A Director's opinion - Kath Whitworth's thoughts on the new collection

Hopefully by now you have had a chance to explore our new collection. You might have ear-marked your must-have items or even bought everything you like ready for the new season.

This week, I had the opportunity to talk to one of our Directors, Kath Whitworth about the new collection. As Kath is very hands-on when it comes to finding and selecting the pieces for each season, she is familiar with the entire collection so I asked her which items she would choose for herself…

Kath revealed that she has already bought the Slouchy Sunday Roll Neck which appears on the front cover of our Autumn 2011 catalogue…

After the success of last year when this jumper practically flew off the shelves, it is available again with the addition of a new colour. Kath said she loves how versatile and snuggly this piece is and how despite being a chunky knit, it isn’t too heavy. She also said it is very flattering and suits all shapes and sizes.

Next, Kath highlighted the Supersoft Slouch Dress as one of her favourites and said “this does what it says on the tin. It’s great for a cosy day at home and ideal even if you’re not normally a “dressy” person as it can be teamed just as easily with leggings”…

When talking about the natural fibres used in the collection, Kath said she was particularly impressed with the new bamboo and organic cotton layering pieces. This is the first time Celtic Sheepskin has offered a specific layering range to customers and it has been very well received so far. Kath said that she loves the quality of the fibres, particularly the bamboo as it very easy and tactile to wear. This range is definitely here to stay as the pieces can be layered up or down all year round…

Moving on to boots, Kath’s favourites are the new Himalayan Boots which she hopes will be very popular with you, our customers, as well!

The character of the Himalayan wool caught Kath’s eye last year when we created the Himalayan Coat and Himalayan Gilet and she thought it would be a great topper for our sheepskin boots. Kath described the Himalayan Boots as “more everyday than the Toscana Boots and not as flamboyant as the Mongolian Boots” – sums it up quite well I think!

Finishing off, I asked Kath if she had any predictions of pieces that would be big sellers this Autumn. While she pointed out that it is hard to say so early on in the new season, Kath picked out the Trapeze Hem Hoodie and the Cocoon Cardi/Shrug, both of which are mid-weight items which you can wear now and as the temperature drops…

Kath added that she felt that generally speaking, customers are ready for Autumn after the lack-lustre summer weather and that they want the luxury and cosiness of natural woollen fibres without the feeling of being too warm.