Soon to Arrive! Bespoke Kate Macpherson Head-on Pine Marten Sporran with Front Feet

[creagdhubh]

Greetings!

Several months ago, I placed an order with Kate Macpherson of Kate Macpherson (Handmade) Sporrans, located in gorgeous, Breakachy Farm, By Beauly, Inverness-shire, Scotland, to have a bespoke, head-on Scottish Pine Marten sporran made. These types of animal sporrans became increasingly popular throughout the 19-century, especially during the Victorian era (many of which can be seen in Kenneth MacLeay's, The Highlanders of Scotland). They were also worn quite frequently throughout the 20th-century (many 1920's-1960's Highland dress advertisements depicted men wearing various styles of head-on sporrans, some with feet/paws) and may still be seen with Highland dress - for both day and evening occassions, today.

When beginning the commissioning process, I specified such details as the sporran having two front feet at a slight angle from underneath the animal's head, to ensure the coat of the animal had its trademark white, symmetrical stripes on either side of the head, a smooth, havana brown bridle leather back with a V-gussett design to allow the sporran to be fully functional, as well as lying flatter against the front kilt apron - Kate informed me that this is how the military badger sporrans for the officers and NCO's of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, were always made. The sporran will also come with a removable 'D' ring, which will allow me to accomodate my McRostie of Glasgow, havana brown bridle leather sporran strap, or a sporran chain strap for more formal occassions. The sporran strap 'loop' was custom designed based upon the size dimensions of the McRostie sporran strap.

Kate's sporran making process is extremely in-depth and rather extensive. Her keen attention to detail is unmatched (in my humble opinion), and her knowledge of taxidermy and anatomy is immense - she has been making handmade sporrans for over 20 years and has studied with regimental sporran makers. Kate receives her animals either from roadkill 'pickup' throughout the Scottish Highlands, or from nearby farmers who have killed them (usually foxes, which can be pests). Each animal comes with the required sporran licence if applicable. She thoroughly freezes each animal to kill any bacteria and bugs. Each animal species has their own taxidermy 'forms,' in which are carefully used to shape the skull, or head of the animal. It's all a very interesting, quite labor intensive process for Kate. Throughout the commissioning process, Kate and I must have interacted, via e-mail, at least 27 different times! And every time, Kate was very patient, professional, and intuitive - she could anticipate precisely what details I preferred in regards to my sporran.

I recently received an e-mail from Kate, saying that my bespoke sporran shall be ready for shipment by the end of this week, and even though this will be my third Kate Macpherson head-on, animal sporran (as I currently own a Badger and a Mink), this shall be my first sporran with 'feet,' and I am very excited and simply cannot wait to wear it! It should arrive just in time for St. Andrew's Day next month.

I highly recommend Kate Macpherson's sporrans to anyone, they are truly expertly crafted, heirloom quality, and arguably, the best head-on sporrans available on the market today. For these reasons alone, is why Kate's handmade sporrans are quite expensive. These sporrans truly are a work of art, and are made to last for generations, just as their predecessors of the past, in which there is no doubt, inspired the modern creations by Kate. The jonesing has begun!

http://www.katemacphersonsporrans.co.uk/

Slainte mhath,

[davidlpope]

Kyle,

Very, very nice. I can't wait to see actual photos.

Cordially,

David

[JSFMACLJR]

Can't wait to see it, Kyle!

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Kyle... glad to see that all that disposable income isn't going to waste!

[TurboKittie]

And suddenly the reason for your selling off everything is clear....


Congratulations and I can't wait to see the photos of you modeling such a coveted piece!

[CMcG]

That sounds like it will be a beauty! Looking forward to the actual pics...

[Silent Raven]

just recently found her site by way of a you tube video describing her sporran making process. i love taxidermy and i think that her work is amazing, although i dont think i could ever justify spending that much on a sporran but thats just me. and with my skills in taxidermy i might just try to make my own some day

i love her work with the birds, although again i would never get one because for me it would be like having my cat made into a sporran because i have worked with many owls and just have too much of a personal connection with them.

cant wait to see the pictures kyle!

[saxandpipes]

Not quite my cup of tea, but nevertheless I'm happy for you!

I certainly appreciate what Kate MacPherson does to preserve an otherwise retired wee beastie.

My mother didn't really like my hair sporran... if I turned up with a full mask sporran...

Anyway, I still want to see pics!


Cheers!

Michael

[creagdhubh]

Thank you for your comments, they are much appreciated. It is true that some (a wee portion, actually) of the funds made off of my sales on XMTS have indeed gone to this particular sporran, but more importantly, I was simply 'thinning out the herd,' as all of the items I have sold on XMTS, were not being used any longer and were simply sitting in my closet. XMTS was the perfect place to offer these items to men and women that understand, respect, and appreciate Highland dress. Thank you to those who purchased items from me, and to those who entertained the idea; I am pleased that they all found proper homes. And thank you to all of the MODs who assisted me on the forum - you are all a superb example of professionalism and kindness.

I spoke with Kate this morning, and my sporran is expect to ship on Friday, just prior to her going on holiday. We also discussed how my sporran will arrive with the appropriate licence, as many animal mask sporrans must have an accompanied licence nowadays. Kate mentioned that there still is a massive 'wave' of confusion in regards to sporrans and licencing in within the UK, and that even many of the authorities are confused about the law as well. It's all a wee bit of nonesense to me. Anyhow, photos shall indeed be posted as soon as possible - more than likely sometime in early to mid-November!

Thanks again,

[creagdhubh]

just recently found her site by way of a you tube video describing her sporran making process. i love taxidermy and i think that her work is amazing, although i dont think i could ever justify spending that much on a sporran but thats just me. and with my skills in taxidermy i might just try to make my own some day

i love her work with the birds, although again i would never get one because for me it would be like having my cat made into a sporran because i have worked with many owls and just have too much of a personal connection with them.

cant wait to see the pictures kyle!

Yes, her process is very unique. It is a great video isn't it? I think of her sporrans as definitely heirloom quality, and nobody else is producing these styles on the market today - especially with the same attention to detail. L&M comes close with their sporrans, but is still a notch below. I will definitely pass these sporrans on to my children, and so on and so on. That's all the justification I need when spending this amount of money on a sporran - alas...well-made, bespoke, heirloom quality items are indeed expensive!

Cheers,