Wool Week 2020 - Student Design Competition 

We took part in The Campaign for Wool’s design competition working with students from Plymouth College of Art. The brief was for the students to design a knitwear piece that we could produce and sell as part of our collection this Autumn. We are excited to announce that the winner is Courtney Davies, who designed a beautiful Geelong jumper, which is now available for customers to buy and will be on display at the Campaign for Wool 10 year celebration event.

We caught up with Courtney to find out what inspired her design for our latest Geelong jumper.

Could you tell us a little bit of information about yourself? Where you are from, your interests and passions?

I am from South Wales, in a little town called Bridgend which is just in between Cardiff and Swansea. I am a very creative person so in my spare time I like to work on projects. I am currently working on a small scrunchie business which involves designing, making and selling them.

What got you in to fashion design?

I have always wanted to study fashion since I was a little girl. I am very much into my clothes, and anyone who knows me would be able to tell you I have too many. I love designing and creating new garments to fit people’s style choices.

How did you hear about the Wool Week competition?

I heard about the competition from my lecturer. She explained the brief to me, and as I was currently working on a wool project myself at the time, I thought this would be great to enter.

What inspired your design for the jumper?

I wanted to create something that would suit anyone. I looked at current trends and looked on the Celtic & Co. website to see what I found inspiring. As it was a commercial design brief I didn’t want to make it too complicated, and I wanted to think what people would wear.

Could you tell us about the process you went through to design the jumper?

I was provided with videos from the brief explaining the process it takes to make a jumper. I watched these over and over until I understood the process. This then led me to looking at previous designs made by the brand. I created moodboards with my inspiration which then led me to my designs. I handed in more than one design for this competition and my ideas kept flowing and I couldn’t choose which I preferred.

Your jumper design has been selected to be produced exclusively for Wool Week, and a limited edition run of 100 units will be available to buy online - How do you feel about this?

I think this is such an overwhelmingly great experience for me, and having graduated university now this is a really good kick start to my career and will look fantastic when I go for future job interviews. I feel very grateful that my design has been chosen and I am loving being a part of the experience of manufacturing it. 

“There are so many talented designers in our universities. We have been very happy to work with Courtney together on this project. Her vision for our jumper fitted perfectly to our brand, style, and ethos. Wool is such a versatile material and importantly Courtney’s design is both commercial and sustainable.” - Kath Whitworth, Founder, Celtic & Co.