Tha gaol agam air obar gréis.

Gaelic is still spoken on many of the outer islands of Scotland including the Isle of Skye.

Tha gaol agam air obar gréis (pronounced, ha gool akum air oh-per graysh) means "I love embroidery."

Like many of you when traveling, one of the things I do is look for needlework stores no matter where I go.   And my trip to Scotland was no different.

View from Portree, Isle of Skye

To be honest, embroidery stores in Scotland must be very few and far between.  

I thought there was one in the Grassmarket of Edinburgh but when I went to the location, it was no longer there.

So when I heard that there was an embroidery shop on the Isle of Skye in the capital of Portree, I was thrilled.

I only had 30 minutes to eat lunch and check out the embroidery shop so Jim and Jack went to order food, I hightailed it up the hill to this shop...Over the Rainbow: Isle of Skye Crafts.

They sold embroidery threads, cross stitch kits and yarn.  I picked up some tartan ribbons for my book and some more embroidery floss...but those purchases paled in comparison to the kindness and friendliness of Hannah McDiarmid who happened to be working in the shop that afternoon...

"Oh heery!"
(What Hannah said when I asked if I could take her picture.  I didn't need her to tell me what it meant since I feel the same way when someone asks to take my picture)

Checking out at embroidery stores here in the States takes forever mostly because each thread has to be entered individually and this shop was no different.

Knowing I was short on time, Hannah offered to finish the transaction while I ran off to find Jim, Jack and lunch.

While I was gone, Hannah took it upon herself to write up a list of useful Gaelic phrases and, knowing I was an embroiderer, she included needle-y words as well.

And that's how I know that "Tha gaol agam air obair gréis" means "I love embroidery" in Gaelic.

So...I just had to add it to my highlight list of words and phrases from my trip.

I'm making a loooong embroidered tie using these french alphabet books for patterns.  I've had them on my shelf for years and finally have a use for them...

And some of you had questions as to how I made the book.  

All of the pages were cut from an old stamped, unfinished tablecloth and napkins that someone had given me many years ago...thinking I might finish it.  

I had never thought I would finish it but saved it just in case I might need it someday.  I'm so glad I did.

I probably have enough linen left over to make 5 more books.  The linen makes for great pages so don't give away those old unfinished linens...

For each page, I sewed a big rectangle together on three sides, turned right side out and machine-stitched the edges closed.  

Then I sewed the pages into the book just like the Harikuyo needlebook.

I am slowly embroidering on my book and editing my pictures from my trip so I'll be bopping in now and again to tell more stories about Scotland.

Obair gréis takes time.  I'm off to pick flowers for Mrs. Rose.