In 1848, Queen Victoria bought Balmoral Castle on Speyside, and in 1853, Albert himself designed The Balmoral Tartan for his Queen.
The Callanish Stone Circle stands proud and sentinel on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis. The magic and the mystery surrounding the magnificent Callanish site goes all the way back to when the stones were first erected in 2,693BC.
Queen Victoria, The Balmoral Tartan, and the magical and mysterious Callanish Stone Circle, were the inspiration behind The Callanish Tartan, Scotland's first ever registered Harris Tweed tartan.
In 1846, the Harris Tweed industry began to thrive, thanks to The Lady Dunmore, whose husband Lord Dunmore, owned the Isles of Lewis and Harris. She began to weave the family tartan, The Murray of Atholl, and then to market and sell Harris Tweed around Europe.
The oatmeal and pebble stone background colour of The Callanish Tartan symbolizes The Callanish Stones themselves, the lichen border denotes the mosses and ferns around the place, whilst the sultry grey over checks betoken the long eerie shadows cast through the Stones every month by the glowing light of the full Moon, or the rising sun each bright morning.
The bracken mixture central over check represents the heather hills and peat bogs around the Callanish site, and the glorious rufous red over check proclaims the influences of Scotland's Kings, Queens and Princes in the Highlands and Islands of the Outer Hebrides.
Scotland’s only registered Harris Tweed Tartan, exclusive and unique.
The Harris Tweed industry began to thrive in 1846, thanks to The Lady Dunmore, whose husband Lord Dunmore, owned the Isle of Harris and the Isle of Lewis.
She began to hand loom weave the family tartan, The Murray of Atholl, in Harris Tweed - An Clo Mor - and then to market and sell it to her wealthy friends around Europe for between three shillings and sixpence and three shillings and nine pence for a yard of Harris Tweed.
It was this design that created a weaving industry that grew to its peak in 1966, when seven million metres of narrow width cloth was being woven by over a thousand hand loom weavers.
To commemorate this outstanding event, Malcolm the Weaver has designed and registered 'The Lady Dunmore ' a noble Scottish Plaid woven in Harris Tweed in the colours of The Murray of Atholl tartan, in respect of The Lady Dunmore.
The Callanish Tartan and The Lady Dunmore Plaid are the two most attractive Harris Tweeds ever to be woven in the Majestic Cloth of Kings.
The Callanish Tartan tweed and The Lady Dunmore plaid are two unique Harris Tweed cloths, enhanced for handle, appearance and performance.
The wool is dyed, carded and spun on the Isle of Lewis, warped at the Mill, then hand loom woven by artisan crofter weavers, before being finished at the Mill, and stamped for authenticity with the Harris Tweed Orb.
The cloth is then rolled, packed and sent down to Yorkshire, where the best textile finishers in the World crop and press the cloth for performance and handle, then scientifically treat the tweed to make it shower proof to keep you dry, stain resist to keep it clean, and add silver particles to keep it fresh and odour free.
Joanna Lumley wore an outstanding duffle coat made from The Callanish Tartan on her ITV programme 'In Search of Noah's Ark'.
Joanna believes that The Callanish Tartan is magic, and can be seen here wearing The Callanish coat, with a black Raven on her arm.
Gordon Ramsay spotted The Cloth of Kings on Savile Row, and was impressed enough to ask for a bolt of Harris Tweed cloth to make a bespoke jacket.
Look out for Gordon declaring his Scottish ancestry as he sports his Cloth of Kings jacket.
Howie Nicholsby of 21st Century Kilts designed a kilt in The Callanish Tartan, which was worn by Tim Henman, seen here surrounded by John McEnroe, Roger Federer, and Greg Rusedski.
Malcolm and Howie are now working on creating a kilt in The Lady Dunmore for Andy Murray.
Rita Britton of Pollyanna has created outfits in both The Callanish Tartan and The Lady Dunmore and featured them in her fashion shows and press releases.
The Callanish Tartan was micro encapsulated with diamond dust and a bolt of cloth sent to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee, and a flat cap and fascinator in The Callanish Tartan were sent to The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, at Clarence House.