Alpacas and Shibumi! Our newest sustainable collection, made in Exmoor
We have been so eagerly awaiting this day, and it is finally here! It brings us so much joy to introduce to you our newest collection, in collaboration with the British Alpaca Fashion Company.
This amazing collection was born from our passion of creating beautiful, truly sustainable and ethical garments and this time we wanted to create something unique and a bit different from our usual Shibumi vibe.
The Shibumi Alpaca Collection consists of a simple yet versatile Dressing Gown Coat featuring a snuggly shawl collar and tie belt at the waist, that can be worn in so many ways and an amazingly thick and cosy shawl, created in four stunning colour-ways in our geometric, timeless design. All lovingly designed in our Gloucestershire studio and made from start to finish by the British Alpaca Fashion Company in Exmoor, England.
We have worked closely with the incredibly talented team at Weekfield Farm in Exmoor to make these beautiful pieces and we couldn’t have hoped for a better group of people (and alpacas!) to work with on this brilliant project.
How Are They Made?
To create this stunning collection we worked with Anila and David of the British Alpaca Company on their farm in the heart of the Exmoor countryside. The whole ethos of their business is rooted in their pure love for their Alpacas, and the welfare of the animals comes above and beyond anything else. Their farm is completely free of pesticides and is an organic, cruelty free environment.
This is something that was really important to us when deciding to create this collection, we wanted to produce the most ethical and sustainable product possible and the team at Weekfield farm made this dream come true whilst bringing to life our design in the most gorgeous fabric with truly impeccable quality.
We have created this small collection in the most environmentally friendly way possible, including doing very small runs of just 30 pieces for the coats and 50 pieces for the shawls… small batch production is so much better for sustainability and means you’re receiving something really special that’s been created by a talented team of real humans… we all do a happy dance when we create something wonderful like this!
The alpaca only have their coats sheared once a year which is needed anyway for temperature regulation; every single fleece is used, they have a no-waste policy and the different fleeces are used for different things. The animals live in a natural herd setting roaming the land, being brought into their large barns for safety at night and in very bad weather. These alpacas are left to be as wild as possible, they are not halter trained or forced to pose for photos…which made our photo shoot with them even more magical as they seemed to want to take part!
Shibumi’s Alpaca Collection
-Dressing Gown Coat-
And so, without further ado we bring you our amazing Alpaca Collection!
We took inspiration for this pattern from the Ikat motif of Indian fabric design, the colours of the British countryside and geometric pattern design of Native American and Aztec cultures. A real amalgamation of our favourite things, which we hope you’ll agree has culminated in a timeless, versatile design that can be worn by everyone!
Alpaca Dressing Gown Coat in Earth
This stunning colour way is inspired by all things nature, beautiful bright red for the clay in the earth, and the turning of the Autumn leaves, with accents of navy on a stunning warm brown base. The bases of all these fabrics are un-dyed, gaining their individual colours from the different colour alpacas.
Alpaca Dressing Gown Coat in Highland
Highland reminds us of Scottish tartan colours, the beautiful ochre colour of highland cattle and the soft colours of the Scottish landscape. This colour way really does suit everyone and looks equally as striking worn with blue jeans as it does with black leggings and boots.
Alpaca Dressing Gown Coat in Oak
This beautiful green and ochre yellow colour way is inspired by the mighty oak tree, you will feel just as magnificent when you wear it; with these stunning earthy colours that evoke a sense of peace and being grounded in nature.
Alpaca Dressing Gown Coat in Eagle
Fly high with our Alpaca Dressing Gown in Eagle; a beautiful combination of aqua blue and dark brown. These colours ignite visions of swooping over wild rivers on the wings of an eagle, feeling free as a bird!
This colour is stunning to wear with jeans or around the house and the aqua colour brings a slightly more ‘summery’ feel meaning this coat can be worn in any season.
Alpaca Shawl in Earth
These shawls are truly stunning! Big enough to wear as a wrap, you could even wear a belt with it to create a whole new look. Wear with your favourite Winter coat as a scarf, or pair with one of our Alpaca Dressing Gown Coats for the ultimate cosy lounge-wear outfit!
Alpaca Shawl in Highland
Alpaca Shawl in Oak
Alpaca Shawl in Eagle
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We really hope you love this new Alpaca Collection as much as we do, and can see that we have poured our hearts and souls into creating these stunning, wearable pieces that will last a lifetime and be kind to the environment in the process.
This collection is a true reflection of the core values of Shibumi, and we sincerely wish that you’ll feel shrouded in that love and positive energy when you wear one of these pieces.
The make fabulous gifts, perfect for the Christmas season, and all come beautifully presented in their own Shibumi branded dust bag.
