We at John Smedley have been designing and making quality knitwear from our mill in Matlock Derbyshire for over 220 years. The expertise acquired, has given us the skills to make a jumper fit well, sit well and look good for a long time.
Proudly we can say that in excess of 98% of the garments that bear the John Smedley name, are 'Made in England'. There are only two exceptions to this proud fact and they are Cashmere and Heavy Knitted garments. Cashmere, because it is so fine, can only be properly knitted on hand machines, and the Heavy Weight Knitted garments, which can not be physically constructed on our fine knit frames.
There are some very important, key ingredients which go into making a fabulous quality John Smedley garment:
- Selecting the very best raw materials from around the world, unique to John Smedley.
- Knitting and 'Fully Fashioning' the garment to shape, adds that prestigious hallmark of quality.
- Linked seams, where each and every joining stitch is linked together by hand to eliminate unsightly and uncomfortable ribbed seams.
- Over 35 hand finish operations are employed in making one garment. Care and attention are of paramount importance.
- The finest Derbyshire spring water from our own natural source is used in wet finishing and dyeing.
- Ultra fine, lightweight John Smedley knitwear contains approximately 1,206,000 knitted stitches per garment.
John Smedley's Extra Fine New Zealand Merino Wool is specially bred by nominated Wool Growers on the Alpine pastures of the South Island. It is a soft, sumptuous yarn which looks good, is naturally warm and comfortable and is also machine washable, so wonderfully easy to maintain.
John Smedley's Sea Island Cotton is characterised by its exceptional fineness, its long luxurious staple length and high tensile strength. Our Cotton is handpicked as the plants reach maturity and therefore no defoliant is used, maintaining the purity of the cotton.
In essence a John Smedley garment is designed to fit in to any wardrobe, with the reassurance of quality and timeless style.