The Auchnafree Millennium Circle. An old sheep stell that was rebuilt in 1999 by Norman Dawson, a shepherd on Auchnafree, to mark the Millennium. What a beautiful, lasting contribution Norman has made to the hills where he worked for many a year.
After Part One of How To Build A Drystone Wall was so well received, I thought I'd hustle to finish Part Two which covers retaining walls, copes, cheekends & throughs.
Between Part One and Part Two there should be enough information to build your first drystone wall!
If you have any questions just ask. It will also help me make the information I provide clearer.
https://www.thedrystonecompany.com/drystone-diary/how-to-build-a-drystone-wall-part-two
Four from a day of drystone walling.
Glorious tbh.
(Worth clicking on the photos to see the expanded view)
I've been meaning to do this for a long time but here it is...finally!
How to build a drystone wall - For beginners.
Basic terminology, rules and styles (with photos!)
In Part Two I'll discuss Copes, cheekends and throughs. Coming soon!
https://www.thedrystonecompany.com/drystone-diary/how-to-build-a-drystone-wall-part-one
We're part of the way through this drystone job, and I'm really enjoying it. Here, you can see the retaining wall we're building from Yorkshire sandstone. Very pleased with how this is coming together.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, there's nothing better than drystone in the summer.
A wee reminder that we don't just blog about our drystone work but also interesting historic sites that we visit across Scotland. Many of which are off the beaten track. Great info and photos for those who enjoy that sort of thing.
If you ever have any questions just ping us over an email.
Very few things are more beautiful than a planted up drystone wall.
It's wonderful to be able to 'recycle' stone. On this job, we were able to reinstate this small entrance wall using stone from the original mill building that once stood next to the river.
We added a flat cope to the wall, and as I was building, a group of walkers came down the hill, stopped to chat, and posed for photos sitting on this little seat. How lovely!
I've always loved the Hidden Scotland social media accounts, so I was thrilled when they contacted us and asked if they could interview us with regards to our work in drystone.
I thought I'd share the interview here as it gives a really good insight into drystone and our approach to the craft. So, if you would like to learn more about any of that, click on the link below.
Amazing Perthshire Drystone. Standing for hundreds of years. I love a single-skinned dyke.
'And some are loaves and some so nearly balls
We have to use a spell to make them balance:
‘Stay where you are until our backs are turned!’ - Robert Frost
If you would like to learn more drystone terminology, I made a glossary
I mentioned in my intro that I'm a #bookbinder so I thought I really ought to share some of my projects.
The purple one I just finished today. It and the blue one were commissions. The green/tan one is one of my standard designs which will be going onto my Etsy store when I re-launch later this year.
All three of these were rounded and backed case bindings, for those in the know 
As drystone wallers we are often inspired by traditional drystone structures.
This structure was inspired by a sheep stell and was added to a garden as a windbreak/seating area.
You may catch a glimpse of sheep stells as you drive through Scotland's countryside. This build is 12m of continuously curved and sloping wall in a C-shape but stells come in all sorts of other shapes. L-shaped, T-shaped, X-shaped to name a few.
