Ever since I was a child, I have felt a strange connection and pull to the tartan pattern. As an adult, I have spent many nights fantasizing of a past life, where I was a Scottish princess, wearing a beautiful tartan gown and dancing the night away with a strong, masculine Scottish warrior. Unfortunately I always wake up as the fun part stars, when he begins to readjust his kilt… You now understand why this dream is so tempting – what does the warrior wear underneath his kilt?
Now back to reality, this spring / summer 2016 will see a lot of this fantastic pattern! Vivienne Westwood, one of my favorite designers, featured tartan in her SS16 collection. Everything from dresses, bags and even tartan sunglasses! http://www.viviennewestwood.com/shop/tartan
Many other designers have worked with tartan, such as Burberry, Alexander McQueen, dsquared2, Gucci, and yes, even Chanel! This is a timeless pattern that is beloved by many. It shows class, style, heritage and tradition.
Growing up in the 80s and 90s, I had many pieces with tartan and loved wearing them, while admiring my punk neighbors’ wild lifestyle. This pattern is very adaptable. It can be combined with many different looks. In the photo shooting below, you will see that I combined it with 3 different styles. It can also be worn as a 1-piece dress to the office or on a night out in the town, topped off with black high heels. You can wear tartan to meet your parents-in-law, or go to a punk concert. It is one of the most versatile patterns of our fashion history!
The tartan pattern has a long royal Scottish history behind it. In 1471, the treasurer to King James III purchased tartan cloth for the king and queen. King James V wore tartan whilst hunting in the Highlands in 1538, and King Charles II wore a ribbon of tartan on his coat at his wedding in 1662.1
Tartan leggings were found on the 198 cm handsome “Cherchen Man”, a 3,000-year-old mummy found in the Taklamakan Desert2. Looks like I am not the only one obsessed with my tartan leggings! The Cherchen Man was obviously a very stylish and modern man, back in his dessert days.
What’s good for royalty is also good for us! So my dears, go out there are get yourself some tartan love!
And for my single ladies, even thought the handsome giants are dead for already 3,000 years, at least we still have our tartans to enjoy this summer! ;-)
Have a lovely Wednesday!
Hugs,
Your Gali
1. http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/The-History-of-Tartan/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tartan#Origins
My vest is by Burberry – The Scotch House
Photos by: Polina Brener
