Last week Alex Scott (the physical store of kiltmakers.co.uk) were delighted to welcome some visitors from Helsinki. Whiskyföreningen vid TF is a whisky appreciation society with a current membership of about seventy. The members are mostly students at Helsinki Technical University but also include some post-graduate members.

The main activities of the society are to organise whisky tastings and excursions. They are also keen to introduce their members to Scotland as they feel it is important to see the home of whisky!

We were lucky to meet some of their members and show them another aspect of Scotland, the Highland outfit. We were able to let them see kilts, and in some cases try on kilts. They also met Margot who is our kilt maker.

We enjoyed meeting the society members and we wish them all the best with the expansion of their society.

If you are interested in whisky and can speak Finnish, you can view their site at
http://whisky.teknologforeningen.fi/

If you are interested in kilts, you are already in the best place. We will be happy to help you buy a made-to-measure kilt in your tartan.

The kiltmakers.co.uk team is proud to introduce our new team member. Andrew has been taken on to help with the day-to-day running of our ever growing website.

Kiltmakers.co.uk already provides quality goods, with exceptional customer service and a website that helps our customers find exactly what they are looking for.

We’ve plans to add many more products in the coming weeks, including some exciting new product lines and with our latest addition to the team, we’ll be progressing even faster than before.

Big Expansion of the Clan Section.

Things are still really busy here at Kiltmakers.co.uk.

We have now added lots more Clans to our Clan Section.

Along with these Clans being added we now have Clan Cuff Links, Clan Kilt Pins and Clan Sgian Dubhs to choose from.

 The Clan Section as always is being constantly updated.

 If you are not sure of your Clan then use our ‘Find Your Clan’ search available under the ‘Your Clan’ section of the website.

 

The quaich is a marvellous symbolic gift that is given to those to whom we wish to show our love, friendship, admiration or respect. It is also a distinctively Scottish gift that is appreciated by all around the world.

The word “quaich” comes from the Gaelic word “cuach”; meaning cup. They are shallow bowls with two short handles at opposite sides. They were traditionally made of wood but other materials were used depending on availability. Other materials used were stone, horn, and as metals became more commonly used, brass, pewter and silver. In some instances the quaich was made from a combination of materials. A common marriage was carved wood inlaid with pewter or silver.

The quaich originated in the Highlands but did not become popular throughout Scotland until 1745, when the quaich travelled from the North of Scotland with the armies of Bonnie Prince Charlie. This took the quaich as far south as Edinburgh and Derby. These quaichs were said to have glass bottoms so the person sipping a dram could keep an eye on those around them. A more romantic quaich had a double glass bottom in which was kept a lock of hair so that the owner could drink from his quaich to his lady love. In 1589, King James VI of Scotland gave Anne of Denmark a quaich or “loving cup” as a wedding gift.

Although some quaichs had glass bottoms for the suspicious among us, the quaich has overwhelmingly been seen as a cup of friendship. The quaich was used for a visitors welcome or farewell dram by Clan chiefs and wealthy merchants, and the humble crofter. Today many people offer welcome toasts using the quaich but most give them as a gift to those they hold dear. They are displayed in homes all over the world and reminds everyone of friendship.

In another first for us at Kiltmakers.co.uk we now have a limited stock of Black Leather Sporrans at a remarkable 50% off the normal price.

This black leather sporran suitable for all manner of outfits and is usually worn at day events.

Take a look at this fantastic offer

We’re proud to bring you this deal but we must stress that stocks are limited. As Scotland’s leading retailer of Highland Wear we’re confident that you can’t beat our range of sporrans - view the full range of Day, Dress and Semi-Dress Sporrans. (If you’re not sure of the difference - we’ve written an easy to follow Buyers Guide.)