Blog tag

Highland Folk Museum


A colourful illustration of stylised people holding various objects, including a patterned cloth, a tartan sock, a ceramic jug, and a nest arranged around the words Communities of Making.

Young Curators - Open Call

IMAG news and updates

A new opportunity for young people people aged 16-24.

Jan 15, 2026
A group of five people standing in a museum storage room beside shelves of rolled textiles and a tartan dress display.

Badenoch Textiles: Economy, innovation and identity in the eighteenth century

An introduction to a new PhD exploring eighteenth‑century Badenoch textiles, identity, and a…

Dec 18, 2025
An old wooden building with iron roof and wooden water wheel in a woodland setting.

Heritage in Action ‘makes a splash’ at Highland Folk Museum.

News and blogs

Water is the theme for the last 'Heritage in Action' Day of the season at the Highland Folk Museum…

Oct 13, 2025
Traditional stone-built cottage with a thick thatched roof, located in an open outdoor setting with grassy ground and wooden fencing. Two chimneys rise from the roof, and there are trees and additional buildings in the background under a bright blue sky with scattered clouds.

High Life Highland joins forces with museums on UK-wide collaborative programme

News and blogs

High Life Highland is joining a major UK-wide project, Going Places, to co-create touring…

May 16, 2025
Bright red wooden building with a corrugated metal roof, set in a grassy outdoor area with trees in the background. A sign above the door reads “D. McLean” and there is a bicycle leaning against the side of the building.

McLean’s shop stores a shed load of memories

News and blogs

Step back in time at the Highland Folk Museum and explore McLean’s Shop, a newly restored exhibit…

May 16, 2025

Steele and Horn

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A visit to a horn worker reveals traditional techniques, Traveller heritage, and a craft now at…

Apr 27, 2018
Three horn tumblers of different shapes and colours displayed beside a measurement scale.

Taking the collection by the horns

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

Exploring how horn was shaped into spoons, tumblers and unique everyday objects.

Apr 09, 2018
A person outdoors holding two small fired clay pots up in each hand.

Marvellous Barvas: Part 2 - Baking

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

How our handmade Barvas-inspired pots fired, glazed in milk compare to the originals.

Mar 02, 2018
A table full of small handmade clay pots, cups and bowls.

Marvellous Barvas: Part 1 - Making

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A hands-on experiment recreating traditional Barvas Ware pottery methods.

Feb 12, 2018
A set of handmade clay vessels including cups, saucers, a teapot, a jug and an egg cup.

Barvas Ware and Craggans

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

Discover the story of Barvas Ware, a unique Hebridean pottery style.

Jan 23, 2018
Skeins of dyed yarn, raw fleece, a drop spindle and a wool carder arranged on a table.

Giving it a whorl

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A hands-on look at learning to spin wool using traditional tools.

Jan 05, 2018
A display of spinning wheels and textile tools arranged against a wooden wall.

Reel detective work

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A behind‑the‑scenes look at piecing together fragile textile tools from scattered fragments.

Dec 18, 2017
A rounded, open-ended basket trap made from woven sticks.

These are a few of our favourite things…

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A behind‑the‑scenes look at two historic Highland baskets and the stories they reveal.

Nov 10, 2017
A close-up of the tightly coiled straw interior of a bee skep showing the central opening.

A buzz about skeps

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

Explore the history, making and museum care of traditional straw‑work, especially bee skeps and…

Oct 03, 2017
A pony grazing outdoors while carrying a pair of large woven creels on a pack saddle.

Pads for pack saddles

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

How the museum protects fragile pack saddle pads with custom supports, careful handling and…

Sep 15, 2017
A small round basket made from tightly coiled natural fibres with visible stitching.

Baskets – style and substance

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

Explore the craft, materials and remarkable variety of traditional Highland baskets and their uses.

Aug 28, 2017
A person wearing blue gloves records notes on a clipboard while examining a large woven basket‑like object in a museum storage area filled with shelves of furniture.

Baskets, Bobbins and Barvas Ware - Meet the team

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

Meet the team behind a year‑long project preserving and documenting Highland museum collections.

Jul 21, 2017
A close view of a wooden‑clad building with large windows and the sign “am fasgadh” beside the entrance.

Introduction to the project

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

An introduction to the museum’s project to document, conserve and better understand fragile…

Jul 03, 2017
A person seated at a table writing notes beside a large thick woven mat in a museum store.

Baskets galore

Baskets, bobbins and barvas ware blog

A behind‑the‑scenes look at how museum staff document, assess and protect the basket collection.

Aug 08, 2016