From the forward to Harris Tweed – From Land to Street:
“Harris Tweed has always resonated in the minds of the few. But increasingly the people of Harris and their traditional ways are striking a chord with the many. It is hard to think of another product so deeply connected to both the landscape in which it is born and the people who create it. It has life, this tweed: it is filled with life by those who weave it it, it is coloured by the land in which it lives.” – Patrick Grant, Norton & Sons
In the book, Lara Platman follows the production of Harris Tweed fabrics over the course of a year and along the way profiles many of the people who are involved in the process, from those raising and shearing the sheep, to those who inspect the final product before it’s shipped off to suppliers and designers. When I was finally able to sit down and go through it, I couldn’t help but think of my own Harris Tweed jackets and the work that went into them – likely many of craftsmen featured in the book could have worked on the very same fabrics that my jackets were made from.
Along with tweed fans, anyone in the industry who is in the business of selling Harris Tweed garments should have this book on hand. I don’t think there’s anything else quite like it that captures the entire production process into a single volume and presents it in such an appreciative way.
A few examples of the photography included in the book can be found through Platman’s photoshelter website and it can be easily ordered online through several sources.