Lochcarron of Scotland Review: 500 Tartans, One Mill
The Scottish Borders once hummed with textile mills. Selkirk, Hawick, Galashiels — every town had looms running. Most are gone now, victims of cheap imports and changing tastes.
Lochcarron of Scotland is one of the survivors. Founded in 1892, it is the world's leading tartan manufacturer, weaving over 500 authentic tartans in-house at its Selkirk mill.
The Heritage
Lochcarron was established in the Highlands before relocating to the Scottish Borders, where it became part of the region's renowned textile cluster. For over 130 years, the company has woven tartan — the fabric most closely associated with Scottish identity.
Every Lochcarron tartan is designed and woven in-house. The company holds the rights to hundreds of clan, district, and commemorative tartans, and regularly creates new designs for organisations, universities, and private commissions.
They are one of the last remaining textile weaving mills in the Scottish Borders — a region that once rivalled Yorkshire as Britain's textile heartland.
The Craft
Tartan weaving is a precise art. Each pattern is defined by a "sett" — a specific sequence of coloured threads that repeats to create the distinctive check pattern. A single tartan might use 8 or more colours, each requiring a separate yarn.
The process at Lochcarron:
- Yarn dyeing — Wool is dyed to exact colour specifications. Many tartans use colours defined centuries ago
- Warping — Thousands of threads are arranged in the correct colour sequence on the loom
- Weaving — The weft threads are passed through the warp to create the pattern. Lochcarron uses both traditional shuttle looms and modern rapier looms
- Finishing — Woven cloth is washed, brushed, and pressed to achieve the correct weight and handle
The skill lies in colour matching, tension control, and the accumulated knowledge of how different yarns behave. It takes years to train a weaver to the standard Lochcarron requires.
The Product Range
Lochcarron produces tartan in multiple forms:
- Scarves & Stoles — Lambswool and cashmere, in hundreds of tartans
- Blankets & Throws — Heritage home textiles
- Kilting Cloth — The traditional heavy-weight tartan used for kilts
- Fashion Fabric — Lighter weights for fashion designers and brands
- Bespoke Tartans — Custom designs for organisations and families
Prices range from £25 for lambswool scarves to several hundred for cashmere pieces and bespoke kilting cloth.
The Verdict
Lochcarron strengthens the Scottish textile cluster in this directory alongside Johnstons of Elgin and Harris Tweed Hebrides. Where Johnstons does cashmere and Harris Tweed does hand-woven tweed, Lochcarron owns tartan — the fabric that is synonymous with Scotland itself.
The fact that they are one of the last mills operating in the Scottish Borders adds urgency to their inclusion.
Pros:
- World's leading tartan manufacturer
- Over 500 tartans woven in-house
- One of the last textile mills in the Scottish Borders
- Bespoke tartan design service
Cons:
- Product range is tartan-focused (narrow by design)
- Less well-known internationally than some Scottish textile brands
Related: Harris Tweed Hebrides Review | Johnstons of Elgin Review