Planning a Wool-Focused Trip to New Zealand

The early stages of a slow and purposeful journey

In September I’ll be heading to New Zealand — a place close to my heart, and the home of the beautiful wool I work with every winter here in Japan. Once again I’m setting out with a purpose: to meet with suppliers, visit farms and mills, and deepen the connections behind the wool pieces we bring to warm you up at North South Stewart.

I thought I’d share a bit of how I’m going about planning this trip — not as a polished itinerary (yet!), but more as a behind-the-scenes look at how a slow, meaningful journey takes shape.

Starting with relationships

At the centre of this trip is a meeting with Hilary, my sales rep at Manawatu Knitting Mills, in Palmerston North. We’ve worked together for several years, but this will be just our second time meeting face-to-face. We had a very inspiring visit last year but the factory was closed on a Sunday (when I was there) so this time it's a weekday visit with the new season items hopefully coming off the machines. It’s important to me to put real people behind the names and emails — to see the knitwear being made and to share ideas in person.

Google Maps, rural directories, and a lot of clicking

From there, I’ve been doing what many of us do — following links from Instagram posts, opening local tourism websites, zooming in and out on Google Maps. It’s surprising how much you can find this way: a tiny wool museum in Masterton, a rural sheep station offering farm tours, a scouring facility tucked in a Napier suburb.

It’s a different kind of travel planning. Less about sightseeing, more about curiosity and connection. I’m looking for places that feel genuine — where wool is part of the landscape and the rhythm of daily life.

Places I’m hoping to visit

So far the shortlist includes:

• Romney Lane Homestead — a farm near Feilding with a strong focus on sustainable practices and heritage breeds. I just heard back! We're on! This is very exciting.
• The Wool Shed in Masterton — a national museum of shearing and wool handling. It's kind of in the opposite direction to where I'll mainly be so we will see. 
• New Zealand Natural Clothing  — an amazing wool clothing shop in the very small town of Norsewood.
  

Seeing family

I’ll be staying with my Auntie Bea when I land in Napier (she's the best), and visiting some of my other aunties too. I was born in Hawke's Bay but my family moved to Auckland when I was about a year old. Most years we visited at least once for Christmas or during the school holidays.

With any trip there’s a temptation to pack the schedule full — but I want time for conversations, coffee and cake, and maybe a quiet hilltop or two. Have you heard of Te Mata Peak? Gorgeous!

Also, my auntie Bea is a knitter so I hope she will be able to give me a few pointers before our Wool & Wonder Gatherings Knitting Circle meets in October. Have you signed up?

What’s next

I’ll share more as the trip takes shape — and eventually, as the wool finds its way from the farms and mills into our next collection.

For now, this is the beginning. A bit messy, a bit intuitive, and hopefully the start of something meaningful.