Johnston’s of Elgin
Day 11. Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Up and at ‘em early as we have a ferry to catch at 7 am. Luckily the ferry is just around the corner. The vans roll on, followed by an enormous bus, all into the belly of the ferry. Another smooth journey as we bid Harris and Lewis farewell and head back to the Scottish mainland. After debarkation at Ullapool, we drive to Beauly for a quick stop to see the ruined priory and fuel up with coffee and pastries.
We push on to Elgin, where our main destination for the day awaits. Johnston’s of Elgin is a complete vertically-integrated mill founded in 1797. It is also a beautiful manufacturing site, a rarity in the manufacturing world. The original stone buildings are complemented by masterful gardens. We have lunch at the Weavers Restaurant (yes, really!) which is decorated with wonderful photos of the weaving process. The mill shop is full of luxury cashmere clothing and home goods. While most of us don’t live a lifestyle that lends itself to a 100% cashmere bathrobe, clearly someone does. We all marvel over the twice woven selvedge blankets; such a clever idea to use up scraps.
The mill tour is very polished. We are allowed to pet the cashmere, but we aren’t allowed to take photos inside the production areas. This may be partly a safety thing, but primarily because Johnston’s does private label production for very high-end couture lines and they must maintain customer confidentiality. As a vertically-integrated mill, Johnston’s starts from raw fiber and dyes, cards, spins the yarn, weaves/knits and finishes the final product. Did you know that teasel heads (a natural plant head) are still used to brush finished cloth to bring up the nap?
We walk around the ruins of the Elgin Cathedral and visit the biblical garden next door. The garden is peaceful and beautiful, even if the religious sentiment isn’t everyone’s thing. Dinner is in an old pub in town.
