A Visit to Bottoli Mill

The central point of our trip to the Dolomites – a visit to Lanificio Bottoli, the “last of its kind” weaving mill in northeastern Italy.

"Not so long ago, there were five producers like us in Vittorio Veneto alone; today, we’re the only ones left," were the words with which Ettore, a representative of the youngest generation managing the family business, greeted us. His statement carried both pride and melancholy. It’s no surprise - like in Donegal, the story of individual success often runs parallel to the decline of the local wool industry. Those who survived the crisis are the ones that adapted best to new realities - luckily for us, not necessarily the largest but often the most original.

The slogan "last of its kind" refers to Bottoli being not just a fabric producer but spinners and weavers, with both operations taking place in one factory. In other words, it’s a place where raw wool arrives, and finished fabrics, blankets, and scarves leave. Such factories are increasingly rare - apart from major players, like Loro Piana, whose vertical integration is driven by sheer scale, most mills today buy ready-made yarns, which reduces control over the process and limits textile experimentation.

  

For the Bottoli family, the key lay in the strategy initiated over two decades ago by Ettore’s father, Roberto. He focused on ecological practices, undyed wools, and organic, plant-based dyes. Believing in sustainable production methods, Roberto emphasized specialization instead of producing every possible fabric type and competing on price with major players.

Interestingly, Roberto also runs a small vineyard, where he avoids “mass-market” practices, cultivating organically with natural fertilizers and a limited range of protective measures. A coherent set of ideals, one might say!

As Ettore noted, the shift toward ecological production at the turn of the millennium was not a revolution but a natural evolution - rooted in respect for five generations of family heritage dating back to 1861. One could say that the year that the business has been established is symbolic, as it coincides with the unification of Italy under King Vittorio Emanuele, the person after which the town of Vittorio Veneto was named after!

For those of you, fellow Central- and Eastern-Europeans, who might be tempted to say, “Well, in Italy, it’s easier, without 50 years of communism a company like this could easily thrive for 150 years,” it’s worth noting that this region has seen its share of hardship. During World War I, the famous Battle of Vittorio Veneto took place nearby, and in World War II, the neighboring city of Treviso was heavily bombed. The family had to save the factory from being looted during both wars - in 1918 and 1945, as some attempts to seize all the machinery had been made.

Fortunately, the business survived wartime chaos, lean years, and periods of weaker prosperity. Among the more recent challenges were the pandemic years - Italy suffered greatly during this time, with a high death toll and extended lockdowns. At the height of the pandemic, the Bottoli family even had to negotiate operating conditions with local authorities.

Japanese clients played a significant role in navigating this difficult period. Ettore recalled how they placed regular orders - even smaller ones - to support the business, while many European producers withdrew entirely.

Today, the problem is not a lack of orders (business is thriving!) but a shortage of workers. Much like in Ireland, the sentiment here is that “young people just don’t want to work.” Despite decent wages, factory work holds little prestige in a region dominated by wine and tourism. Most of the current workforce consists of seasoned professionals with years of experience, and recruiting new employees is challenging. While things are stable now, the future is uncertain. We’re rooting for them because there’s much to admire!

Returning to the fabrics themselves - if you’ve seen our jackets (the checked one and the tweed one) or our herringbone beige coat, all bearing the Bottoli label, you already have an idea of their distinctive offerings.

Bottoli’s designs have always stood out among local competitors. They’ve been described as “British Italian” - British in appearance but with a distinctively Italian hand: softer, lighter, and more delicate to the touch. For Ettore, this is both a compliment and a guiding principle.

The weaving mill is known, among other things, for its Knickerbocker Tweed, commonly called "Italian Donegal," due to the characteristic multicolored flecks all over the surface - here known as the Bottonato effect.

Interestingly, it’s made a little differently than in Ireland - not just in terms of weight and finish, but also in the fundamental issue of preparing the warp and weft. The base here is always the same: black yarn with a high proportion of multicolored, felted fibers - mind that Bottoli does not spin Donegal-type yarns in other colors - but then, during the weaving process, it is intertwined with plain yarn in the final color of the fabric.

In fact, the second yarn, even though it lacks the characteristic “flecks,” is still not entirely plain… but for simplicity, let’s just call it solid-colored. At Lanificio Bottoli, almost every yarn is made from fibers in different shades, which give it a melange effect. Ettore explained that this is part of their style, and for each color, they have specific proportions and a repeatable recipe.

  

  

The machine that mixes the fibers before spinning was constructed by his grandfather - this is both charming and somewhat problematic, because as we learned, any breakdown requires studying the original, hand-drawn diagram and figuring out what the grandfather had in mind. It’s a machine that’s difficult to service… but irreplaceable, also for sentimental reasons.

  

What happens inside the machine is almost a magical spectacle. Wool fibers swirl in the air like down, and the gusts of air are capable of mixing the different colored fibers evenly, which were carefully selected beforehand. Afterwards, the mixture is sent to the spinning machine, where it is transformed into yarn of the required weight.

  

Before we tell you about the next stage in the process of creating fabrics, we need to take a brief detour to the warehouse – a hall full of wool, to put it metaphorically.

Most of the raw material processed at Lanificio Bottoli doesn’t come from the Veneto region – as Ettore pointed out, the wool from northern Italy is too coarse for them; they prefer to use wool from the central parts of the country. In addition, they source wool and cashmere from all over the world – the right material for the right blend, according to current needs. The stock is kept on-site. The towering shelves, from floor to ceiling, packed with bundles of wool, look impressive!

  

It’s worth mentioning that when it comes to undyed wool, it actually comes in four natural colors – cream, beige, brown, and “black,” which is actually a very dark brown. In nature, there is also a fifth shade, gray, but it is too rare for Bottoli to use it on its own – if such wool appears, it is treated as a blend with other colors.

  

Other colors are a matter of dyeing – Bottoli mainly uses plant-based dyes, usually ecological, not only in terms of environmental safety but also circular economy.

  

They use such unusual methods as dyeing… with coffee. Specifically, with coffee grounds – every Monday, a shipment arrives at the weaving factory from bars and cafés, organized by a friendly Venetian coffee roastery. Interestingly, only wool with added silk is treated this way, as it supposedly gives the best results. Of course, the technological process and the know-how behind it is a closely guarded secret of the family.

We don’t want to reveal too much, but we can already tell you that we’re preparing a certain coffee-dyed novelty for early spring…

Although the title suggest we should be talking about a “weaving mill,” so far we’ve mainly been talking about the activities of the spinning part of the business - and not without reason! Along the way, we were told several times that the uniqueness of the fabrics made here lies in the yarn. In addition to the aforementioned control over the process, it is important to note that by producing for their own needs, Bottoli not only safeguards uniqueness – after all, no one has access to the same yarn! – but also offers a more favorable price-to-quality ratio.

  

Also, after our visit to Donegal and that report, you already know quite a bit about weaving secrets – I think we can skip a detailed discussion of the individual machines, as looms work in pretty much the same way… however, we noted a few things that we thought were worth mentioning and carefully recorded any differences we noticed.

We took the liberty of asking Ettore whether he agrees with the thesis that plain weave (a weave where a single thread of the weft crosses a single thread of the warp at a right angle) is the most difficult to weave.

The answer we received can be summed up as “yes, but” - it’s true, he admitted, that all mistakes and imperfections are visible on it, which is why it requires great precision, but due to the nature of their offerings, they have much more demanding fabrics in their collection.

For example, take the checkered fabric in the picture – it consists of as many as 15 (!) different yarns.

 

In fact, almost every patterned fabric made by Lanificio Bottoli consists of more different yarns than one might initially think – often, a strong accent, such as red or blue, is not one color, but two or three different shades, crossing each other to create more depth.

  

Another novelty for us was the fabric finishing process – and specifically, how much more advanced it is compared to the traditional process we saw in Ireland.

Before washing, almost every wool fabric is stiff and rough – it is the way it is treated with water that determines how soft it will be in the end. Here, they do it Italian style – they soften it strongly and intensively. In fact, they even have a special machine, the “tumbler,” which not only immerses the fabric in water but also breaks it down by spinning – apparently, if you leave the fabric inside for 10 minutes, you can completely destroy it; just a few minutes is enough to slightly break and lift the fibers to the surface, giving it a pleasant finish.

Traditionally, water from the local river, the Meschio (actually more of a stream), was used in the process – but today, Bottoli uses water from their own deep well, which allows them to maintain full production even during increasingly frequent droughts. All the used water passes through the internal biological sewage treatment plant and then returns to the natural cycle.

By the way, there’s an interesting story related to this tank – as you may know (or not), biological treatment plants are “run” by microorganisms. In order for these to live and function properly, they need a supply of sewage – without it, the biological balance will be disturbed. This was one of the bargaining chips during discussions with the local authorities about closing the factory during the pandemic; the weaving factory couldn’t afford to completely shut down production, as it would have led to additional losses!

Speaking of water and the Meschio river – the factory is connected to the old mill dating back to the 13th century, which was also powered by it. In the beautiful historic building, which once milled flour, baked bread, and even forged swords (in the late Middle Ages), today you’ll find a showroom, an event space, and the oldest part of the fabric archive, which spans from the beginnings of the weaving factory to the 1970s.

  

Ettore told us how he personally organized the archive several years ago, sitting down every Sunday for a few hours as part of a small ritual – although the weaving factory always gathered documentation and cataloged collections, there was no organized system for storing patterns before.

Now, it looks at least impressive. Enthusiasts like us (and many of you) could easily spend several hours here, not leaving for a moment, simply looking at the samples, each of which is more interesting than the last!

It’s clear that the “British Italian” style is indeed an old tradition – this Donegal Tweed-style sample book is from the 1930s!

Finally, we returned to the main building – by the way, this part of the factory is located on the grounds of an old military fort that the Bottoli family bought after the war – where Ettore showed us the rest of the archive and a no less impressive wall.

All of these fabric samples you see here (and this is just a part!) document the production for a given season – from every single order, from every fabric produced, a piece is cut off and hung here to show how diverse the collection is and how much work the team has done over the past few months.

Of course, we had to find our coat and both jackets among them. ;)

 

In addition to the office area, there is also a company store next to the weaving mill. It’s a bit old-fashioned, with a large selection of fabrics, blankets, and shawls. Ettore mentioned that despite the large number of tourists in the area, they intentionally do not want to modernize or promote it because they want to run it mainly for the locals, as part of tradition, keeping prices as low as possible. We respect that!

Finally, a group photo...

 

And we can continue our journey to the Dolomites, which you can already see looming on the horizon.

See you in the next episodes!

If you haven’t read the introduction to our series of reports from the Dolomites, you can catch up here.

The next two parts – a lookbook from Passo Giau and a report from the mountain expedition – will be published in the coming weeks. Follow our blog and subscribe to our newsletter!