue/turquoise white/cream spots/stripes silver/brass – they all count and are easily recognisable.

Celtic Sheepskin’s clothing is designed for ladies who only enjoy a comfortable outfit that’s thoughtfully styled. So rather than a pair of just-cover-my-bottom cullottes, our gorgeous cullottes are cut just below the knee, and made in a hard wearing denim blue. Similarly, our Cropped Tie Wrap has been designed to wear over a camisole so that you cover your midriff and still keep to the flirty feminine trend that’s also currently in vogue.

I’ve pulled out the above pieces as clothing and accessories that immediately fit into the nautical look, but have a play for yourself and see what you can match with your current wardrobe to pull off this trend in your own style.

Celtic Sheepskin is all set to expand into new premises next week!

The date has been set and the builders have been busily working away to get ready for next week when all factory staff at Celtic Sheepskin moves into our new premises.

Fortunately the warehouse is only a couple of doors away from our current premises, so no big lorries are needed to transport our machinery across, although a forklift truck will be coming in very handy –click presses, air compressors, sewing machines and sole buffers are pretty heavy pieces of kit!

We’re very excited about the move, not only is a change of scenery a great way to blow out cobwebs, but it also shows just how well Celtic Sheepskin are doing. The expansion has come about because the new line for AW10 is even bigger than before, so we need more warehouse space to store our clothing & boots.
We’ve also come to the decision to move because the demand for our boots has increased to such a level that we can no longer fit the number of cutters, sewers, gluers etc that we need, into the current factory – they need more space!

Everyone at Celtic Sheepskin works hard to make sure the products and services we offer are always associated with quality.

So it’s a great testament to all the staff here that we are expanding next week.

Our factory shop will be staying in the same location. So anyone who is thinking of visiting Cornwall or if you live locally, we’d be only too delighted to welcome you to the same premises as before.

A pair of Celtic Sheepskin Boots were spotted on Twiggy yesterday!

Reading the Daily Mail yesterday, we were delighted to see on page three - and before your mind wonders, I’m describing the Daily Mail not The Sun! On page three there were two big pictures of model Twiggy (Lesley Hornby) wearing a pair of our purple Celt Boots - and she had cleverly turned her boots down, so the lovely fluffy sheepskin was spilling out over.
You can read the story for yourself, just click here

It’s not the first time a celeb has been spotted in our boots, but it is unusual for May! In fact tonight we’re going to be watching Kate Humble very closely, as her new series Springwatch starts this evening and we know that she’s a fan of Celtic Sheepskin, so she may well be spotted in a jumper or pair of our boots.

It was also only recently that we noticed one of our Spring Summer 2010 models (Gary) was spotted on the catwalk at the Clothes Show Live, Birmingham wearing a pair of our boots when he was modelling another brand! A friend of Celtic Sheepskin went to the event and only recently posted up the photos of the catwalk on her Facebook profile. We nearly fell off our chairs when we saw this photo and Gary wearing our boots – what great publicity!

So it looks like Celtic Sheepskin is pulling in a great celebrity following. We may not be as big as some brands, but the Celt Boot and Celtic Sheepskin clothing is starting to turn celebrity’s heads, and we’re very proud when we spot them wearing something from our range! Our website shows some celebrities wearing our clothing and boots, but the list of celebs who own something from us is vast. So of you see someone wearing Celtic Sheepskin do let us know! Click here to take a peak at the celebs spotted in CS goodies