They would usually be fitted with woven handles or straps which enabled them to be carried either by hand or on the back. The tradition of kishie making is alive today and although only small numbers are produced, it is often possible to find one at a craft shop or fair. In Fair Isle, the traditional chair - also still available - has a back woven from oat straw.

WORKING IN WOOD
There was a time when much of the furniture in Shetland homes would have been made locally. Today, Shetland craftspeople continue to produce many different items in wood, either by carving or perhaps using a lathe to turn bowls or plates.

But the largest articles produced were boats and the most common of these was the Shetland yoal, once the foundation of the Islands' fishing industry. Constructed in clinker fashion, with overlapping planks, the yoal shares its double ended design with Norse longships. Typically with space for four or six rowers, such vessels would take their crews to the best fishing grounds, which might be many miles from land. The fact that such adventures occasionally ended in tragedy had more to do with the economic pressures on fishermen than with the boats themselves, which were superbly designed for harsh sea conditions. Indeed, the basic design remains in production today.

Smaller sailing versions have formed the basis of Shetland regattas for decades and more recently the sport of yoal racing has become an essential part of the Shetland summer. Teams from all over the Islands engage in fierce competition, with passionate support from their communities. Not surprisingly, boatbuilders' skills are in heavy demand, and not only for Shetland customers. Yoals were not, however, the largest vessels built in Shetland. The restored `Swan', dating from 1900, is a living and working example of the substantial sail fishing boats once constructed in the Islands. At the opposite extreme, some of today's woodworkers make superb models of traditional craft, construct model racing yachts or produce toy boats to delight any child.

MUSIC MAKING
Shetland's musical heritage is known and respected the world over. At the core of that tradition is the fiddle (or violin), seen and heard in homes and halls in every corner of the Islands.

Today, with the almost universal use of amplification by folk, jazz and rock artists, the demand is for a high-quality violin which performs well when amplified. Such instruments are made in Shetland, drawing on generations of local knowledge and experience. Looking, feeling and playing like a traditional violin, these fine instruments also take account of the most modern technology.