About Cambrian Woollen Mill

Originally opened as a corn mill in 1820, Cambrian Woollen Mill was converted to a Welsh flanel weaving mill despite massive setbacks to the wool industry during the Great Depression and the wool slump in Wales in the early Nineteenth Century.

During a proud weaving history spanning over 160 years, Cambrian Woollen Mill has woven everything from travel rugs to tweed hats, socks for Sir Francis Chichester’s round the world yacht voyage in 1967 (let’s hope he had more than one pair for his 9 month journey!), and kilt cloth for stars of stage, screen and sport in Wales and the wider world.

Prior to the Second World War, Cambrian Woollen Mill was proudly supplying woollen’s to the Royal household’s of Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Princess Royal and Princess Alice.

A role call of famous visitors from Lord Snowdon, to Prince Charles and The Queen (as Princess Elizabeth) plus numerous dignitaries from around the World have recognised the importance of the Mill to employment in Mid Wales for generations, incuding some 80 years of providing work for the disabled right through both the Great Wars and into the 1980’s.

Cambrian Woollen Mill used local wool, which was dyed, spun, carded and woven into much sought after merchantable product on the premises, just outside Llanwrtyd Wells, with water power being used until around 1860. The power loom soon arrived as demand exploded in South Wales due to the requirements of the rapidly growing steel and coal industries and increased population.

While carding, spinning and weaving were amoung the domestic arts (most weaving was done at home in the Thirteenth to Sixteenth Centuries) of the early Welsh, this developed into an industry of around 200 woollen mills exporting to England, Italy, Portugal, Spain, France and some of the low countries.

With the demise of the Welsh Woollen Industry in the 20th Century, due in some part to the competition from factory style mills in England, which Wales had been slower to embrace, there are now only around 10 mills left, with only a few of these commercially run. Cambrian Woollen Mill is probably the best remaining example, showing the weaving processes working as they have in this part of Wales for generations.

Tours are available at the weaving unit of the Mill by appointment, there is also a cafe and large gift shop selling Cambrian Woven flannels, beautiful rugs, caps and Welsh family name tartans from Eynon’s to Beynon’s and Davies to Williams, plus a large selection Welsh gifts and souvenirs.

Making Tartan or 'Plaid'

Tartan (Plaid) is created by crossing and interweaving two yarn’s, a ‘Warp’ and ‘Weft’. The Warp runs the length of the ‘Piece’ (up to 70 metres usually), the weft being inserted above then below each Warp yarn accross the Piece. In the Thirteenth to Sixteenth centuries in Wales much of this would have been done domestically by hand. Although widely regarded as an ancient British/Celtic tribal tradition, this type of cloth has been woven in a similar way for centuries in Asia, Africa and South America to display tribal colours in warm overgarments wraps and capes.

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