First Female Boss for Harris Mill
According to our friends at the BBC, a woman has been appointed to run a Harris Tweed mill for the first time in the history of the industry. Click here for the article, and thanks to Syne Mitchell of WeaveZine for tweeting this interesting fact.
But what, you ask, makes a Harris Tweed a Harris Tweed? Well, for a bit of background, I consulted the website of the Harris Tweed Authority. By definition, “Harris Tweed is a cloth that has been handwoven by the islanders of Lewis, Harris, Uist and Barra in their homes, using pure virgin wool that has been dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides”. You may find the history of Harris Tweed to be interesting as well.
This is wonderful. Thank you for sharing it Melissa. I can’t believe she (Ann MacCallum, new head of the Harris Mill) said the following though – “The fact that I’m a woman is irrelevant. It is just an accident of birth.” What? An accident? I do feel she will do her part to provide the tweed industry a future! Harris Tweed has quite a history and it is certainly worth the time to read through it.
A friend from the UK sent me a handmade knitting/drop spindle bag baring this label. It’s nice to know some of the back story! Thank you
My family emigrated from South Uis– perhaps they wove Harris tweed.
I’d like to think so!
Very cool about the first woman boss at Harris Tweed.