TARTAN
On our wedding day my husband wore a kilt made from his families Lennox tartan. It still hangs in the wardrobe. Its rarely seen out, but somehow symbolises a link with Scottish heritage. My knowledge of tartan is no better or worse than most people. I believe it originates from the dress of ancient Scottish highlanders, and different tartans represent different areas or clans although I am aware that its history has been romanticised along the way. Somehow kilts have become a national dress and tartan synonymous with Scotland. Think of tartan and you think of shortbread, bagpipes, and the carpet and curtains of almost every Scottish hotel. But it is also strongly associated with the English royal family. The image of Prince Charles in a skirt of brightly coloured checked material seems a long way from marauding, rugged Scotsman who would have viewed the English monarchy as the most hated enemy.
Tartan is establishment, but also anti-establishment. Think of punk trousers and Jean Paul Gautier's mini kilts. If tartan is a design classic; who designed it? How can it be so recognisable and yet there are so many different variations? It has been around for hundreds of years so can knowledge of how its made inform us in making organic sustainable products today?
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