Harris Tweed Isle Of Harris Shop

After Jen and I visited the Harris Distillery our next stop was at Harris Tweed so Jen could shop for some souvenirs for her girls.

Harris Tweed is a must stop if you find yourself in Harris. Harris Tweed is a tweed cloth that is handwoven by islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides. 

For centuries, the islanders of Lewis and Harris, the Uists, Benbecula and Barra wove cloth known as clò-mòr – literally, “big cloth” in Scottish Gaelic – by hand. Originally woven by crofters, this cloth was woven for personal and practical uses and was ideal protection against the often cold climate of northern Scotland. The cloth was also used for trade or barter, eventually becoming a form of currency amongst islanders; it was not unusual for rents to be paid in blankets or lengths of clò-mòr.

Harris Tweed Isle of Harris was opened in 2007.

The shop is tucked under the hillside at the mouth of the harbour and will probably be the first shop you notice as you drive off the ferry in Tarbert!  It’s an Aladdin’s cave of Harris Tweed and Hebridean Wool items, from tea cosies to beautifully tailored Harris Tweed jackets, iPad covers to hand knitted Hebridean Wool socks.