William Bliss
1 minute read
Written by Murray Crane
Late last year, during a visit to Fox Brothers in Somerset, I spent time exploring the mill archives. Among the shelves of historic pattern books was the name William Bliss, one of Britain's great nineteenth-century tweed makers.
Founded in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, William Bliss became renowned for producing robust country tweeds designed for life outdoors. In 1920 the business was acquired by Fox Brothers, preserving an archive of distinctive sporting checks, overchecks and estate tweeds that remain remarkably relevant today.
Recently we received the latest William Bliss Cotswold Country Tweeds bunch book. Drawn from the company's historic archive, the collection captures everything we admire about traditional British cloth: depth of colour, characterful patterns and fabrics designed to improve with age.
What is striking is how contemporary many of these designs still feel. The scale of the checks, the subtle use of colour and the understated nature of the patterns sit as comfortably today as they would have a century ago.
The revival of William Bliss is a reminder that good cloth, much like good tailoring, rarely goes out of fashion.
