Scotland believe this is only start of process as new belief takes hold
LIKE dehydrated desert nomads who suddenly find a spot of water, Scotland have spent the weekend drinking deep at the well of victory. To put the victory in perspective, it is only the third over England in 20 years, and the first time since 1990 that they have beaten both the Auld Enemy and France in the same season.
This is how the 'Times' saw the Rugby game which took place at Murrayfield this weekend. Scotland and England were playing for the Calcutta cup which is one of the oldest fixtures in the sport's history.
There is always keen rivalry between the two teams especially since Scotland are traditionally the underdogs - not surprising really when you think England has the choice of 92% of the population.
I am hoping that this will give us all in Scotland renewed vigor for the year ahead and encourage more visitors to our interesting country. This was also one of our best days for our retail partners in Edinburgh who sold many of our notebooks and pads featuring our national flag- the saltire.
Yours aye
Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Monday, February 27, 2006
Saturday, February 18, 2006
Rolling Stone Gathers Some Satisfaction for a Scot
PINEROLO, Italy, Feb. 15 — Rhona Martin returned to Scotland four years ago a national hero, extolled as a homemaker superstar for leading Britain's curlers to the gold medal at the Salt Lake Olympics on the match's final shot: the "stone of destiny."
A smitten London Telegraph columnist wrote about her Everywoman appeal, "You could offer her sapphires, diamonds, rubies and she would tell you only one stone is precious to her." That bauble is the 42-pound granite stone that curlers push down sheets of ice toward a bull's-eye called the house.
She and her teammates were hailed as golden girls. One headline gushed, "Home Are the Heroes, Home From the Lake." Nearly six million people in Britain had watched them win.
I liked the headline from the New York times about our ladies curling team - especially on the day when the Rolling Stones are giving a free concert to over 1 million people on the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro.
However the ladies are not doing as well as ourmen'ss team in Italy but lets hope for the best. For those of you who don't know much about curling here a few facts.
Curling is a precision sport similar to bowls or but played on ice with heavy polished granite stones. The game is generally believed to have been invented in 16th century Scotland.
Curling outdoors on the frozen lochs was very popular between the 16th and the 19th centuries when the climate was cold enough to ensure good ice conditions every winter, and as a result the international governing body for curling, the World Curling Federation is based in Perth which is only a few minutes away from me here in rural Perthshire.
Curling has been an official sport in the Winter Olympics since 1998.
The origins of the word curling are not known. It was first used in print in 1630 in Perth, Scotland. Also known as "the roaring game" (because of the sound the stones make whiletravelingg over the pebble), curling probably does not take its name from the motion of the stones.
In the early history of curling, the rocks were simply flat-bottomed river stones which were sometimes notched or shaped; the thrower had little control over the rock, and relied more on luck than skill to win. Look out soon for our Scottish Calendars featuring the lochs where they curled all those years ago.
One possible derivation is that it came from the old verb curr which describes a low rumble. Nevertheless, today a rock which deviates from a straight line is said to curl.
Yours aye
Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
A smitten London Telegraph columnist wrote about her Everywoman appeal, "You could offer her sapphires, diamonds, rubies and she would tell you only one stone is precious to her." That bauble is the 42-pound granite stone that curlers push down sheets of ice toward a bull's-eye called the house.
She and her teammates were hailed as golden girls. One headline gushed, "Home Are the Heroes, Home From the Lake." Nearly six million people in Britain had watched them win.
I liked the headline from the New York times about our ladies curling team - especially on the day when the Rolling Stones are giving a free concert to over 1 million people on the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro.
However the ladies are not doing as well as ourmen'ss team in Italy but lets hope for the best. For those of you who don't know much about curling here a few facts.
Curling is a precision sport similar to bowls or but played on ice with heavy polished granite stones. The game is generally believed to have been invented in 16th century Scotland.
Curling outdoors on the frozen lochs was very popular between the 16th and the 19th centuries when the climate was cold enough to ensure good ice conditions every winter, and as a result the international governing body for curling, the World Curling Federation is based in Perth which is only a few minutes away from me here in rural Perthshire.
Curling has been an official sport in the Winter Olympics since 1998.
The origins of the word curling are not known. It was first used in print in 1630 in Perth, Scotland. Also known as "the roaring game" (because of the sound the stones make whiletravelingg over the pebble), curling probably does not take its name from the motion of the stones.
In the early history of curling, the rocks were simply flat-bottomed river stones which were sometimes notched or shaped; the thrower had little control over the rock, and relied more on luck than skill to win. Look out soon for our Scottish Calendars featuring the lochs where they curled all those years ago.
One possible derivation is that it came from the old verb curr which describes a low rumble. Nevertheless, today a rock which deviates from a straight line is said to curl.
Yours aye
Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Scotland is top for Valentine's Romantic spots
According to Scottish Television to-day - Being Valentines Day, romantic Scots are being reminded that the perfect place to spend it may be closer to home than they might think.
National tourist body, VisitScotland has launched a new website highlighting ideal locations to have a memorable break.
Scotland has become increasingly popular for romantic breaks, with celebrity couples such as Madonna and Guy Ritchie opting to holiday north of the border.
I'm not sure which particular part of Scotland I would call the most romantic. Having photographed most of our famous beauty spots for our scottish calendars there are so many to choose. The Trossachs looking down over Loch Katrine, Elgol on Skye, The Blacksmiths Cottage at Gretna Green, The peace of Knoydart, The enchanted forest at Dunkeld, The Beaches on the Western Isles or what about Picnics on Loch Lomond.
I hope you can come and see them all
Yours aye
Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
What is a Scottish Clan
Clan from the Gaelic for children can be defined more easily as a group of people which is made up from a number of families with common ancestors.
These family groupings are accompanied by a further number of dependent and associated families who have either sought the protection of the clan at some point in history or have been tenants or vassals of its chief.
Traditionally that chief is owed allegiance by all members of the clan. Allegiance was generally given to a father's clan, but Celtic tradition includes a strong element of descent through, and loyalty to, a mother's line.
However it was common practise for the clan chief to adopt into the family those people with the necessary skills to help the local clan cause. They in turn would normally adopt the clan surname.
To further complicate matters there are also a Clan Sept A Sept is a family name which can be related to a clan or larger family for various reasons: Either through marriage or by seeking protection from a larger and more powerful neighbouring clan or family.
Many of the names which are recorded as septs have since become clans in their own right and many can be related to more than one clan.
We have a list of over 100 clan names in our clan stationery range which are in common usage today. Most of these clans have a current chief and many are still in the great castles and houses of Scotland.
Yours aye
Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Sunday, February 05, 2006
The Isle of Bute in the Clyde
Yet another hectic weekend - We were involved in the printing of the programmes for the annual showbiz ball in Glasgow. As you can imagine a very glitzy night.
The committee decided this year to include one of our pocket and bag notebooks as a gift for the guests along with some other goodies. I will put a photo of them on the site soon.
We also had time to visit some of our clients on the west coast. It was a fantastic day as we drove down the clyde and stopped off for a bite of lunch overlooking Rothesay on the Isle of Bute where you can find wonderful luxury self catering accommodation. From there you can look over to the isle of Arran.
Bute is a beautiful accessible island, which is 15 miles long and 4 miles wide. It is situated in the Clyde estuary on the west coast of Scotland and about 35 miles from Glasgow. It has a good road network and is serviced by frequent car ferry service from the mainland .
The trip on our rib is about 20 minutes but if you have to take the ferry, the journey is 35 minutes and there are sailings throughout the year. There is also a year round ferry service from the north end of the island to the mainland. There is a rail connection to the ferry terminal at Wemyss Bay.
Yours aye Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Images of Scotland for you to take home
The committee decided this year to include one of our pocket and bag notebooks as a gift for the guests along with some other goodies. I will put a photo of them on the site soon.
We also had time to visit some of our clients on the west coast. It was a fantastic day as we drove down the clyde and stopped off for a bite of lunch overlooking Rothesay on the Isle of Bute where you can find wonderful luxury self catering accommodation. From there you can look over to the isle of Arran.
Bute is a beautiful accessible island, which is 15 miles long and 4 miles wide. It is situated in the Clyde estuary on the west coast of Scotland and about 35 miles from Glasgow. It has a good road network and is serviced by frequent car ferry service from the mainland .
The trip on our rib is about 20 minutes but if you have to take the ferry, the journey is 35 minutes and there are sailings throughout the year. There is also a year round ferry service from the north end of the island to the mainland. There is a rail connection to the ferry terminal at Wemyss Bay.
Yours aye Gordon Flavell
www.flavell.com
Images of Scotland for you to take home
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