About

Withnell developed from my (Paula's) appreciation for timeless fashion, a passion for nature, a nostalgic spirit and a desire to tread a lighter path. It has been bubbling away in the background forever and Withnell is the culmination of all my life experiences.

  I have been sewing from a very early age. I was lucky enough to have been taught sewing at primary school and that is where my love started.  My mum taught me how to use a sewing machine, it was an old Singer machine with a treadle that you pushed to power it. I made my first skirt when I started high school and was making winter coats by the time I left.

I worked in the fashion industry for many years and became very disillusioned by the rise of fast fashion and the move to cheap labour abroad, where standards for the workers were extremely poor and still are in many places.  This has come to light in more recent years.

I knew that starting my own brand meant that I could set my own standards and choose how I wanted to work.  I draw inspiration from my local environment, history, vintage designs and a love of structure. I chose to use  premium fabrics from trusted sources, where they are made often by hand or in small batches. My fabrics are all natural materials and are dyed with GOTS dyes or they are Oeko-Tex 100 certified.   

Withnell aims to inspire individuals to thoughtfully embrace natural materials and curate their own stories. Offering items that encourage you to build a sustainable forever wardrobe of elevated yet practical pieces that are a joy to the senses. 

 Vision

As an enthusiast of heritage, I gather moments and concepts from an era that cherished handcrafted skills, reinterpreting them for contemporary life. My  aim is  to foster an  awareness of our collective responsibilities towards one another and the environment. 

My emphasis is high-quality construction techniques and timeless designs, ensuring my pieces become lasting staples in your wardrobe. The pricing reflects my commitment to handmade practices, premium materials, and sustainable production methods.

 Style

Withnell embodies simplicity, charm, and timelessness. Each piece is effortless  instilling a feeling of ease and comfort. The designs beautifully blend traditional techniques with quiet details that you may not appreciate until after you buy.

 Approach

Every piece in the collection is crafted on-demand in my garden studio located in northern England, with meticulous attention to detail.

The creation process for each garment includes original designs, hand cut patterns, stitching, steaming, labelling, packaging, and shipping to each customer. This  small-scale production model and made-to-order philosophy enables Withnell to minimise waste of resources and fabrics as much as possible.

Conscience

I am  committed to working with slow processes. Focusing on crafting essential, timeless pieces that exemplify excellent cut and enduring style.  Orders take between 2-3 weeks to complete and in busier times this may be longer. 

Withnell is aligned with the mindful, slow-fashion movement the process of making is just as  important as the finished product. Every part of a Withnell garment is future proofed. It starts it journey with your choice to purchase a piece that has been made just for you. This is not a new concept our great grand parents and ancestors bought from dress makers and tailors. They appreciated the making process and chose wisely making garments last or indeed returned to the seamstress or tailor to remake something out of the precious cloth and resources. 
Each Withnell piece has your name embroidered on a bespoke ribbon in the hope that you will build a personal connection with your garment because garments we love are garments we keep.

We source all our natural resources from UK fabric houses and  merchants.   When you choose Withnell you are supporting local and often heritage makers, many of which are still family-owned businesses. From design to production and packaging, every aspect is thoughtfully considered and sourced within the UK. Not everything is made in the UK as unfortunately time and cheap imports ravaged many local manufacturers who adapted by becoming merchants.  We prefer to spend our money in the UK keeping our heritage alive. 

I take my design responsibilities seriously, aiming not only to produce beautiful products but also to foster a greater awareness of our collective responsibility to one another and the planet.

Process 

All our garment  pattern is meticulously drafted and graded by Paula. Each garment is hand cut  and assembled using traditional sewing machines, a skillful eye, and a steady hand. Often the fabric is laundered to pre-shrink it prior to being cut. The dressmaking process culminates in hand pressing, folding, and wrapping each Withnell order before delivering it  on foot to our local post office, where it embarks on its journey to our wonderful customers.