Adventures in Scotland, the wool and whiskey tour continued

The Artist's Cottage B and B in Farr was charming!  Designed by Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh in 1901, the house was built in the early 1990s from the original drawings that featured only the outside.  It seems to be in the middle of nowhere, but is located close to Inverness.  We enjoyed a delicious supper at the Snow Goose.  

Bathroom window

Bedroom window

There were some sheep in the field behind the house.  

Also near Inverness is the Tomatin Distillery.  Their clever ads show the Softer Side of the Highlands.   The Heilan' Coo is pretty darned cute.

Whiskey barrel furniture.  

Inside one of the antique vats.  I like the design of the drain holes.

One of the stills.

Tomatin has an in-house cooper.

Whiskey aging gracefully.

The day got even better as we made our way to Skye.  Sheep were everywhere and the weather was just gorgeous, although windy!  The Talisker Distillery was the first stop.  I enjoyed the smoky flavor of Talisker Storm.  

I'd contacted Roger of Skye Weaver prior to our trip and was very excited when we arrived.  He was so gracious to show us around and I even got to try out the pedal-powered loom.

The wool fabric covers the weaver's handle bar.  

This fabric is for scarves.

The warping mill was a re-purposed tractor rake, reclaimed wood, bicycle gears, other bits and pieces including a dishwasher hinge.

Roger showed us the creel that holds up to 112 cones of yarn.

Inspiration for projects can come from anywhere and this photo was the inspiration for the scarf I purchased.

The scarf is wonderfully soft and warm.  I ended up wearing it for the rest of the trip.

As we were leaving, I spotted some henty leggits (or henty lags) and Jim had to stop the car so I could gather them.

Adventures in Scotland, the wool and whiskey tour, day 2

Day two I was feeling much better and after a nice breakfast and visit with the proprietors of the  B&B, we set off toward Inverness.  It was a beautiful drive into the Highlands and there were sheep and coos along the way.

Small spring flowers were blooming and during the trip we saw lots of daffodils in bloom.

Watching over the garden at Laurel Villa.

Laurel Villa was a nice place to stay.  The breakfast room is on the right.  

Before the sheep encounter, we met some Highland coos.

There is snow in the Highlands ahead!

This was a good place to stop and observe a large flock of sheep.

The sheep posed nicely for the camera.

What can I say?  That's a good-looking sheep.

On the winding roads, this sign was a good heads up.

Sheep crossing!

The fun of driving ourselves is to make unexpected stops along the journey.  One stop was to see the Falls of Bruar, which is part of the Cairngorms National Park in Highland Perthshire.

Between the raindrops the reflections were interesting, reminding me of Gollum, Frodo, and Sam in the Dead Marshes...don't look!

This place had a magical look.

There's something to be said for planting trees!

It was fun to wander around the rocks, bridge and falls.

I liked the tunnel, also.

The water is the same root beer color as the falls we saw on a hike last summer up north.

The last two photos are what I like to use as color inspiration for future projects. Some of the students I've had over the years find choosing colors difficult.  All one has to do is look around for inspiration.

On the way toward Inverness, we took a break and I visited the Hairy Coo Shop.  The sculpture caught my eye and inside were lots of locally made goods.  I purchased sheep and coo brooches.

We happened upon our first distillery that was open. Dalwhinnie distillery is in a lovely setting and it was a good place to stretch our legs, tour, and taste some whiskey with chocolate truffles.