McFarland Family Trees

02/07/2024

A Scottish Genealogy Experience with McFarland Family Trees at The Fife Arms

Credits:
Calligraphy: Jenni Liandu www.jlcalligraphy.com
Photography: Russell www.aboynephotographics.com
Planned: Range Curated www.rangecurated.com

21/06/2024

You know you work in the Highlands when you use antlers as paperweights!

It is always a treat to be up in Braemar at The Fife Arms working with clients to discover their Scottish genealogy.

Yesterday charted an inspiring family story from crofting in Thurso, on the north coast of Scotland, through the Victorian mills of Dundee, all the way to the bustling cities of New York and Boston in the early twentieth century.

08/03/2024

McFarland Family Trees is so proud to share that one of our hand-calligraphed family trees is featured in Series 2 of The Reluctant Traveller with Eugene Levy on Apple TV, Episode 2. The hand-calligraphed family tree was drawn by our calligraphist Vicki Madden.

Check it out on Apple TV from today!

After confronting some of his long-held fears in season one, Emmy Award winner Eugene Levy steps out of his comfort zone once again. This time, he's embarkin...

04/10/2023

If you’ve ever wondered how a hand-calligraphed tree is made, our lovely calligraphist Vicki explains the process, which takes 20 hours, from start to finish.

1) Pencil outline
2) Map calligraphy guidelines
3) Draft all names, dates and locations in pencil
4) Mix custom ink colours
5) Calligraph over the pencil
6) Leave to dry for 12 hours
7) Retrace pencil connection lines with a fine liner
8 ) Erase all guidelines
9) Check for any touch ups
10) Package carefully and ship to client

If you are interested in our hand-calligraphed family tree option, do get in touch :)

22/06/2023

Not one but two trees for some lovely guests today at The Fife Arms in Braemar.

Andrea & Jason, from Canada, wanted their daughters to learn more about their Scottish heritage. I had such a fun morning explaining the process of researching their genealogy and showing them where their ancestors originated from.

15/06/2023

Travel genealogy is on the rise!

In every family there is always an archivist. I was gifted the family collection after my grandmother died and was always fascinated by the story of my great great-uncle Jack Smyth, a talented linguist who served in the First World War and lived abroad. We knew he had a family in Spain and I was curious about this, as I had some wonderful personalised photographs and postcards he had sent home.

After several years I managed to track down his grandchildren and recently took a trip out with my aunt (deputy family historian) and wife (much valued interpreter!) to meet them and return the photos to their rightful owners. We had an extraordinary three days in Galicia sharing stories, meeting all the family and delighting in our shared heritage.

There were tears when we gifted the photographs and we took pictures of the Irish and Spanish cousins meeting in the same spot 90 years apart.

We all felt that somewhere, our grandparents were smiling.

22/05/2023

It is always so lovely to meet clients in person and talk them through their family trees.

Julie, from Florida, knew she had a Scottish great-grandmother and was interested to find out more. It was a delight to give her a tour of her ancestry during her stay at The Fife Arms in Braemar, as part of the Scottish Genealogy Experience.

It is estimated that around 20-25 million Americans have Scottish ancestry...! If you are one of them do get in with McFarland Family Trees :)

22/03/2023

McFarland Family Trees is delighted to partner with Candacraig to provide a bespoke Scottish Genealogy Experience for guests.

Candacraig is a stunning, exclusive-use, luxury Highland estate, where exceptional hospitality is complemented by a remarkable setting, and where the atmosphere is always private, warm and welcoming.

Combine discovering your Scottish heritage with a wild and beautiful trip to the Cairngorms. Prior to your stay, I will be working in the background to research your genealogy, after which you will then be presented with a digital, printed or hand-calligraphed tree against the backdrop of the historical Aberdeenshire estate.

For more information, check out candacraig.com.

08/03/2023

Do you have Irish ancestors in Ulster? I cannot recommend The Ulster Historical Foundation enough! They have so many individual databases you cannot access elsewhere, with a particular focus on migration to North America in the early nineteenth century. You also get this lovely periodical each year, with fascinating articles and reviews of books.

https://www.ancestryireland.com

08/02/2023

I had such a fun time exploring Joanne's ancestry, from Cornwall in the 1600s, to the present day in Belfast. What a lovely birthday idea for her mum and it's so nice to see the finished product printed out for the whole family to enjoy :)

tree

10/01/2023

Did you know McFarland Family Trees also offers the option of having a record of your family documents alongside your tree? This allows you to treasure a birth, marriage, death or will as it was recorded. It can tell you fascinating personal information, such as the locations, addresses, occupations, witnesses and even the signatures of your ancestors.

And - depending on the date or location - this can be printed for free :)

To protect client confidentially, here are some examples from my own ancestry that I hold very dear.

03/01/2023

Another happy customer, all the way from Willmar, Minnesota! Thank you Roger Olson for choosing McFarland Family Trees to research your heritage. I had a fantastic time exploring your Swedish roots.

It's so lovely to see clients enjoying their trees and sharing them with family 🙂