The Production Process
All stages of the production of Garynahine Harris Tweed are carried out by hand — from the design stage to the warping, beaming, tying in and actual weaving, ensuring that close attention is paid to detail at all times. There are 6 main stages in the production of Harris Tweed.
Raw Material: Pure Scottish wool – still on the move!
Warping: The chosen colours are brought together and are arranged in the correct sequence as the pattern requires onto the warping frame. These threads make up half of the tweed pattern, with the weft making up the remainder.
Beaming: The warped yarn is transferred from the warping frame by hand onto a beam, which when ready is tied into the loom for weaving.
Tying in: After the draft change, each thread of yarn is tied individually, by hand (approx 14 – 1500 per double width tweed depending on weight of yarn). This can be a time consuming task and requires much concentration and attention to detail.
Weaving: This is the process of bringing the warp and weft together in the loom, which is powered by the weaver by pedal. John monitors the process intently—ensuring no problems go unnoticed.
Checking the finished product: The woven tweed is taken off the loom and checked for any faults which may require attention.
Finishing and Stamping the Final Product: Once completed and checked by John, the tweed is taken to one of the local mills to be washed and finished. It is then examined and authenticated by a representative of the Harris Tweed Authority, who if satisfied, will then stamp the tweed with the world famous Orb mark guaranteeing genuine Harris Tweed, a high quality fabric recognised world wide.
Genuine Harris Tweed Double Width
Handwoven in Garynahine
Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland
