Harris Tweed any flaws. Once ready the cloth is finished. Dirt, oil and other impurities are removed by washing and beating in soda and soapy water before it is dried, steamed, pressed and cropped. The final process is the examination by the independent Harris Tweed Authority which visits the mills weekly, before application of their Orb Mark trademark which is ironed on to the fabric as a seal of authenticity. In 2012 the weavers and mills of the Harris Tweed industry produced one million metres of Harris Tweed, compared to 450,000 metres in 2009, which was the highest production figures in 17
Lewis and Harris uninhabited, are islands close to the shore of Harris. On the map to the right of this page, the islands of North Uist, Benbecula and South Uist are coloured red (the thinner red strip to the south) as if they were part of Lewis/Harris - the red strip shows the entire Western Isles, or Outer Hebrides. Lewis/Harris are actually one island, which causes confusion for many at first acquaintance, Harris being the portion of land just south of Tarbert where the sea comes in somewhat, but there is still a continuous land joint between Lewis (to the North) and Harris