Although our designs are usually inspired by Skye, we sometimes go a bit further afield. So for our latest range of scarves we’ve been travelling (metaphorically) over the sea to Orkney – and way back in time.

It all started with a trip to Edinburgh’s National Museum of Scotland a couple of years ago. Wandering around the Neolithic collections I was transfixed by a carved stone. It had incised patterns of zigzags and chevrons between sets of parallel lines. I immediately thought of weaving (it’s never far away from my mind!) and I visually filed it away for future reference.

This winter as I was playing around with some pointed twill on the sample loom, I realised that I had found the perfect weave structure for ‘my’ stone. Wanting to know more, I contacted the National Museum and their super-helpful Senior Curator, Dr Hugo Anderson-Whymark, filled me in. It turns out that the ‘Brodgar Stone’, as it is known, was found in the Ness of Brodgar on Orkney in 1925. At the time it was believed to be part of a Bronze Age burial cist, but since then archaeologists have found out that it is much older.

The Ness of Brodgar is in fact a major Neolithic settlement. The first activities there have now been dated back to more than 5000 years ago. Excavations at the site began in 2003 and are ongoing. It’s one of Europe’s most exciting archaeological sites and the deeper the archaeologists dig, the more complex the site turns out to be. There is evidence of human activity here over a period of at least 1200 years, and over 30 structures have now been uncovered. The spot where the Brodgar Stone was found turns out to be not a burial cist but a large stone building (‘Structure 8’), constructed c. 3000 BC.

The Brodgar Stone’s incised patterns are typical of late Neolithic rock art in Orkney, with straight lines, chevrons, zigzags and crosses. Over 900 stones with similar decorations have been found at the Ness of Brodgar site. The meaning of the symbols – if any – is unclear, but it’s understood that stones were often decorated in several stages over a long period. This made me think of graffiti being added to a wall over time and somehow made me feel closer to our ancestors.

I was also interested to learn that the Neolithic period was full of colour. We tend to think of the ancient past in monochrome but there is evidence at the Ness of Brodgar of the use of colours such as ochre and haematite, an iron oxide.

Back on the sample loom, I set about trying to translate the stone’s patterns into weave. I had great fun experimenting with different pointed twill variations that would work well on our 8 shaft loom. Pointed twill is a structure that creates diagonal lines in the same way as regular twill, but as the twill threading is reversed after a number of warp threads the weaver can create chevrons and zigzags.

The final weave, which we are using to create scarves, has five parallel lines of different geometric patterns running along its length. For colours we decided to have one ‘stone coloured’ and three other more colourful variations. While not aiming to copy the Brodgar Stone exactly I hope the pattern might evoke something of this magical and mysterious place.

If you’re interested in the fascinating developments at the Ness of Brodgar site you can follow their blog and find our more on their website. There’s a good little video too. Sadly I’ve not seen the Ness of Brodgar excavations myself as I visited Orkney just before the discoveries. There were still plenty of other ancient sites to explore there though; I loved the way the ancient stones and monuments sit among the living landscape. I very much hope to return before too long.

Meanwhile, the scarves have turned out beautifully and you can now buy your own bit of Neolithic neckwear in our online shop.

We talk a lot about the inspiration for our weaves and the creative design process behind them. But we wouldn’t get anywhere without the cogs, chains, wheels and winders that make everything happen. So we thought it’s time to let some of our technical challenges – and fixes – take centre stage.

When we started out we built some of our own equipment which was certainly a good way to know it inside-out. We’re especially proud of our warping wheel, which we made from an old tractor rake and various other bits and pieces. It’s still going strong.

When our equipment’s not hand-made it’s often got an interesting back story. Our creel was salvaged from an old spinners in Yorkshire (replacing our original hand-made one). We bought our first loom second-hand on Lewis; and our button-holer is a 50-year-old classic. (A Reece 101 for any button-holer fanatics out there!)

We’re always thinking about how we can improve. It was a big day when we upgraded our cone-winding system from a hand-held drill to a proper winding machine. And we have Roger’s cousin Phil to thank for devising a bespoke motor to take some of the back strain out of warping.

But most of our upgrades are small scale and somewhat improvised. Roger likes to say our attitude is like that of the British cycling team – going for the incremental improvements or ‘marginal gains’ that can together make a big difference. Well, it certainly worked for them.

People often ask us how much time we spend maintaining our equipment. We keep the chains oiled but otherwise there is surprisingly little day to day maintenance. But what does take time (and brainpower) is fixing the things that go wrong.

If you’re a weaver you’ll know how temperamental looms can be – whether at hand loom level or industrial scale. In a big mill you’d have someone called a loom tuner whose job it is to look after the equipment and fix problems. But here, it’s down to us.

Paul and I are pretty good at spotting and diagnosing a problem, but it’s Roger who is our real Mr Fixit. So I’ll hand over to him for this bit:

Roger says: “Often problems are quite hard to diagnose – especially when the weaving is going full tilt. So I often film it and slow it down to work out what’s going on. Often, the part we need doesn’t actually exist, so I have to create it myself.

“I spend a lot of time fiddling around in the workshop. I think it’s something I must have inherited from my Dad, who spent countless hours in the shed here and would never give up. Sadly he’s not with us any more but I treasure his many ‘bodged’ items around the place.

“Pretty much every day there’s a something unexpected to get your head around. It might be threads not picking up, an alarm not going off or, like the other day, weird clunking noises emanating from the loom. But I do like a technical challenge and it certainly keeps things interesting.”

We also sometimes get asked about our biggest disasters. We’ve had pedals fall off before which isn’t great, but probably the worst thing is when the rapier comes flying out of the warp. We used to call it a ‘shark attack’. If you’ve seen how the rapier tears its way through the warp threads you’ll know why. Fortunately we’ve found a way to stop that happening now.

It has to be said though, we don’t make life easy for ourselves, or our equipment. Our two looms were designed for weaving simple widths of Harris tweed, but we like to push them further. We’ve modified them so they can do longer pick repeats and we’ve also added lots of extra lenos (the threads that secure the edges) so that we can weave several scarves across the loom.

We also love experimenting with new weave structures. We’d like to continue to increase the complexity of our weaves this year. We’ll need bit of improvisation and no doubt we’ll meet lots more technical challenges along the way – but it will be fun trying.

If you’d like to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes follow the Sheep to Tweed story on our website.

It’s Question Time at Skye Weavers!

One of the nicest things about having visitors to the workshop is the chance to chat and answer people’s questions. We’ve not been able to do that so much this year, so for this month’s blog we thought we’d share our answers to some of the questions we often get asked.

Have you got a wool or weaving question? Post us a comment on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and we’ll do our best to answer.

How many miles do you pedal a day – and does it make you fit?
We reckon about 20 miles (32 km) a day – no hills, no wind, no rain. It takes about a mile of cycling to weave a metre of tweed, and on a good day we can weave up to 20 metres of tweed or about 10 throws. Sadly though, it’s not sufficiently aerobic to really enhance our fitness levels – not like cycling up our brae anyway!

Is all your wool from Skye?
We’re really proud of our Skye Wool range, which is made entirely from local fleeces, and this makes up about 40% of our product range. Different types of yarn are suited to different types of product, however. The sheep here (mostly Cheviots) are experts at surviving the cold, and their yarn is perfect for warm throws and hard-wearing tweeds. For garments worn next to the skin, such as scarves, we often use lambswool from other breeds of sheep; and for items such as baby blankets we use ultra-soft Merino.

How many sheep does it take to make a throw or blanket?
Rather neatly, it pretty much equates to one sheep per blanket. A Cheviot fleece weighs about 2-3 kg. About 40% of this gets lost through grading and processing, leaving about 1.5 kg of yarn per sheep – the approximate weight of a blanket.

Is there a history of weaving on Skye?
Traditionally, people all over the Scottish islands would have woven woollen fabric at home for their own use. There was no commercial weaving on Skye, however, until after the First World War, when Harris weavers were invited to set up a weaving community in Portnalong. ‘Port-na-Skye’ tweed, as it was called, lasted until the 1970s and it’s a fascinating story. There was also a spinning and weaving mill in Portree until the 1970s, and other weavers at work in Kilmuir and Portree at that time. You can read about ‘Skye’s forgotten weavers’ in our blog.

How do you compare to Harris Tweed?
Like most Harris Tweed weavers we use pedal powered Griffith looms – in fact we bought our first loom second-hand from a former Harris Tweed weaver. We couldn’t call our products Harris Tweed though as it is a strictly protected cloth (identified by its ‘Orb’ trademark), meaning that all processes have to happen in the Outer Hebrides. Most Harris Tweed weavers are self-employed but they tend to work for one of the three spinning mills on Lewis and Harris, to agreed designs. However there are some independent weavers who create their own designs and sell direct, like us. The joy of running our own business is that we can basically do whatever we like! We particularly enjoy challenging our looms (and ourselves) to create inventive weaves and different products such as scarves and throws.

Is everything made in Skye?
It’s really important to us that we keep things local and rooted in Skye. Everything is designed, woven and sewn here in our workshop on the croft, with the exception of our tweed caps. Hat-making is a specialist process so these are made for us by long established British manufacturers Olney Headwear, using our tweed.

Where else do you sell your products?
We like to have a direct relationship with our customers and primarily sell direct to the public. In a normal year about 80% of our sales are through our small shop on the croft (though of course that has been very different this year), with the rest online. We do also occasionally do special commissions for Skye’s boutique hotels such as The Bosville, Monkstadt House and Marmalade. You can even find us in London, adorning the luxury bedrooms of One Aldwych. But while we love working with these creative clients, we strictly limit these collaborations as we don’t want to overwhelm our small business.

What inspires your designs?
We’re lucky to live in a stunningly beautiful part of the world, providing an inspirational backdrop to everything we do. The landscapes and seascapes are magnificent of course but actually it’s often the small details – such as lichens, heathers, pebbles and moss – that provide the most direct starting point for our weaves. I take a lot of photographs too, and these provide a valuable reference point when we’re planning a new design. If you’d like to know more have a look at our recent blog about the design process.

How did you get started?
We didn’t originally intend to be weavers – it was something we came across by one of life’s wonderful turns. We met while working at Ardalanish, an organic farm on the Isle of Mull. The farm set up a weaving mill to use the fleeces of their Hebridean sheep, and we both became fascinated by the weaving process and excited about the potential of using local resources to make a sustainable product. I also fell in love with textiles and making things, particularly with wool. We later decided to move up to Roger’s family home on Skye, and set up our own business. By that point we had come across pedal-powered looms and knew we wanted to work with them. And now we’re looking forward to the 10th anniversary of Skye Weavers next year!

What’s it like living on Skye?
We feel so lucky to be living here, doing something we love doing – though running a small business has its share of stresses too! Roger says his favourite aspects are: ‘Winter, light and peacefulness’. For me it’s the hugely varied landscape and endless opportunities for outside activities – swimming, cycling and walking. We also feel very fortunate to be part of a friendly and welcoming community. If you’re a city-lover, Skye is probably not for you, but we wouldn’t change it for the world!

People often ask us how we come up with our designs. I’ve been putting off trying to answer this question! But it’s time to go behind the scenes and take a peek inside our heads.

There are two main components of a weaving design: the weave structure and the yarn colour. The weave structure is the interlacement of warp (vertical threads) and weft (horizontal threads). Depending on the structure, the warp or weft threads may be more dominant, or they may be visible in equal proportions. It’s possible to achieve lovely effects even with just two colours. Our Skye Wool Grey and Peat Throw is a good example.

There are lots of other variables: the density of the warp and weft and the thickness and type of yarn for example. We use only woollen yarns but even then there’s a huge variety: worsted spun vs woollen spun; different types of wool from different sheep breeds; how much twist there is on the yarn; and whether or not the yarn is plied (individual strands twisted together).

But before we start designing the first question is: What’s it for? Throws need to be thick and warm; tweed has to be hard wearing; shawls require a lovely soft drape; and scarves want to be nice and soft. These considerations are uppermost when we choose our weave structure and yarn.

Even then there are plenty of design choices to make. Sometimes we like to keep it simple and let the yarn speak for itself – as in our grey Skye Wool throws, woven from pure, undyed local wool. At other times we want to challenge ourselves. Our 8 shaft loom allows us to create some unusual weave structures. We love herringbone but also want to throw something different into the mix – creating fabric that is both traditionally Scottish but also very specific to us. Our Plaited Twill and Diamond Tweed are two of these more complex structures.

The question of overall design is more difficult to pin down. Everyone has their own design approach. Some people create mood boards, or scan ‘trend watch’ forecasts for the next hot look. For us it’s more about looking at what’s around us. I’m always taking photographs of Skye landscapes and nature, and these are often the starting point for a design. Sometimes it’s the colour combinations, sometimes the patterns and textures – particularly in close-up details.

We are also inspired by our materials, particularly the natural colours we get from local wool. But to be honest we haven’t got a very organised design approach; we just spend a lot of time looking at things, making sketches and thinking about possibilities. Fortunately the act of pedalling away on the loom seems to create a stream of ideas!

From design to weave

When we’ve decided the basics we need to develop the design and then work out to how to weave it. While most designs can be worked out on squared paper, we also use a computer program which makes it very easy to see the effect of changing one component.

We also have a small table loom where we can weave samples and decide which works best.

Design in action

A good illustration of the design process I’ve just described is our new wedding shawl. We knew we wanted the shawl to be light, lacy and textured, but with our looms we’re limited to a 16 pick repeat. We chose ‘huck lace’ as the weave structure as it provides varied patterns and textures even on a small number of shafts.

I started by weaving a huck lace sample blanket on the table loom, using every possible pattern variation that our big loom could manage. We’re limited to two different textures on our looms so we decided which two we liked best and then experimented with different ways of distributing them across the width of the shawl.

Here I’m weaving the huck lace sample for the wedding shawl.

Once we’d settled on the design it was time to work out the detail of how to weave it.

That means things like how many warp threads (‘ends’) per shawl; how many ends per texture; the heddling set-up (which ends get threaded onto which shaft); how many cones to wind for warping, and so on. That whole process will have to be the subject of another blog, but you can find out a bit about it in the Story section of our website.

Then finally, it’s time to get weaving!

If you’d like to know more about designing fabrics have a look at my favourite book on the subject, Designing Woven Fabrics by Janet Phillips. I went on one of her courses a couple of years ago and loved it! It was great to take some time out to experiment and try new techniques.

Now, what shall we design next?!

Lichens are one of our favourite sources of inspiration. The clean air here means they’re in great abundance in the Highlands & Islands. I love photographing them and though I have hundreds of pictures I can never resist taking another one – especially when it comes to the striking yellow Xanthoria parietina.

This lichen inspired two of our latest throws, just arrived in the shop. We had a yarn dyed specially to match the colour.

Many different varieties have made their way into our weavings over the years. This one was inspired by ochre-coloured lichens in the Cuillin Hills.

A couple of years ago I decided I wanted to know more about the biology of these fascinating organisms. So I signed up for an introductory lichen identification day at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh. One of the first things I learnt is that it’s actually very hard to identify many lichens! You often have to look close up under a microscope or even use chemical testing.

We covered a lot in the day and some of the information was quite overwhelming, but here’s my handy checklist of Things I Learnt About Lichen:

What is lichen? It’s a fungus living in a symbiotic relationship with an algae and/or cyanobacteria. Most of what we see when we look at a lichen is the fungus.

How does it grow? The fungus ‘farms’ algae: it protects the algae from UV light and gives it a place to live, then ‘harvests’ the sugars that the algae produces by photosynthesis. Fungi don’t photosynthesise themselves, so this symbiotic relationship is their way of getting energy.

What types of lichen are there? Lichens have a number of different growth forms. The most basic ones are fruticose (with algae all around), foliose (leaf-like) and crustose (very closely attached to a stone or rock). But as is the case with anything to do with lichens, it’s not straightforward and there are many cross-over types.

What’s behind the names? Most lichens only have Latin names, but there are quite a few with common names, especially those that have a medical or a practical use. For example, Lungwort was used to treat lung disease, and Dog Lichen was a cure for dog bites – and also looks like dog’s teeth underneath. Crottle or Crotal is one we’re very familiar with as weavers – it refers to a number of lichens used for dyeing wool, which was common in Scotland in the past though it’s now not allowed commercially. The word comes from the Gaelic word for lichen.

All in all, it’s a totally fascinating subject. Being able to identify the more complicated lichens takes years of study, but spending a day learning more about these complex symbiotic organisms made me appreciate them even more.

If you’re been inspired by lichens too, you’ll find a few lichen-related weavings in the shop at the moment. As well as our Xanthoria throws there’s a Grey Lichen tartan wrap and Map Lichen scarf.

Just to finish off the Lichen lesson, here’s a short video of us weaving our Map Lichen scarves.

There could only be one subject for this month’s blog. We’ve all had our lives turned upside down in the last few weeks and have had to rapidly adjust to the new normal. We’ve had so many concerned emails from our lovely customers, wanting to know how we’re coping on Skye. So we thought we’d share a glimpse of life here as we enter our fourth week of lockdown.

We’re feeling incredibly lucky to be self-isolating in such a glorious landscape with plenty of space around us. We’re all social distancing of course, and limiting ourselves to short local walks and bike rides for our exercise ration. No one is complacent though – our health services here do an amazing job but are stretched at the best of times. And the impact on Skye’s tourist-reliant economy is going to be huge.

Still, resilience and resourcefulness is something we have in abundance in the island. Our local community has sprung into action to reach out to those in need. As soon as the crisis hit, local volunteers set up Skye Community Response to ensure that vulnerable people could get food and prescriptions – and they’ve been overwhelmed with offers of help. We’re looking forward to putting our sewing skills to good use through Skye Scrubs, joining other volunteers in making scrubs for Portree hospital and using patterns from the wonderful For the Love of Scrubs.

Businesses have rallied round in imaginative ways, too – from Isle of Skye Distillers making hand sanitiser to restaurants baking bread. A repurposed Local Food Links van is helping keep local producers in business while the rest of us get to enjoy locally sourced food at a safe distance. While all non-essential retail outlets have closed, our local shop and post office has been holding the fort and working round the clock to keep us supplied with all our essentials.

As elsewhere around the world, digital technology is proving a lifeline on both a personal and a business level. While we all get used to Zooming and Skyping neighbours, family and friends, new online initiatives are springing up. One of our favourites is #COVIDCeilidh, initiated by fiddle player Duncan Chisholm, where traditional musicians have been sharing tunes on social media to keep us all uplifted.

Another fantastic initiative is Isle20, a not-for-profit website listing businesses across the Scottish islands who are selling online. Started only a month ago, it now features hundreds of suppliers selling everything from gin to jewellery to online Gaelic classes. At a time when we’ve all had to close our face-to-face retail, this virtual shop window is a real boon.

We’ve also been taking the opportunity to spend more time working in the garden, cooking, baking and watching the little lambs appear in the glen. You can’t stop spring even during a pandemic, and it’s been uplifting to see the primroses peep through under the hedgerows and hear the birds going berserk in the bushes.

While this crisis has forced us all to stay local for the time being, it’s also highlighted how connected we are globally. And though we can’t meet people face to face at the moment we’ve been really touched by the many messages we’ve had from around the world. Our hearts go out to all those who are really suffering at this difficult time. Wherever you are reading this, we hope you and your loved ones stay safe and well, and we look forward to a time when we can welcome you in person once more.

Think of Scotland and what do you think of? Whisky? Bagpipes? Highland cows? We certainly have our fair share of iconic symbols, sometimes bordering on the cliché. But one stands out above them all: tartan.

Thousands of tartan designs exist, with more and more added each year to the official Scottish Register of Tartans. Some of these are clan tartans, others general tartan patterns. We don’t weave clan tartans ourselves but we have developed our own patterns – such as the Glendale Check Tweed – and this summer we decided to start working on a new one. It’s given us a great excuse to delve into tartan’s fascinating history.

Tartan’s chequered history

So what is tartan? Basically it’s a cloth that’s woven in alternating coloured bands in warp and weft, creating a checked pattern called a ‘sett’. At its most basic the pattern is just two colours, as in the Rob Roy or Buffalo check which uses just red and black. But tartans can also be very complex.

Archaeologists found Scotland’s oldest surviving tartan in Falkirk, stuffed in an old jar of Roman coins. Dating to about AD 230, it’s made from undyed wool from brown and white sheep. At this time people would also have used plant and insect dyes.

Fast forward to the 16th century and the typical Highlander costume was a ‘plaid’ – a versatile piece of patterned woollen cloth that could be used both as a garment and as bedding. This outfit became synonymous with the Highland clan warrior. After the Jacobite defeat at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, the British government banned tartan for over 30 years.

The exception to this ban was in the military. The new British Highland Regiments helped fuel tartan’s growing popularity. This erupted into full-blown ‘tartanmania’ following King George IV’s visit to Edinburgh in 1822, when Sir Walter Scott organised a Highland-themed pageant. Books full of romantic images, too, fired people’s imaginations. These illustrations from RR McIan’s ‘The Clans of the Scottish Highlands’ sum up the general mood.

The tartan craze continued through the 19th century. Queen Victoria was a big fan: she and Prince Albert decorated their new Highland residence at Balmoral in floor to ceiling tartan. And as Scotland became a popular destination for Victorian tourists, tartan began to appear on everything from snuff boxes to shortbread tins. It was the birth of the tartan souvenir  – and where would we be without that today?

Clan tartans

The concept of a ‘clan tartan’ is actually relatively new. Traditionally, different patterns would have been popular in different areas but they weren’t necessarily specific to one clan. Commercial tartan weavers, though, found that it was a good marketing technique to give patterns a clan name. Two brothers, the ‘Sobieski Stuarts’, were also influential. Their 1842 book, ‘Vestiarium Scotium’, claimed to be a 16th century encyclopedia of clan tartans. Shame they were being somewhat economical with the truth.

Since Victorian times a whole etiquette has developed around tartan-wearing. The array of patterns can be bewildering, too. Most clan tartans have different colour palette variants: Ancient, Modern, Hunting, Dress and Weathered. The Scottish Tartans Authority has a wealth of information about the ins and outs of tartan wearing. However, we like the advice given by the Scottish Register of Tartans: ‘There are no laws about which tartan you may wear, just traditions, so choose a design that you like and wear it with pride!’

Our tartan designs

We’ve designed our new tartan for use in lightweight wraps rather than tweed fabric. We started by working on the dimensions of the stripes that form the sett, trying out lots of different options on the computer. Once we’d settled on a design, we looked through our inspiration gallery of photos we take when we’re out walking. We decided to weave the pattern in three different colourways, all of them closely connected to Skye.

We’re currently weaving the wraps and they’ll be ready for Christmas – sign up to the newsletter to know when they hit the online shop.

Meanwhile if you’re interested in the symbols of Scotland and how they came about there’s a wonderful exhibition at Edinburgh’s National Museum of Scotland. Wild and Majestic: Romantic Visions of Scotland is on until 10 November – don’t miss!

This year has marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Bauhaus. The groundbreaking art and design school lasted less than two decades but its influence was immense. Among the many exhibitions and events marking the centenary, it’s been particularly good to see a focus on the achievements of the textiles workshop. We’ve even been inspired to push the boundaries ourselves with our own Bauhaus-influenced design. More on that later.

We were lucky enough to visit two inspirational exhibitions as part of the centenary celebrations: Anni Albers at Tate Modern, London; and Bauhaus: Textiles & Graphics at the Chemnitz Kunstsammlungen (Art Collections) in Germany.

Anni Albers (1899-1994) was initially a reluctant weaver, and joined the textiles workshop only because it was one of the few options for women at that time. But she went on to embrace the medium enthusiastically, applying ideas from modern art to create innovative ‘pictorial weavings’, wall hangings and textiles. Moving to the USA in 1933, she taught at the experimental Black Mountain College and wrote extensively about weaving and design.

In the exhibition, we loved her abstract geometric patterns, her bold use of colour in surprising combinations, and the way she combines different textures and materials. As weavers we found it especially interesting to see how her ideas developed from sketches to finished product.

During the Bauhaus centenary year it’s been satisfying to see female artists start to get the recognition they deserve. The exhibition at Chemnitz Kunstsammlungen focused especially on the achievements of the textile workshop, largely the preserve of women, which became one of the Bauhaus’s most successful workshops. It was a privilege to get up close to wall hangings, rugs and other textiles by distinguished artists such as Benita Koch-Otte, Otti Berger and Gertrud Arndt.

Back in the workshop on Skye, we started on our own Bauhaus-inspired experiments. Working on the small sample loom we played around with different geometric patterns and textures. For us the challenge (which we enjoy!) is to not only come up with a beautiful design but to translate it into something that can be made into a physical reality on our equipment. For example, much of Anni Albers’s work is hand manipulated, whereas we need to create a pattern that can be woven on a 16 pick repeat. (Our dream is to get a dobby for our looms, which would allow much longer repeats.) That means we have to put any weave structure variations into the warp, and colour variations in the weft. Weaving these scarves was somewhat nerve-wracking because we didn’t know if our experiments would be successful: we were particularly worried about the warp tensions. However the different textures came out really strongly and we’re delighted with the result.

Here is a short video of us weaving the scarves.

There’s still lots going on for the Bauhaus Centenary – find out more on the Bauhaus100 website. If like us you’ve been inspired by Anni Albers, you’ll enjoy this short film from Tate Modern: ‘How to Weave Like Anni Albers’.

Spring is a time of new beginnings. A time to dust away winter cobwebs, open the windows – and freshen up the furnishings.

While a well-known Swedish furniture store once told us to ‘chuck out the chintz’, we don’t want to throw everything out each year. Not least because it goes against our philosophy of having things that are long lasting. So how can you give your home a makeover without costing the earth?

For this month’s blog we’re taking a peek inside two of Skye’s most stylish home interiors. We asked the creative brains behind them about their inspiration and design tips.

The Black Shed

Blair Hunter-Davies is a designer, photographer and stylist with an impressive portfolio in both interiors and fashion. We’re lucky to have collaborated with her over many years. We love her fresh, contemporary interior design style, exemplified in the architect-designed holiday house that she created on her Skye croft: The Black Shed.

How would you describe your design approach?

I love clean, cool lines and I’m a great believer in the less is more mantra. I like to stick to a palette of neutrals for the basics, but it’s important to avoid being too bland. I use accessories to inject a pop of colour and personality – and it’s a great way to keep things looking fresh.

Minimising impact on the environment is really important for me, too. The Black Shed is very ‘eco’ inspired, but in a subtle way. For the Black Shed we chose vintage furniture and even a recycled WC cistern – it’s a way of not buying new things unnecessarily. The wooden walls mean we won’t need to keep redecorating, too, making them very low maintenance. When sourcing objects I always take care to avoid plastic materials as well.

What are your top design tips?

Choose the best quality natural materials you can afford, and use them as your core ‘palette’. But don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone. Experiment with different colours and textures, vintage pieces, found objects – mix and match to find your own style. Seek out functional, tactile furnishings that you will enjoy and cherish for a long time.

 

The Spoons

On Skye’s north-east coast, Marie Lewis runs The Spoons – a luxury self-catering in a private wing of her loch side home. Trained as an artist and now working as a producer for Skye arts promoters SEALL, Marie brings style and creative flair to everything she does.

How would you describe your design approach?

I like to use a neutral background to showcase fabrics and artworks that reflect the textures, light and colours around us.

At The Spoons we tried to create a cosy, comfortable ‘home from home’ imbued with the essence of Skye. We wanted a light filled space where, on a good day, you can open it up and let the sunshine pour in, but likewise when it is blowing a gale you can batten down the hatches and coorie up inside by the fire. I love to mix new and vintage: it creates character and I think this gives a familiarity to a room, making you feel at home and comfortable. I want our guests to feel that the space is beautiful but not intimidating.

What are your top design tips?

I think it’s important to spend time in a room before you make any final decisions – to observe the light and colour and the changing seasons and not rush out and buy everything at once. When planning a room I tend to choose one object or painting or a sample of fabric, and I use that one thing to inform how the interior evolves.

You don’t need to spend a lot of money to make your space cosy and interesting. We are avid collectors of rejected chairs and sofas that most folk would see as only fit for the bin! It’s also very special if a piece tells a story – we found some 1930s cinema chairs in a reclamation yard and it turned out they are from the cinema in Campbeltown where my dad went to watch films as a boy.

Being aware of texture and colour in choosing your fabrics and objects is really important. We chose to mix up floral Liberty fabrics with Skye Weavers and Johnstons of Elgin tweed and the result is stunning. The vibrancy of the prints and the texture of the tweeds work so well together and bring the outside in – reflecting the surrounding hillside, water and sky. 

Living on Skye, surrounded by nature it was important for us to be informed by this and so we have used the natural landscape as our source of inspiration for our palette.

 
Feeling inspired? Why not visit our online shop to see our range of home furnishings, as well as tweeds to create your own upholstery projects.

Harris Tweed is famous the world over. But did you know that Skye once had its own cottage-based weaving industry? An exhibition and events programme next week in Portnalong, near Talisker on Skye’s west coast, will tell its intriguing story. And as proud inheritors of this local tradition we’re thrilled to be involved.

‘Port-na-Skye’ – The New Harris Tweed?

Portnalong and its neighbouring townships of Fiskavaig and Fearnilea were created after World War I when the Board of Agriculture bought land to offer to people wanting to make a new life. Over 60 families moved there, most of them weavers from overcrowded townships on the Isles of Harris and Lewis. Small weaving sheds were provided on the crofts, and spinning, knitting and weaving became important sources of income for the settlers.

Port-na-Skye tweed, as it was known, was sold to passing trade and tourists who arrived by boat and later by motor car. Production methods became more sophisticated with the introduction of Hattersley Looms, and many different colours and patterns were made until the early 1970s. Although Port-na-Skye failed to enjoy the commercial success of Harris Tweed there remains a strong interest in spinning and weaving within the local community to this day.

From Lamb to Loom

 
Getting the fleece from lamb to loom was a time-consuming process for the Portnalong weavers. After shearing, the fleece would be scoured in the stream and dyed in large pans over the fire, using local plants and roots. It was then hand-carded to sort the fibres, spun into yarn on a spinning wheel and finally wound onto cones ready for weaving.

The cloth was woven on a large wooden floor loom or a smaller table-top loom, and taken by men to be washed in the stream. It was finished by the women, who sat around a large table where the soaked tweed was rhythmically thumped to shrink and soften the fabric. The finishing process, also known as ‘waulking’, was hard graft but also a great social occasion with lots of gossip and songs to keep the rhythm and lighten the work.

Living Tradition

While our singing is best avoided at Skye Weavers, we otherwise like to keep local traditions alive. Although our looms use a different mechanism to those used in Portnalong in the early 20th century, they are still powered manually, in our case by bicycle pedals. And while waulking is no longer the communal activity it was, our skilled finishers – Schofield in the Scottish Borders – are long established experts with an attention to quality that is second to none. (And we’re sure they enjoy a gossip in their spare time too.) You can follow our own tweed-making journey here.

We’re especially proud of our Skye Wool range using local fleeces. This year we have something extra special as part of the ‘Lamb to Loom’ exhibition programme: Sgioba Luaidh Inbhirchluaidh, the Inverclyde Waulking Group, will be singing waulking songs while finishing some of our Skye Wool tweed in the Minginish Village Hall. Come and watch them at work/waulk on Thursday 28 – Saturday 30 June, and join a Thursday afternoon workshop.

Ethical fashion is trending right now. Today, more and more of us are asking what impact our clothes have on people and on the planet. There’s a growing market for clothes with a conscience – whether that’s up-cycled, organic, natural or Fairtrade. ‘Buy less, care more’ is becoming the green fashionista’s mantra.

A driving force in this is Fashion Revolution – a global movement for ethical and sustainable fashion. Self-styled ‘pro-fashion protestors’, Fashion Revolution celebrate fashion as a positive influence while also scrutinising industry practices and raising awareness of pressing issues.

Today we’re joining them in marking the start of Fashion Revolution Week. The Week falls on the anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh, which killed 1138 people and injured many more in 2013. All round the globe people will be asking brands #whomademyclothes and demanding greater transparency in the fashion supply chain.

Our ethical commitment

From a renewable raw material to pedal-powered production, at Skye Weavers we’ve always been committed to making our business as sustainable as possible.

We know #whomademyclothes – it’s us! From warping to sewing, we keep our production processes in-house as far as possible. This means that we know exactly who created each garment, throw, scarf or tweed. It also keeps weaving traditions alive and provides local employment and training. When we do work with partner manufacturers we select them carefully, for example working with social enterprise Kalopsia Collective on our bags and ties.

Keeping it local. We work with suppliers in Scotland, northern England and Wales. From wool mills and finishers to the people who weave our labels, we avoid large-scale faceless corporations even if it means we have to absorb higher manufacturing costs. We often visit these suppliers personally, building up a relationship and developing a satisfying creative partnership.

Wool, naturally. We use a sustainable raw material. Our woolly friends generously grow a new fleece for us each year, making it the ultimate renewable resource. What’s more, wool is biodegradable (not that we expect you to throw away your Skye Weavers garments of course). We even use natural dyes in some of our products, and source some of our wool from local farms on Skye.

Love not landfill. We create high quality products that you will cherish, not chuck away at the end of the season.

Pedal power. Who needs fossil fuels? Our looms are 100% pedal powered!

Go green with your home furnishings!

People have been snapping up our green diamond tweed so fast that unfortunately we’re out of stock. But don’t go green with envy – we’ve been pedalling fast so there’s more on its way. Your can pre-order a length of the tweed here, or sign up to our newsletter if you would like to receive an email when the cushions are available online.

Or if you can’t wait, why not check out our Skye Wool collection for something ultra-local with the minimum of wool miles!

Last year we ran a photo competition looking for inspiration for a new tweed – the Glendale Check. Glendale is a small village in the north west of Skye. It is where we are pedalling away on our bicycle pedal-powered loom to create tweed, scarves, throws and more.

After designing the tweed, trying out various options on the sample loom, sourcing the yarn, winding cones, warping and finally weaving, the new tweed is available in our online shop now!

We are using the tweed to make a new range of Glendale Check Cushions. Discover the story behind the cushion:

We recently wove our first tweed using wool from the Glendale Estate’s Cheviot sheep. Last year we bought the hogg wool (the first clip), which we sent off for scouring, carding and spinning. We were really pleased with the yarn and have just finished weaving our first roll of natural white herringbone tweed.

Andrea warping first Glendale tweed

We also sent some of the yarn to Shilasdair Yarns in Waternish, who dyed it naturally with various dye plants. We are currently in the process of finalising the design for a range of throws, and more tweed using these colours. Everything will be available this autumn.

The Glendale Estate was bought by the community at the beginning of the 20th century. Today the estate farm stocks sheep and cattle. We would like to take the opportunity to thank the estate committee and D.A. and Norman, who are looking after the sheep, for helping to get the first Glendale wool processed. We are already looking forward to working with them again this year!

Many people are surprised about the fact that the wool of the many sheep on Skye is normally not used on the island. In the past wool was washed, carded, spun and woven for home use and small scale trade at many crofts. With the industrialisation and economic change this is no longer a viable business opportunity. Wool is now processed by large scouring plants and spinning mills on the mainland or overseas. The mills buy wool in big batches from the Wool Marketing Board. Most of the wool in the UK (and on Skye) is bought by the Wool Marketing Board, who is selling it on behalf of the farmers at international auctions. Skye wool gets mixed up with wool from elsewhere. This is why we are so happy to be working with 100% Skye wool now.

Roger mending Glendale tweed

Before we moved to Skye, we lived and worked at Ardalanish, a remarkable farm and weaving mill on the Isle of Mull. The Ardalanish Mill was one of the pioneers in getting wool from their own sheep spun and we were truly inspired by the process of turning a home grown sheeps’ fleeces into a finished products. After we set up our own business on Skye, we wanted to continue in that ethos and have now managed to use our first batch of local wool.

Skye Weavers team:  excited to be working with locally sourced wool.

It is great to see other businesses popping up everywhere, who are using local resources. A very inspiring business on Skye, who is using home grown brown wool for their beautiful knitting, is Island at the Edge in Edinbane. And there are quite a few more textile places on Skye, so come and weave your way around the island to discover it all!

Do you know who made your clothes? Since the Rana Plaza tragedy in Bangladesh this question has entered public discussion. How can it be that our clothes are so cheap? An increasing number of retailers are trying to source garments sewn by workers who are paid properly and work under safe conditions, but in the end it is us, the consumers, who make it happen. If there is a demand for ethical fashion, there will be somebody to fulfil it.

Ethical fashion starts with transparency of the supply chain. So check your label before buying, and ask “Who made my clothes?” For more information on ethical fashion, manufacturing and sustainable production visit Fashion Revolution. You can help create a more sustainable future for the clothing industry!

Our ties are of course far from essential in terms of clothing, but we are still proud to have them made in this country! The yarn was spun in the North of England, the tweed woven by us on the Isle of Skye, and the sewing done by a social enterprise in Edinburgh. Have a look at production from yarn to tie here!

Kalopsia is a social enterprise specialising in micro-manufacturing of textile products in Leith, Edinburgh. We met them at the opening night of their Assemble Range, where they introduced a range of tried and tested products they make up to order in any fabric. Their vision with Assemble is to create a more efficient textiles production service, help reduce waste, get accurate fabric estimations as well a quick turn around time and reduced carbon emission.

Our ties are part of that range. The pattern has been adjusted to work perfectly with our tweeds and they are sewn to last a long time. We’re proud to introduce our new collection! Made in Scotland.

Many thanks to Susan Castillo for her excellent photography!

When it comes to buying a gift for a newborn baby, nothing could be more perfect than a soft and warm lambswool blanket, which can be passed on from generation to generation, yet still look as beautiful as the day it was brought home. We want babies to feel safe, treasured, warm and protected while they are snugly wrapped up in their natural woollen blanket.

Our brand new range of baby blankets are woven from 100% lambswool and brushed carefully with teasel heads, ensuring the softest possible finish against your baby’s delicate skin. Perfect for keeping your baby warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Research reported in the medical journal The Lancet has also found that it has a soothing effect that can result in better sleep and improved weight gain.

But not only are these blankets a fabulous practical choice for your baby, they will also look beautiful in your home. Coming in three lovely designs, each one inspired by a different feature of Skye’s stunning coastline, there is the perfect blanket for every family.

For those looking for a neutral option for a surprise arrival, our Coral Beach design is a fantastic choice. Inspired by the sands, corals, coloured shells and fragments of dried bladderwrack seaweed, the colours of this blanket range from pure to creamy white and oatmeal, but also include specks of mussel blue, stone grey and the dark brown. This natural coloured blanket is perfect for baby boys and girls alike, and would look stunning in any pram or nursery whatever the current colour scheme.

If you want your little one to be assured of sweet dreams, why not rock them to sleep wrapped in our Sea Ripples Baby Blanket. It was inspired by the rippled surface of the sea on a blue sky day on the Isle of Skye. The design is made up from three soft shades of blue in a wavy, undulating weave. It’s a blanket so beautiful that it will undoubtedly transcend babyhood, and be a treasured item for many years to come, perfect for snuggling under on cold winter’s nights and for lying on top of to play games on even the hottest summer days.

Perhaps you are looking for purple and pink tones, in which case our Purple Topshell Baby Blanket is your best choice. Inspired by the spiral ridges of pink and purple sea shells (Purple Topshell, Gibbula umbilicalis) commonly found on Skye’s rocky shores, this gorgeous blanket with its mix of pink, purple and creamy white colours would look stunning in any little girl’s nursery. Perfect for those first photographs or for swaddling your baby on the way home from hospital, this is a blanket which will make your baby feel secure during those precious early days.

Whichever blanket you choose, you are buying a totally natural and soft product with all the great attributes of wool. And with the help of Eucalan, washing your lovely blanket and keeping it in pristine condition could not be easier. Why not give it a try today and watch how beautifully your baby sleeps within it.

Show us the colours of Glendale!

Take a picture to make a tweed

The Glenurquhart Check is one of the world’s most famous tweeds. Designed in the mid-19th century it now comes in a huge variety of related patterns, known as Glen Checks.

This October – to mark Wool Week, a celebration of all things woollen – we will design our special variation of this pattern, the Glendale Check.

But before we can start designing, we need your help.

We’re looking for your view of Glendale and its colours. Where are your favourite places in the glen? What are the distinctive colours of Glendale? Get your camera ready and show us.

Send us your pictures by the end of September 2016. We’ll compile a shortlist of our favourites. Voting for the winning picture starts at the beginning of Wool Week (10th October).

Win four Glendale Check cushions!

We’ll use the winning picture as inspiration for our Glendale Check tweed design. If your picture was chosen, you’ll receive a gift of four exclusive Glendale Check cushions.

Send your pictures to info@skyeweavers.co.uk

We look forward to seeing your views of Glendale!

Follow progress on Facebook and Twitter using #GlendaleCheck

… a few months later

Here’s our winner! We’re really looking forward to designing this tweed!

 

We love lichens! They are tiny organisms in a multitude of shapes and colours. Most of them like to grow where the air is pure, so we are spoiled with a great abundance of growth forms on Skye. Four of them have inspired our latest range of woollen wraps, woven from soft lambswool.

Lichens are composed of two organisms, algea and fungi, which form a stable symbiotic association. Some of them are very slow-growing and commercial harvest is no longer allowed. In the past lichens were collected to dye wool for the weaving of tweed, especially Harris Tweed. The most famous of these lichens is crottle, which was boiled together with the wool and gave a reddish-brown colour.

Another group of lichens was used to make purple ‘orchil’ dyes. To achieve the purple colour the lichens had to be fermented in urine to start with. Even though the dye had a very small light-fastness, it was highly valued as purple was one of the more difficult colours to achieve naturally.

We didn’t use lichens to dye our woollen wraps, but we looked at them for inspiration. We chose a two-sided weave design with a soft grey on one side and the lichen colour in a wavy pattern on the other. We wanted to reflect the connection between rock, a favourite lichen habitat, and the living organism.

Skye artists and makers collaborate on new collection
A story of four creatives, three shells, and one Hebridean island …

The Isle of Skye is known for its abundance of professional artists and craft-makers. The island’s dramatic coast, stunning landscapes, rich flora and fauna and ever-changing light provide inspiration for both home-grown talent and the many creatives who have moved here to live and work.

Now four of the island’s makers and artists have come together in a unique collaboration. Their collection of naturally dyed shawls, specially designed brooches and original photographs have all been inspired by one of Skye’s smallest inhabitants – the periwinkle.

You can buy shawls and brooches online by following the links below, or at the makers’ studios. The photographic prints are available at Phil Gorton’s Studio in Roag, Skye.

Mounted photographic prints, variety of sizes & prices. Available at Phil Gorton’s studio in Roag on the Isle of Skye.
These two photographs by Phil Gorton inspired the design of the Periwinkle Shawls & Brooches. The first image shows the periwinkle shells on the dark, seemingly blue rippled sands of Bharcasaig, one of Skye’s stunning beaches. The second image focuses on the same type of shell lying on the deep red, speckled sandstone, which can be found at the Ard Roag peninsula on Skye. 

Red & Blue Periwinkle Shawls, £125. www.skyeweavers.co.uk/blue-periwinkle-shawl
The luxuriously soft ‘Periwinkle Shawls’ come in two colourways. The periwinkles on the rippled blue sand of Bharcasaig find expression in a softly undulating Indigo blue weaving pattern with striking yellow stripes along one edge. The speckled red sandstone appears as a mottled mixture of deep red and specks of Blackberry purple and white.

Periwinkle Brooches, £45. www.heather-mcdermott.squarespace.com/collaboration-products/buoy-brooches
These are Heather’s limited edition brooches using specially chosen colours to go with the woven shawls. Using a periwinkle yellow, midnight blue and sandstone red the pieces perfectly complement the two different shawls. The brooches can be worn with the shawls or as standalone pieces. Made from stainless steel, each brooch is hand finished and distressed, inspired by weathered objects found on the coast lines of Skye.

Check out our Periwinkle Pinterest board for more images of the collaboration!

Have you ever been to the Isle of Skye? It’s rugged and irregular coastline with small beaches and gigantic cliffs are a constant source of inspiration to us.

This blog tells the story of two sets of three yellow sea shells, common flat periwinkles to be more precise. They are the starting point of a very exciting collaboration between four artists and makers working on the Isle of Skye. Their collection of naturally dyed shawls, specially designed brooches and original photographs have all been inspired by one of Skye’s smallest inhabitants – the periwinkle. 

Phil Gorton is a fine art photographer who enjoys exploring the small and beautiful things on the Isle of Skye and other wild places. With his unusual perspectives and close-up photography he manages to capture colourful moments, intriguing shapes and dramatic light effects even on the most grey and monotone days.

Skye Weavers are weaving on a bicycle pedal-powered loom in the north of Skye, on the way to Neist Point. We are always trying to reflect Skye’s landscape in our weaving. Our special interest relates to what Phil is doing in his photography- we love looking at things in close-up!

Tony and Eva Lambert dyed the lambswool yarn for our shawls using a variety of plant dyes. Their recipes have been developed over many decades and Eva explains what is special about natural dyes: “If you magnify a chemical dye, you’ll only see one colour. If you magnify a natural dye, you will see that it is made up of a multitude of colours, which is what gives it its depth.”

Heather McDermott joined in the latter stages of development. She chose three special colours to apply to her Buoy Brooches that will accompany the shawls. Like Phil and us, she uses her surroundings, especially the shoreline of Skye, to inform her jewellery. The repeated shapes and geometric forms in her jewellery are a statement as well as a reflection of shapes and forms found along the shoreline. 

SHELLS TO SHAWLS – The finished shawls and brooches as well as copies of Phil Gorton’s photographs will be available to buy in our online shop and on Heather’s website in May. Until then we will be using a Pinterest board to log the development of the collaboration. Images of our workshops, places of inspiration and the processes involved in creating the finished pieces will be released each week. Visit the board here: Periwinkle Shells.

Our limited edition Periwinkle Shawls & Brooches will be launched in May. Sign up to our newsletter if you want to be first to know when these special pieces will be available to buy!

Trail the shells and watch the makers! Follow and share the story of the three yellow periwinkles on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter! #skyemakers