After a three-hour drive from London, through rolling countryside and past Stonehenge, we arrived at the Owen Barry factory in Somerset, on the hottest day of the year no less. Questionable time to be in a room full of heavy shearling, but we weren’t complaining.

Shearling is a seasonal trade, so summer is when the makers here are at their busiest, getting everything ready for the colder months. This season marks our first collaboration with them, and it’s been a real pleasure working with a team whose skills have been handed down through generations.

Leather has been in the Barry family for well over a century, starting as a tannery in Wiltshire, back in the late 1800s. Their grandson Owen then took things a step further in 1948, setting up a business of his own to make the finished goods. Ken, who brought us in, has been spreading their good word for decades.

You get a sense of that history as soon as you walk through the office. The walls are laden with old images of the workshops, the tannery, and the staff, proudly presenting black-and-white photos of men in flat caps and the founder's World War II military photos. The workshop beyond is busy and unfussy. Reels of thread, a radio on the shelf, a teddy bear keeping watch, and a handwritten sign by the bench reminding everyone that the irons are “HOT”.

For this season we worked together on two pieces: the Dabinett Jacket, a cropped shearling bomber with a funnel neck, and a pair of reversible mittens that fold back into fingerless gloves when you need your hands free.

Both are made from Merino Napalan, one of the softest skins Owen Barry work with. It starts life as a Merino sheepskin, prized for its fine, dense wool that’s warm without being heavy. Where a lot of shearling has a suede outer, Napalan is given a smooth finish on the leather side, closer to the feel of a nappa leather. That finish makes it remarkably practical. It’s less likely to pick up stains than suede and far better at handling a bit of weather.

No fuss, just good people doing good work.

Shop the Dabinett Jacket in Cider and Black, and the Mittens in Black.