After studying the alternatives and the associated operating hours, we decided to start out with a tour of a nearby distillery. However, due to navigational errors associated with humans, not with GPS, we found ourselves well off of the intended route and already on the way to Paisley. It was on our list of places to go anyway, so that’s where we went. It was well worth the journey.
The immediate connection one makes with the name Paisley is that of the textile pattern, and this indeed proved to be an important part of what the town had to offer. But there was much more as well. We first stopped in the tourist office, where we bought a few postcards including one featuring the original, unvarnished recipe for haggis. You don’t want to know. Then we headed off to the Paisley Museum. Yes, it featured a wonderful exhibit of Paisley textiles, explanation of the history of the pattern, development of the industry, and the like.
The pattern traces to fabrics from Kashmir, hand crafted from short pieces of soft hair from the underbellies of a species of deer that live only above a certain altitude in that part of the world. (This is how they were described at the museum. An interesting Victorian history site on the Web says that the hair came from mountain goats. Perhaps they used both.) A shawl could take a year or more to weave, and commanded a price equal to that of a house. Not a product for your average shopper! Improvements in technology, especially development of the Jacquard loom, allowed the pattern to become available for the masses. Centers of production arose in a number of locales in Great Britain, France, Germany, and Russia. Due to a combination of circumstances Paisley became pretty much the major center for the industry, and the motif became known as the Paisley pattern and subsequently simply Paisley.
There was one section, not part of the formal exhibit but more of a research activity, where they had assembled a number of period Jacquard looms and associated equipment and were attempting to understand and recreate the original techniques, many undocumented and perhaps closely held as trade secrets. We had a nice chat with the weaver who was leading that effort.
Another whole room displayed many styles of Paisley shawls, especially as they evolved with changes in fashion. At their peak they had grown to over 5 x 10 feet in size! Bottom line, so to speak—when the bustle came in, the paisley shawl went out. It was just too bulky material back there. The pattern is still popular, of course, as pashmina scarfs, neckties, and other clothing.
But Paisley cloth isn't all they have in the Paisley Museum. There were a number of cultural types of exhibits, some illustrating the local scene during World War II. The featured temporary exhibit was of the Paisley born artist Alexander Goudie. He was a wonderfully talented painter and designer with a wry and clever insight, combined with a love of his materials, who died in 2004. There were over 200 paintings, drawings, and painted pottery.
Of course there was a gift shop. You don’t want to know the prices of the shawls.
Then we walked through the center of town to the Abbey. It was in wonderful condition, and we got lots of good information from the guide, a retired math teacher named Robin Craig. He was a week away from a trip to Connecticut to visit his son. We’ve met so many people here who have US connections.
By the time we finished at the Abbey it was getting a bit late for lunch and for making it to our next stop on time. So we settled for a quick snack (ice cream for SA & B, and bananas and other miscellaneous snack food for A & S) and headed back to Helensburgh.
Our next destination, also a National Trust property, was located a mere block up the street from our B&B: the Hill House, created by the architect and artist Charles Rennie Mackintosh for the family of Walter Blackie, heir to a large publishing firm in Glasgow. We had seen some of Mackintosh’s work in the National Museum a few days earlier, and Sue Anne was already familiar with him. His career was short and controversial. It marked a major break from the ornate and heavy art, architecture, and furnishings of the Victorian period, and consequently it didn’t meet with the approval of those still wedded to those concepts. He was well ahead of his time, and wide appreciation of his work didn’t really occur till many years later.
Hill House looks fairly standard from the outside. The inside is mostly white, with small squares of stained glass in pink and purple. Wow! Not saying I want a house just like it, but it was complete work of art. He and his wife designed the carpets, fireplace tools, fabrics, furniture, garden gates, street lights, you name it.
Then we went back to the hotel for a rest. The weather was starting to get nasty, so we decided against venturing out farther than downtown. We drove around a bit trying to scout out a place to eat dinner and finally settled on the Great Wall Chinese restaurant. It proved to be a Great Choice Chinese restaurant, as we all enjoyed our meals immensely.
Quick stop at the Co-op supermarket (random stuff like chocolate, a book, a few bottles, and something from your list, Alissa!), back to the hotel, gather for a wee dram to wrap up another great day.
We didn’t find any Internet places that met our schedule, so we’re running behind in posting the blog. Maybe tomorrow!
Thursday - October 9
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