Smookie

Traditional Fair Isle jumpers and contemporary knitwear

A hybrid of two classic garments, my Shetland Smookie is a descendant of both the fisherman’s smock and the Fair Isle jumper.

I love the practical canvas or sacking smocks that generations of fishermen have worn when working on boats around Shetland (and other coasts!). I wondered if that familiar shape could be translated into knit…and the smookie is the result. Along with the stand-up neck (in birdseye stitch), I added a stripey storm cuff with contrast colour.

Storm cuffs with contrast colour: a Nielanell introduction to the Fair Isle tradition.

My smookies come in an ever-changing (and at times eye-popping) range of small edition colours, and the gentle trapeze shape makes the all-over pattern easy to wear. The pattern itself has a Fair Isle or Nordic feel to it—a classic design.

Made in Hoswick, just a few buildings away from the Nielanell studio, these jumpers are an ultra-local production and have become such a favourite with our customers.