Finer micron wools are playing a pivotal role in women’s wear as consumers are seeking more environmentally acceptable solutions each season. Women are seeking sustainable solutions to both formal and informal dressing. The worsted wool industry lost considerable business in the 1980s when tailored women’s wear opted for synthetic fibers. However, runways, catwalks and fashion commentators in Paris, Milan, London and New York are witnessing strong evidence of wool’s rapid autumnal return to quality women’s wear.

Wool lost its market to women’s wear some 30 years ago. Initially, the woolen look was dismissed as chunky, tweedy and coarse. But now the woolen look is seen as easily lending itself to the trend for layering with sweaters, stoles, scarves and capes . A more refined tailored look is now a key trend for this autumn and drape is an essential element in the new look.

Several leading couture houses in Paris are sampling fine worsted qualities traditionally associated with men’s wear for their women’s wear collections. With the ongoing global uncertainty, it is impossible to predict the future direction of the wool market, but in recent months it has held up well, in part due to solid demand.