Harris Tweed first became famous in the 19th century when the wife of one of the lairds, the Countess of Dunmore, became interested and help create a market for the traditional tweed as a fashion product. The tweed is still produced on hand looms today, although most of the carding, spinning and dyeing are now done in a factory. The traditional Hebridean Sheep has a coarse, strong wool suitable for weaving, unlike the much finer Shetland wool which was bred for knitting.