Custom Purse Making Class with Islander, UK: Edinburgh, Scotland

When planning must-do activities for your next trip to Edinburgh remember two words: Harris Tweed. The gorgeous wool material that is hand woven in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland is the featured cover-flap on the purses of Islander UK. The most incredible little store (there's now multiple!) where you can custom-make your own Scottish purse with a tartan Harris Tweed lid of your choosing!

I had seen the "Scottish purses" in the windows of shops around Edinburgh while I was there after the Christmas season a few years ago and really wanted to find a special one to take home as a keepsake. In my internet search for all the color options available in Edinburgh, I stumbled upon the Islander UK workshop option to build-your-own-purse. Of course I immediately booked myself into the workshop as a solo attendee for the very next day.

I met two other ladies that were traveling together from England in the workshop and we sat down with a gentleman who instructed us to pick out a size of bag we would like to create. There are an ever-expanding range of size options as this workshop becomes more popular but the one I choose was the medium satchel (see the video below!).

Next, you choose your base color, Harris Tweed lid style and handle color. The base options at the time were vegan leather, however, they now offer real leather bases from what I understand! Choosing the tartan was difficult and took the longest for each of us as they are all such beautiful weaves! Islander offers creative and colorful tartans that are not in the traditional clan patterns - I get that question a LOT on my TikTok video about this workshop. So for those of you descending from a Scottish clan, you will have to choose a creative tartan to express yourself!

The workshop itself takes about 90 minutes and they send you home with a spare set of hardware for your bag. It was one of the best travel experiences I have personally ever had and I truly recommend it as a must-do activity for anyone visiting Edinburgh!

For reference - my medium satchel fits an iPhone 16 pro and wallet or a standard size water bottle and some makeup items. It's the bag I always take as my day-to-day purse while I am in the UK and Europe!

To book a class and learn more about their locations visit: https://islanderuk.com/pages/islander-workshop-experience