Marling & Evans

English flannel and wool in the sheep's own colours

Marling & Evans traces its cloth to the late eighteenth century and the Stroud valleys of Gloucestershire, once the heart of English broadcloth. The Marling family were among the valley's great clothiers. Samuel and Thomas Marling bought Ebley Mill in 1840, and at the Great Exhibition of 1851 their black superfine cloth won a gold medal. The name itself dates from 1920, when Marling & Co joined with P.C. Evans & Sons of nearby Brimscombe.

The house has had to fight for its life. The Stroud mills closed in the 1980s, and the name later moved north to Upper Mills at Slaithwaite, outside Huddersfield, where the River Colne runs around both sides of the buildings. It is a small, specialist weaver and works with close neighbours: the yarn is spun by Z Hinchliffe at Denby Dale and the cloth is finished by W T Johnson in Huddersfield, so the spinning, weaving and finishing all happen in one corner of West Yorkshire.

Marling & Evans is best known for undyed wool. It weaves fleece from British sheep, Shetland, Jacob and Welsh Black among them, in the colours the sheep grew, and much of the range never meets a dye at all. By the house's own account it uses only British wools, dyes and natural finishes, with no chemical additives, so no two bolts are quite alike. Alongside the undyed cloth it weaves flannel, lambswool and a covert twill.

We like Marling & Evans for texture that reads across a room. The cloth has a dry, matte face and real body. It cuts cleanly and holds a lapel line, and with wear it softens rather than tires. Our Haddington Black Jacket is cut from it: double-breasted, fully unlined and made to measure. At your fitting, ask for the Marling & Evans cloth and feel the weight of it in the hand.