Journal

A story of British heritage, manufacturing and the sea… Charl Knitwear launches its first woven collection, made in Norfolk in the original Yarmouth Oilskins factory. A long, straight road eastwards eventually leads to the sea in Great Yarmouth. This is…

Lydia wears the West cardigan, striped Neckerchief and Sailor Smock Top. What Makes British Wool Jumpers Ideal for Year-Round Wear? British wool is renowned for its natural resilience, insulation, and breathability—qualities that make it perfect for versatile layering. At Charl…

Britain has always been a sea faring nation of fishermen, merchant sailors and the Royal Navy. The home of Lord Nelson (did you know he came from Norfolk?), Sir Francis Drake and Henry Blogg, the most decorated Lifeboatman of all…

A very special collaboration with acclaimed chef and author Emily Scott. To celebrate the launch of the West spring weight Gansey knits, Emily has created two delicious new recipes using locally caught Mackerel and Herring. Ever since I first read…

As part of my “Stories” series, I wanted to tell you more about the stitches in my collection. I made it my mission when founding the Charl, to preserve the stitches and stories found in the original Norfolk Gansey jumpers…

One Inspirational Woman: International Women’s Day 2024 Olive Edis. Image courtesy of Norfolk Museums Service. This is one date in the calendar that I always look forward to. This year for International Women’s Day, I’m celebrating the life and work…

For centuries, the people of Donegal have been spinning Donegal wool to knit their own jumpers. The tradition began as a way of producing their own clothing, but it soon spread to a wider audience because of the intrinsic beauty…

The Shetland sheep are the smallest of the British Breeds, it is said that they have Scandinavian origins, probably brought to Shetland by the Vikings over 1000 years ago. They are a small bodied, agile breed with bright eyes and…

Cley-Marsh-Pools by Rachel Lockwood courtesy of Pink Foot Gallery The new season is all about colour and texture here at Charl. What I love most about knitwear is that I can create the fabric as well as the shape of…

125 mile promise on our UK made products plus an award ceremony to recognize our achievements! I’m really excited to tell you that the Charl 125 mile promise is here! I’ve been working on some new labels to clearly mark…

For this International Women’s Day, I’d like to celebrate the skills of the women who knitted the original Norfolk Gansey jumpers by sharing their story with you.  Little is known about the lives of the Norfolk fishermen, even less about…

Johnny I’ve long been fascinated by the history of the Breton stripe with its multitude connotations. I was delighted to find this image of a “French Onion Seller” taken by Olive Edis in the early part of the 20th Century…

According to local folk lore, Norfolk Ganseys were traditionally knitted in Navy Blue yarn, after a decree passed by Lord Horatio Nelson that Navy Blue should be the exact colour worn by the British Navy. Naturally, the fishermen liked to…

I love the expression “everything has its season” and for wool this most definitely means the Autumn, which is currently being celebrated throughout this month in Wool Week  Campaign for Wool and British Wool. After an unbearably hot summer, I think most…

I wanted to tell you the story behind the new Mellis cardigan knitted in GOTS certified organic cotton, the final piece of knitwear to slot into the Charl cotton collection. Mellis I’ve always been fascinated by the work of the St Ives…

As so many of you enjoy wearing my nautical stripes, I thought you might like to take a closer look at their history and what they mean. Striped clothing first evolved in the Middle Ages when it came as a…

With the heatwave in the UK set to continue for a few more days, this is the best time to give your knitwear a wash so it’s fresh for the autumn… I’d love to be able to offer you a personal washing service, but here’s the…

“WEST”
The new spring weight Gansey from Charl Knitwear…

Cotton is a wonderful fibre; it can be easily washed, takes colour beautifully, maintains its shape and can be knitted into a myriad of different stitches and weights. It feels fresh when worn next to the skin. However, not all…

Clothes Doctor Products In all my years working in the fashion industry, I’ve always been on the hunt to find the best ways to look after my knitwear; from protecting it from moths, refreshing it after a night out, or…

In the fist of a series of insights into the stories which inspire my collection – Charl Knitwear, I’d like to share the conversation I had with The Female Fisherman – Ashley Mullenger with you. If you’ve been receiving my…

Hello and welcome to our June newsletter!It feels like after months of waiting, summer has finally arrived and somehow taken us by surprise!I’ve been working on some new styles for some time now, and I’m really excited to tell you…

Washing and caring for your knitwear As the sun is getting increasingly warmer and the days longer, it’s so nice to be able to dry washing outside again. Nothing beats the smell of naturally dried laundry! Although if I’m honest…

Spring blossom Well, it’s April and we’ve already had a mini heatwave! But today it looks like the traditional April showers that we’ve come to expect from this month are back! It’s a funny in-between month – we are all…

Welcome to our March journal entry! What a busy few weeks it’s been! Back at the end of February we launched an exciting new collaboration with uber stylish Wardrobe Icons  website where our Chibbles nautically striped knit became their very…

Hello, and welcome to my mid –February Journal Entry. As Charl enters into its second year, I’ve been looking back at the core values of my collection, following the advice of expert gardeners and ensuring the roots are still strong…

Goffin Welcome to my first journal entry of the New Year! It’s taken me some time to decide on what to write to you, perhaps because it’s taken longer than usual to decide for myself, what to focus on this…

Esther Scarf By now, I hope you’ve got all your Christmas shopping done, Christmas cards written (I’ve still to finish mine!) and are just adding the finishing touches to your Christmas food shop! I was reading an interview with Charlie…

Esther, Rook, Cushion Covers, Cazey for her. Hardingham, Charlie, Goffin, Codling for him. Charlie, Curley & Cooper, Breakfast in Bed set, Bobble Hat stocking fillers & letterbox presents… 10% of all sales this weekend are being donated to the Royal…

Charlie, Hardingham and Codling Although I’ve been working in the industry for longer than I care to remember!! I still get an adrenalin rush when I see the whole design process come together; from the beginning, when I start sourcing…

As someone who always leaves her Christmas shopping to the last minute, this year has been even more of a rush to get things ready than ever before! We’ve just entered November and the light has changed once more –…

Welcome to our Mid-Autumn journal entry! With the seasons changing, October has been a busy month for Charl: We are very excited to be featured in both Red Magazine and Country Living magazine’s November Issues We had planned to do a lot of…

Receive the Charl Knitwear special Wool Week offer by typing in “woolweek” to receive 10% all British wool products at the checkout until 15th October 2020. Welcome to Wool Week which runs from 5th – 18th October 2020, an event…

Early Autumn Knitwear: Goffin/Rook/Sparrow/Cooper “The sun drops in the sky, slanting at an angle that, for a few precious weeks, creates the best light of the year, and the thinning leaves sieve it like muslin. Above all, there is a…

home made hand-washing powder I often get asked how to care for and wash knitwear. It’s a tricky subject because some knitwear can be washed in the machine but this is usually synthetic fibres or wool which have been pre-treated…

Sign up for offers and exclusives on a fabulous new collaboration we’re running with the gorgeous shopping platform “swish for it” which brings together a curated collection of small, independent businesses all in one place! https://swishforit.com/#/sign-up https://swishforit.com/#/how-it-works Here’s a sneak…

I spent my childhood in Norfolk so the huge skies and wild seascapes are as familiar a memory as the brisk wind that gusts in from the North Sea, leaving you reaching for a warm cosy jumper to protect yourself…

My earliest memories of knitting are my grandma carefully recreating beautiful French patterns for me and my younger sister – on my mum’s instruction.  I would have the blue version and she the red one. My Nana on the other…

All of the cashmere in this collection comes from Inner Mongolia where breeding and grazing is carefully monitored. Here the higher quality fleeces found on the white and paler haired goats are selected as they can be easily over-dyed using…

Alpaca fibre is sustainable, ecological, hard wearing, soft and light weight, water resistant, warm and hypoallergenic. In one year, one animal can produce enough fibre to make 4 or 5 jumpers, which is significantly more than any other fleece producing…

Charl knitwear – made from British wool; When I was in the initial research stages of this collection, I was very surprised to find that there were only a handful of knitwear brands that use British wool to knit their…

Olive Edis was a photographer at the turn of the 19th century, she had studios in London, Cromer and Sheringham where she photographed members of the aristocracy, monarchs, clergymen and the local fishermen. Self Portrait of of Olive Edis, courtesy…