Harris Tweed - still famous or not?

The original, traditional Harris Tweed was characterized by very subtle colors like deep red, purple brown and dark orange, accomplished with natural vegetable dyes.

Today, Harris Tweed is the only hand-woven textile that is sold in commercial quantities. Recent high profile manufacturers who have exported and used this beautiful cloth in a contemporary tweed collection include Nike, Alexander MacQueen, Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren. The fabric is considered the “champagne of fabrics”. While most of the production of this textile is manufactured for use in the clothing industry, Harris Tweed also supplied most of the interior fabrics for Glasglow’s first five-star hotel, called Blythswood Square, an incredible feat.Harris Tweed won the honor of Textile Brand of the Year for 2009 at the Scottish Fashion Awards and also won the premier award for Outstanding Style Achievement at the Scottish Style Awards. Clearly, Harris Tweed is a classic, luxurious fabric that will stand the test of time as a textile that remains classic.

Common, more updated styles using Harris Tweed include the Harris Tweed Rider Jacket by Nike, cropped and cut in the style of a classic motorcycle jacket. Scarves, trousers and jackets (famous Harris Tweed Jacket) are also just a few of the examples of the products that are made from this fabric. To make sure that the item is authentic Harris Tweed, make sure and check the label. It should be blue with gold lettering that clearly says “Harris Tweed” in script and then below the symbol, the description of the fabric being handwoven.