Our Story
Every story starts somewhere and ours begins in 2013 when our beloved spinning mill sprung to life - the result of a long held dream and a labour of love by our committed team as we looked to bring yarn & wool production back to our islands. Our offering was further developed in 2016 with the completion of our lovely new Wool Centre giving us a beautiful new space to showcase our yarns and special commissions produced by local designers & makers.
Through a simple visual storyline we’ve tried to capture the essence of Uist Wool to share with you.
From the mesmerising opening shots of waves breaking on the shoreline we follow the journey of making from the croft to the mill for our classic light grey yarn, Siaban. Enjoy a glimpse of what it takes to create yarn on a Hebridean island, with a touch of intangible culture & wildness blended into each strand.
A Creative Community
At Uist Wool everything we do starts and ends with community. Run with co-operative values at our heart and as a not-for-profit we always put people first. Our team collaborates closely with local crofters, makers & creators to produce carefully sourced & naturally beautiful products from our spinning mill & wool centre.
Working With The Land
Born from the community desire to reduce waste & add value to local agriculture, we are committed to sourcing as much of our fibre as we can here in Uist, and everything else from no further afield than Scotland. We continually develop close & meaningful partnerships with our valued suppliers allowing for full visibility into product traceability & history. As we do everything in-house using low-impact methods, our customers can be sure that they are being supplied with the very best, most sustainable yarn possible.
While forward thinking in all that we do, we’re proudly inspired by the rich history of our industry and by the makers & creators that have gone before. Our spinning mill houses a range of beautiful heritage machinery that came to us from Argyll & Yorkshire. With the main parts of the card dating as far back as the 19th Century, a lot of care went into the restoration and
re-build, bringing them back to prime condition. With over 100 individual oiling points on the Card alone - our daily nurturing maintenance ritual is something we take both time and pride in and provides a welcome reminder of the historic roots that power the future of Uist Wool.
A Welcome New Life For Local Wool
One of our founding missions was to provide a fresh new use for local wool while breathing new life into the local economy by providing a fairer price to crofters for their wooly wares. Skilled grading at source allows us to select fleece with perfect characteristics for creating naturally beautiful knitting & weaving yarns - celebrating the variety of native wool and making full use of a naturally sustainable resource with true value and genuine provenance.
The Beating Heart of Uist Wool
Our Mill floor is where the magic happens when our yarns are brought to life. The powerful combination of heritage carding & our inventive engineers allows us to create modern wonders with traditional materials. Our commitment to quality & innovation ensures that everything we produce is among the finest the world has to offer, and we’re always exploring new ideas and pushing the limitless possibilities provided by our beautiful native wools.
Collaborative By Nature
From our partnerships with local makers & creators to our strong ties with local wool producers - everything we do is collaboratively & community driven. We always welcome new friends, so if you fancy a visit to our Wool Centre, want to create something special with us or simply want to say hello we would love to hear from you.
