harris tweed hebrides

If you watched even part 1 of the excellent BBC Harrassed Tweed documentary you would have seen how a mothballed mill at Carloway on the Isle of Lewis was restarted by a Harris Tweed Textiles as an answer to Brian Haggis' paired down, 4 pattern, Stornoway mill. They are now selling cloth and look to have some kind of 2010 collections planned. Another group, Harris Tweed Hebrides (HTH) reopened an old mill at Shawbost and now offers over 100 yarns that can then be made into thousands of patterns. HTH seem to be taking the bull by the horns and directly arranging projects with mens/womenswear designers and home furnishers etc (Graven Images' Tunnucks lampshade, v cheeky) as well as selling cloth of course.

Sales of Tweed are down in the USA though according to the HTH chairman.