One question that comes up time and time again is, do you really manufacture your blankets in the UK? We are one of the few, and last remaining manufacturers who can honestly say yes. Our John Atkinson blankets and throws are manufactured from raw wool to finished blankets at our Hainsworth mill in West Yorkshire and we now have the video to prove it. Thanks to a local student, Karl Birrane and our very own voice over expert Philip Leather we have produced this short video following the full route of a blanket from beginning to end.
An old book dating back to 1910 has appeared in our office, no one knows where it has come from, but it is full of blanket labels from around the world. There are pages of beautiful woven labels including the historical Hudson’s Bay blanket and some very unusual named blankets including ‘The Klam Rug’, ‘Mandarin & Bat Chop’ and ‘The Reindeer Blanket’. If anyone has any information on these brands or any others, please let us know…
We get asked regularly, what is the difference between Pure New Wool and Merino Wool? So I thought I would write a brief explaination on here;
Merino Wool is from the Merino sheep which originally came from Spain but now there are vast quanities in Australia and the Merino is regarded as having the finest and softest wool of all sheep – and makes beautiful blankets and throws!
Pure New Wool can come from any sheep as long as it hasn’t been used or twisted prior to manufacture. The wool used in our John Atkinson blankets and throws is specially selected by our Wool Director, Roger Hainsworth and predominantly comes from warmer climates; Australia, New Zealand and South Africa as the yarn from these countries is softer and more suitable for bedding.
Due to popular demand we are now selling our John Atkinson cellular wool blankets in our shop. These blankets due to the cellular weave trap the air and retain the heat without the weight of a solid blanket. They are available in classic white, champagne, pink and sky blue and are beautifully bound in a coordinating satin binding.
Harvey Nichols have been based in Leeds since 1996 and to show their support to the region over the next 3 months they are displaying fabrics from the 6 main textile mills in West Yorkshire, including Hainsworth. Wednesday 14th April saw the launch evening for this exciting event at Harvey Nichols, pictured below are some of the displays of Hainsworth fabric, including an amazing display of our green punched baize for use in the piano industry.
A very exciting day for us here at John Atkinson; we have sent out our first order in our new branded John Atkinson blankets which has been shipped to Harrods. Below you can see Sharon, one of our blanket ladies packing the bag, look out for them in a shop near you!
Here at Hainsworth we have been running an Easter Toy competition made out of our fabric and blankets and we are so pleased with the response and the fantastic toys created by the talented children of Hainsworth employees. The winner was Thea Brandt for this beautiful Easter lamb. A big well done to the runners up Joshua, Stella, Kimberley, Bradley and Josie – thank you!
We are pleased to now offer a range of John Atkinson Baby Blankets, perfect for your little one. As they are manufactured from 100% Merino, the blankets are luxuriously soft to touch. Wool is a natural, renewable fibre which has many benefits to help your baby sleep. They are beautifully bound in silky satin which babies love and can be used as a comfort blanket as they baby grows.
John Atkinson’s luxury woollen blankets working in partnership with JB Custom Linens have been exhibiting in New York. Our wool blankets and throws were on show as part of JB Custom Linens collection of luxury bedding as seen below. Our blankets, throws and now cushions are available in America with an attractive monogram embroidered onto the cushions / throw with contrasting whipping. Our John Atkinson range received a great response and we hope to continuing working closely with Julia Low in the States.
We have just received a very interesting phone call from the great, great, great grandson of John Atkinson! John was just playing around on the internet and typed his name into Google as so many of us do, and was amazed to find John Atkinson Blankets. Although aware that one of his ancestors was a blanket manufacturer he had no idea that his name was still used to this day to manufacture luxury woollen blankets and so close to where his great, great, great grandfather started his business at Flush Mill, Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire. We look forward to a visit from John Atkinson very soon…
