Barnfield Customs

Sunday sketching in good company.

Whether it’s the Slingsby, the Anson or the Hampden, these three designs honour the ingenuity and spirit of the early years of flight.

Slingsby Aviation was a British aircraft manufacturer. The company was founded in Scarborough by Frederick Slingsby.

An RAF pilot in World War I, he bought a partnership in a woodworking and furniture factory in 1920 before building his first aircraft on 1931. The company became part of the Vickers Group in 1969 after a fire at the factory forced the company into liquidation.

After a number of name and ownership changes and in more recent years, Marshall Slingsby Advanced Composites won the Aerospace Company of the Year.

This is the Slingsby cardigan. 100% merino wool. Designed and hand linked in England in one of just a handful of factories in the country still actively working to traditional techniques.

I’m building Barnfield one piece at a time. Nothing leaves the studio until it’s perfected. Rather than split our attention trying to launch a complete clothing line all at once, I don’t start a new design until each one is dialled in.

Working this way slows everything down, but it protects the standard. Nothing gets rushed out to hit a season or fill a gap. Every line, every material choice, every function of every garment has to justify its place.

It’s a slow and deliberate approach, with respect for the skills that shaped this country’s reputation. It costs momentum, but the point isn’t speed.

The point is to make the best possible clothing we can and to do it here, in England.

Mark Warman
Founder

Knitwear defined by experience, elevated by detail, recognised by those who know.

Exceptional design earns its place, not by adding more details but by removing them.

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, we will remember them.

The city softens in the evening light.