The Make It with Wool competition (MIWW) recognizes excellence and innovation in wool garment design and construction. Every year, sewers compete in age groups and in special award categories, and the state winners advance to the national judging round in January. As a change from previous years, during this year’s National MIWW competition some category awards were given to both junior (ages 13 to 16) and senior (ages 17 to 24) winners. 

Garments must be made from fashion fabrics or yarns containing at least 60 percent wool fibers. Judges consider each entry’s appropriateness to the contestant’s lifestyle, the coordination of fabrics and yarns with the garment’s style and design, as well as the presentation, construction quality, and creativity. Sponsors include: the American Wool Council/American Sheep Industry Association; the American Sheep Industry Women; Harper Livestock Company of Eaton, Colorado; Pendleton Woolen Mills; Brother International; Wild Ginger Software, Inc.; and many others.

Threads highlights National MIWW winners each year to recognize their hard work and skill, and find inspiration in their stunning garments. Here are the nine individuals who received awards in the January 2015 national judging round. 

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Fashion/Apparel Design Winner

Kristen Morris
Columbia, Missouri

Kristen is a doctoral candidate in the Fiber Science and Apparel Design department at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. This year was her first time competing in MIWW. Her winning design is an extension of her academic research into the concepts of materials reuse and waste diversion. The dense coat, dubbed “Cilia” for its resemblance to the fingerlike organelles found in human cells, features strips of thick wool felt tabs she purchased as industrial waste from an industrial filter and floor-protector manufacturer. The 2-inch-long tabs create a spiky look but have a spongy texture. 

Kristen adapted a men’s suit-jacket block for her coat design. She machine-stitched…