‘Checked’ the Tartans?

The tartans and check patterns are making a comeback! From the likes of Vivienne Westwood to Chanel investing in this look, could we be in tartans before we know it?

  Harris Tweed has been weaving cloth (hand-made) for many years, but it seems that his supplier demand has increased severely over the past 15 months. A few years ago (5 years if you want to be precise), the cloth weaving industry thought they were a-goner!  But think again cloth weavers because top designers Vivienne Westwood, Chanel, Couture and Alexander McQueen are demanding! (As well as Range Rovers but this is a fashion blog so we’ll stay on topic!) With over a million metres of tweed being sold in the past year the cloth industry is having a blast.

  It’s not the first time that Vivienne has used tartan and checked patterns in here collections though! In the Autumn/Winter of 1987-88 Vivienne made this beauty of a jacket out of sample blankets from Harris Tweed. It was this jacket in fact that was one of the pieces that helped Westwood make her name in the industry!

                                               Above, The Vivienne Westwood jacket.

  

 With the Japanese already tuned into the tartan trend (with tartan phone cases, accessories and clothes -obsessed some may say) now it’s our time to sport the checked patterns and tartan wear! With the recent uproar of the sales it will come to no surprise to all of us when the tartans finally hit the catwalks and high streets. So keep an eye out! Before you know it you’ll be strutting your stuff in the tartans!