The cold is upon us, even as the season is already preparing for the new spring/summer arrivals. Yet, there are clothing items which are perfect for when the temperatures of the winter months sink very low, in stark contrast to their onset, when summer lingered on and temperatures hit unlikely highs of more than 20 degrees in October and November.

Nigel Preston‘s charming sheepskins deserve more than a footnote at the end of winter. In fact, until about ten years ago, people seeking exclusive cuts in leather garments and the finest materials, found Maxfield Parrish of London to be the so-called benchmark, or touchstone of top quality.

The designers of that collection were Nigel Preston and Brenda Knight. Now the collection bears Nigel’s name, but everything else has kept the same attitude towards excellence and that typical, unchanged and discreet “British” charm, tied to tradition, but attentive to changing tastes.

This is an alternative form of outerwear to wraps and down-filled jackets, but no one, until they touch them, can imagine they only weigh as much as a sweater or that their texture is as soft as cashmere.

In addition to unparalleled textile properties, with such expressive edge-to-edge cuts, Nigel Preston seems to be steering the world towards its ancient cultures, wise guardians of the influences and requirements set by the icy cold, around which impressions and experiences intersect landscapes, courtship and cosmic beauty.