News that we are coming towards the end of the current run of blankets, cushions and scarves in our Welsh blanket pattern, designed by Caroline and made exclusively for us by the fabled mill of Melin Tregwynt.

First this week, news that we are coming towards the end of the current run of blankets, cushions and scarves in our Welsh blanket pattern, designed by Caroline and made exclusively for us by the fabled mill of Melin Tregwynt. We will not be repeating this pattern but will launch a new one later in the year. More of which below.

Melwyn Tregwynt has been owned and run by the Griffiths family since 1912, and still operates from a whitewashed mill near Haverfordwest in West Wales. You should visit them if you ever find yourself near the Welsh coast.

Welsh blankets have a long and fascinating history and have been made, in remarkably unchanging ways, for nearly 1000 years. The heyday for Welsh weaving was the 18^th and 19^th century, but the industry lost out to the English powerhouse cities as the Industrial Revolution gained pace.

Originally given as wedding presents, there is now huge interest in – and demand for- vintage blankets. I can’t quite put my finger on why, but these iconic throws have never really been out of fashion. I suppose it’s something to do with their storied patterns, unusual colour combinations and, of course, the fact that they are so well made that they are, truly, heirloom pieces. I was so pleased to see that Luke Edward Hall has used these patterns in a recent hotel project in Switzerland. This can only boost demand further.

Anyway, we have a few of each piece left here. This design has been the biggest-selling item in our inaugural 14 months.

Interestingly (well to me at least) our second biggest seller, by volume, has been our own honey, which is exceptional and which we have worked hard to keep in stock.

Next up are our jumpers of course.

Go Wales! Go Scotland! Go beauty, craft and provenance!

Second, today, we are now planning Phase 2 of G / H. The first year or so has been enormously encouraging and we have sold many more products than I imagined we would (though make no mistake, we are still tiny; it is all relative). A large number of those products are now reaching the end of their runs, and we have sold out of others.

We have new stuff arriving as I write but we’re going to wait for a little while to launch that as we take stock and move to Phase 2 of the project. We’ve learned a lot in the first phase of G / H. As I wrote recently, some of that has been good, some bad. We now have a clearer sense of what we need to do to make the company work. Here are some of those learnings.

We need to commit more time to the biz; it’s so annoying how bloody short every day is.

We need more, better, product, particularly when it comes to clothes.

We need to surround ourselves with more amazing people and stop trying to do it all ourselves.

We need to figure out how to reach more customers, by which I mean to physically show them what we have and, of course, to simply find people who like what we do and who want to buy from us.

And. Well, lots. But please watch this space as we’ll let you know as we make progress.

Incidentally, if you have skills that you think we might benefit from, or you know someone who does, please let me know by replying to this email. We need people with skill, creativity, and experience, and we need them to be brilliant. So, if you are truly brilliant, or you know someone who is, and you have time and energy, please do let me know. You never know (and by the way, I will also be honest with you so as not to waste anyone’s time who may not be a perfect fit).

See you next week.

C.