Bramble & Fleece

Bramble & Fleece is made by Laxtons, a family-run spinning mill in Baildon, West Yorkshire, which has been spinning yarn since 1907 and is now run by the fourth generation of the family. Laxtons launched Bramble & Fleece as its own hand-knitting brand in recent years, having spent most of its history spinning for other people. The same mill spins The Orry Mill's own Orry Yarn to our specification, so we know the quality first hand. Everything in the Bramble & Fleece range is spun, dyed and finished in Yorkshire from British and responsibly sourced fibre.

Sheepsoft is the everyday range: British Bluefaced Leicester blended with hardier Masham, with the Masham left in its natural shades so every colour carries a soft heathered depth rather than a flat solid dye. It comes in 4 Ply, DK, Aran and a chunky chainette called Fibreknit. Wooltrace is the traceable range — single-breed yarn with a QR code on the ball band that takes you back to the farm the fleece came from, with guaranteed fair payment and welfare standards for the flock. The 4 Ply is 100% Bluefaced Leicester and the DK is 100% British Romney. Origin is twelve undyed, unbleached bases across six breeds, made for hand-dyers and for anyone who would rather knit a breed than a colour.

Under fifty miles. British fleece arrives at the wool depot in Bradford, travels two miles to be scoured, fifteen miles to Huddersfield to be dyed, and twenty miles back to Baildon to be spun and finished. Keeping every stage inside West Yorkshire is what lets the brand trace its supply chain properly, and it keeps the carbon footprint of the yarn low compared with wool that is shipped abroad for scouring or spinning and back again. It also means the money stays with British farmers and British mill workers.

Yes — there are 24 Bramble & Fleece knitting patterns, all £5 as instant PDF downloads, and every one is written for a specific yarn in the range. They run from beginner accessories like hats, snoods, bandanas and scarves through to slipovers, tanks, ponchos, cardigans and full sweaters. Each pattern page on our site links straight to the yarn it was designed for along with the quantity you need, so you can add pattern and yarn to the basket together. Tension, needle sizes, yardage and substitution notes for every base in the range are set out in our Bramble & Fleece pattern information guide.