Tartan, the woven, checked, and wool textile considered by many to be originally from Scotland, has in fact been in use in a range of forms across numerous cultures and during various historical periods. The characteristic checked feature is due to the assembly of different coloured threads in both warp and weft directions which intersect at 90 degrees in a combination known as a sett. For well over one hundred years, different setts and thus different colour combinations have been associated closely with different geographical regions within Scotland, as well as different clans or families. Tartan-type textiles have reached popularity at various times and those have often been a predicted fashion trend suggested, for example, by contributors to fashion gatherings such as Premier Vision in Paris. Often proposed designs are best considered based on tartan combinations rather than simple reproductions. Promotional terms such as “patched checks” or “textured checks” have been common, and often these have been derived from tartan-type constructions. This paper explores novel pattern design methods by identifying the underlying grid structures and proportions exhibited by various well-known tartan setts. The possibility of pattern development from tartan grids and their manipulations is thus the focus of attention. An insight into the methodology associated with the production of original pattern designs is thus provided.

It is common knowledge that a conventionally woven textile consists of two assemblies of parallel threads (warp and weft), one interlaced with the other at ninety degrees. Where each of the two assemblies is arranged in a particular colour sequence, a check design, known as a ‘tartan’, may be created. Although similar check-type cloths have been produced worldwide, it is the tartans of Scotland which have received most attention and it is here that a complex set of rules evolved and tartans of different types became associated traditionally with different regions, family groups or 'clans'. There is an impressive array of publications focused on the identification of tartans and their clan associations. This paper explains the nature of tartans, analyses typical surface structures, ratios and proportions, and suggests possible avenues of use for modern designers. The principal sources of data were a collection of tartans held at ULITA - An Archive of International Textiles (University of Leeds, UK) and Stewart's 1974 publication The Setts of Scottish Tartans. Based on the observation that divisions into halfs and thirds were dominant, a series of templates is presented with the intention of developing an awareness among designers that ratios and proportions used in familiar or traditional frameworks can be employed in a modern context.

It is recognized that the global apparel market of the twenty-first century is largely profit driven, and that the majority of producers and retailers have sourced products from the lowest cost locations. Purchase tickets of fashion goods available from ‘fast’ fashion retailers (at least within the UK) refrain from providing the consumer with details of the full circumstances of production. It seems that the majority of major retailers and producers are not willing to engage in levels of self-regulation which could ensure that the products offered to consumers are ethically produced and offer acceptable levels of sustainability. Meanwhile many fashion consumers have the desire to purchase sustainable products, produced ethically by workers paid fair wages in safe working environments. Consumer demand could be a powerful tool to adjust the behaviour of manufacturers and buyers. This paper proposes the introduction of international legislation demanding greater degrees of transparency than exist currently and that the full sourcing and production details of fashion products are stated clearly on the product’s purchase ticket within its retail setting. With the introduction of such legislation, consumers could thus be given the opportunity of purchasing goods which they feel accommodate their own views on ethical manufacture and sustainable products. In turn, consumer pressure could ensure indirectly that retail buyers consider all ethical and sustainable aspects of production when negotiating with garment producers/suppliers. Further to this, such a negotiating stance could ensure the improvement of the terms and conditions of employment of the numerous garment workers worldwide.

Checks are best considered as a (visible) sub-set of grids, and each check consists of two assemblies of parallel lines, one superimposed on the other at ninety degrees. In the conventional textile context, one assembly of parallel yarns is superimposed on another at ninety degrees. These parallel lines caused by the yarns remain visually apparent in the finished composition. Commonly, checks are considered simply as a variety of woven textile and Scottish clan tartans, or plaids (common terminology for tartans in the USA), famously display a checked feature, using differently colored yarns in woven-textile form. Often the sequence of colours and the numbers of yarns used is equal in both warp and weft directions. Where this is the case, the tartan may be considered to be ‘balanced’ or ‘regular’, with the component yarns creating square units repeating across and down the fabric. Thus in balanced tartans, lengthways components have identical ordering, colouring and measured width to those used widthways. Meanwhile an unbalanced check lacks one or more of these attributes. This paper explores further the nature of Scottish clan tartans, using data collected from collections of rare tartans held at ULITA – An Archive of International Textiles at the University of Leeds.