The Huntly Hairst is an annual festival celebrating the food and local traditions of Aberdeenshire. It takes the form of an extended Farmers Market, occupying the town square and central streets, with over 50 stalls showcasing the best local produce, cookery demonstrations and competitions, including The World Stovies Championship, Huntly's Room to Run race and even more events throughout the week. Check out the Hairst website for a full programme of what's on!
Our Saturday programme:
9am – 4pm
Christine Borland joined us back in Huntly for the Hairst to help host a flax-themed stall alongside her ongoing FLAX project with us. We were celebrating Huntly's main historic harvest with a programme of activities:
Flax and linen processing equipment on display from the Highland Folk Museum.
Rippling demonstrations from Christine, showing the process taken to remove the seed heads from the flax stem.
Natural dyeing workshop for folk to have a chance to hand dye some linen fabric in a variety of different locally made natural dyes.
11am – 12pm: Flax Forum
Discussion, stories and flax growing tips from artists, growers and makers. We were joined by Aberdeen-based textile artist Lynne Hocking-Mennie, who is a seventh generation weaver, Rule of Threes Programme Coordinator Faye Hamblett-Jones, Christine Borland and local growers to chat about their various relationships to flax and the methods, stories and histories that grow between it.
Also part of the Hairst week:
Monday 30th August, 6-8pm, Brander Garden
Friday Lunch: The Artisan Grower, Powered by Plants
Friday 3rd September, 1-2pm, Brander Garden
