The SpeakEASY
No riddles. The world is complicated enough.
But there are phrases that are our go-to, words that we work with, and sayings that speak volumes about what we stand for.
If you want to talk our talk, scroll down as we flex our lex(icon).
HEIRitage
Heritage comes from the the Old French iritage or eritage, and links to inheriting, heirs and heirlooms. Yet brands use it in place of tradition or the past to describe objects or clothing inspired by years gone by. But a polyester take on a fair isle knit that’s not going to wash or wear well and that is highly unlikely to be passed down is by no means worthy of a heritage description.
And so begins our mission to reclaim the word and make it our own by drawing out the HEIR and spelling it our own way.
Sure, many of our knits are throwbacks to the past with stitches as old as time, but they’re woven with a glance to the past and otherwise eyes firmly on the future because they’re designed to be held onto and passed along.
"Once you discover the excellent knitwear by this sustainable brand you won't want any other."
Kate Finnigan, Journalist & Contributing Editor, FT How to Spend it
of colour that pepper our collection. Navy and grey might dominate, unsurprisingly, but the pops come and they go. Keep an eye out. You can’t miss them. The Mainstays: do you like that as a phrase for core and the partner phrase to The Pops?
of colour that pepper our collection. Navy and grey might dominate, unsurprisingly, but the pops come and they go. Keep an eye out. You can’t miss them. The Mainstays: do you like that as a phrase for core and the partner phrase to The Pops?
Navygrey started with a jumper. The funny thing is – the favourite jumper wasn’t even mine. It was my mum’s. A navy lambswool with a round neck. A classic.
I spent 20 years trying to find a jumper that felt that good, and it’s what inspired me to create a brand that captured all it stood for: a soft natural wool yarn, beautiful stitching, simple yet modern shaping, a dependable colour palette and an ability to make me feel comfortable, confident and even a bit creative because I could style it in a hundred different ways without really thinking about it.
Being someone whose general life uniform is a pair of jeans and a jumper, I found myself endlessly frustrated how hard it was to find knits like that one my mum and I treasured. They all fell short somewhere – their sustainability credentials, their comfort, their longevity. I genuinely searched for twenty years and eventually thought, I’m going to do this myself. So I set about making my own and I called it Navygrey – the two colours that provide firm foundations and easy effortlessness in our wardrobes.
I remember when Anna Murphy at The Times wrote about us as ‘that sweet spot between softness and edge.’
That’s exactly what I hope we are. And more.
Rachel x
Our first-ever knit and the reinterpretation of the original jumper that inspired Navygrey.
The RELAXED set in motion our core making principles
To work with experts with a lifetime's experience. To use the finest natural, sustainably-sourced materials - 100% Scottish-spun lambswool in this case - that always feel good. To champion traceability, transparency and craftsmanship.
Many many many jumpers and cardigans later, premium knitwear will always be our hero.
And as we evolve, introducing new fibres, materials and silhouettes, at the heart will always be how these pieces make you feel.
Because when you find pieces that feel really good, something that you can really wear like a second skin, that are made with the best of ingredients, that you always look forward to wearing and which you know you can rely on time and time again to make you look good and feel greater still, you know you’ve found more than a garment.
You’ve got gold dust.
