THE JOURNAL
When we launched Mr P. in 2017, we had one goal in mind. We wanted to create the long-lasting foundations of a modern man’s wardrobe. We took this step knowing that clothes that are built to last require time, high-quality raw materials and expertise – all things that can easily pass unnoticed when shopping online, particularly as fashion consumption becomes increasingly fast and accessible. But we also knew there was an appetite out there for something better.
Now, in a bid to reduce waste, we’ve combined the creative expertise of our London-based team and the knowhow of the spinners and makers of Casine, a small town in the Marche region of Italy, to launch an environmentally conscious knitwear collection made from surplus and responsible yarn.
“The way we’ve worked on this collection was very different from the way we would usually do knitwear,” says Ms Emma Glynn, design manager at Mr P. “As designers, we’ve had to unlearn our usual process and rather than picking a yarn from a brand new collection of virgin fibres, we had to pick from pre-existing yarn. It was all about creating the fabrics from that yarn, rather than the other way around, and forming them from what was available.”
The surplus yarn came courtesy of Green Line, an Italian textile manufacturer that sources surplus yarn from local pre- and post-consumer waste. Its limited availability challenged our in-house design team to rethink the design process, create unique colour blends and experiment with fabric treatments. “This collection allowed us to think about knitwear differently,” says Glynn. “We used the reverse and external linking stitching, for instance, and applied other techniques such as brushing to create plusher textures and recreate a luxurious look and feel.”
The result is an off-beat line-up of cardigans, sweaters, shirts, T-shirts and hoodies that signals quite a departure from Mr P.’s signature offering. The silhouettes feel more contemporary. They’re intended for a relaxed, boxy and slightly oversized fit, with open necklines and dropped shoulders. “We used details such as laid-on and rolled-edge trims to lean into the idea of things being unfinished, not confined,” says Glynn. “We wanted everything to feel quite soft, languid and in keeping with the characteristics of knitwear.”
Uncompromising quality, however, remains the cardinal point of our collections from start to finish and this capsule was no exception. When specific yarns were not available, the existing surplus offering was blended with other certified fibres such as organic cotton, recycled cashmere and mulesing-free wool. “We were always conscious that we wanted to produce luxurious products with longevity in mind, because that’s part of the conversation around slowing down the fashion cycle,” says Glynn. This collection does just that.