The Scottish Wildcat Tartan thread: conceived here on X-Marks!

[Theyoungkiltman]

I think the design is near perfect, especially considering the short time it took to come from idea to near finished pattern. Good job Alan and McMurdo

[McMurdo]

I have taken another run at it taking into account some of the suggestions here. I have not deleted the previous version so here is another try with the green turned to yellow and the lighter brown turned to grey and the black thickened up. So what does everyone think of this version? @Jock Scot, @AlanH

[StoneStopper]

Alan (It's Greg). Count me in for material!

Cheers,
G

[Theyoungkiltman]

I do like the new one a wee bit better.

[unixken]

I'm thinking that with the additional black, and the loss of contrasting lighter stripes that were in the previous version, the look of the tartan is beginning to "muddy". Stand across the room from your monitor and look at the design on the screen. Against all the dark, only the small grey and yellow add any visual interest, and the black stripes disappear into the brown. (And as the light shades also blur together a bit from a distance, the overall effect is a dark muddy fabric, with a thin light stripe every 7 inches.)

Regardless of the inspiration for a tartan (any tartan), and how true the colors are to the source of that inspiration (and the proportions of those colors, one to the others), the design needs to be something with an eye toward marketability. An overwhelming "black on dark brown" (or "dark brown on black") isn't necessarily something that's going to have mass appeal. If you want a lot of black, use a lighter shade of brown throughout, for some contrasts. If you want the brown to be dark, break it up with some lighter contrasts.

Consider that the cat's coat is intended to blend the cat INTO the background. To effectively make it disappear. The tartan, on the other hand, is intended to "raise awareness to a cause". To do that, it needs at least some degree of visual interest to stand out, and separate it FROM from the background. Black on brown doesn't do that, to my eye. (Like looking at a Black Watch tartan, in dark, modern colors, at an indoor, evening event. It all looks too dark, and the eye has nothing to key in on.)

Just something to consider.

[Dixiecat]

Sorry Glen, that one doesn't seem like it either. A good contender, but, I really think that you're all going about this the wrong way. It would be great if one of our resident designers like figheadair could comment.

I think that you're looking at this backwards. You're all jumping on the wildcat bandwagon without actually paying attention to the cat itself. While yes, a good commercial tartan is nice, it's not what the design should be centered on. Once you've identified what it is you want to be passionate about, a good design will come. But, starting with the idea of 'hey, let's have a tartan! Who wants to buy!' is just not right.

And, I hope to goodness that the design will be donated to the Haven which means you really should get their input. What do we matter?

Anyway, start with the heart of the tartan. Identify the colour palette you'd like to work with and give it meaning. Really look at your subject, it's environment.

Black: Pretty much the first thing you see about the cat is it's markings. The black stands out.
Brown/Grey: The background colours of the fur. Yet, it's not just brown, there are variations of browns and greys and the guard hairs have that distinctive ticking.
Gold or Green: The eyes and the colour of the bracken and grasses that the cat can hide in.

Now you need to make it mean something.

Black: Stands for the distinctive black stripes of the wildcat and the shadows in which it hides
Medium Brown/Light Brown/Tan: Is for the lovely fur and guard hairs that give the cat the camouflage
Grey: For the twilight in which the population sits.
Green: For the wary eyes of the Scottish wildcat, reminding us that they look to us to help their population to survive.

Since the designs have been muddy and getting muddier, why not start with a black background? And, keep the green as it will pop.

[McMurdo]

Sorry Glen, that one doesn't seem like it either. A good contender, but, I really think that you're all going about this the wrong way. It would be great if one of our resident designers like figheadair could comment.

I think that you're looking at this backwards. You're all jumping on the wildcat bandwagon without actually paying attention to the cat itself. While yes, a good commercial tartan is nice, it's not what the design should be centered on. Once you've identified what it is you want to be passionate about, a good design will come. But, starting with the idea of 'hey, let's have a tartan! Who wants to buy!' is just not right.

And, I hope to goodness that the design will be donated to the Haven which means you really should get their input. What do we matter?

Anyway, start with the heart of the tartan. Identify the colour palette you'd like to work with and give it meaning. Really look at your subject, it's environment.

Black: Pretty much the first thing you see about the cat is it's markings. The black stands out.
Brown/Grey: The background colours of the fur. Yet, it's not just brown, there are variations of browns and greys and the guard hairs have that distinctive ticking.
Gold or Green: The eyes and the colour of the bracken and grasses that the cat can hide in.

Now you need to make it mean something.

Black: Stands for the distinctive black stripes of the wildcat and the shadows in which it hides
Medium Brown/Light Brown/Tan: Is for the lovely fur and guard hairs that give the cat the camouflage
Grey: For the twilight in which the population sits.
Green: For the wary eyes of the Scottish wildcat, reminding us that they look to us to help their population to survive.

Since the designs have been muddy and getting muddier, why not start with a black background? And, keep the green as it will pop.

First off I am a designer, yes a graphic designer but I have had over 25 years at that, as such I do understand colour theory. I think you have taken my interest in this all wrong and you need to know that any design I do here will be no charge, my concern is a commercially viable tartan that may help the cause. So before you go and call us all down for just wanting a tartan you may want to re read the threads Alan has started both on the tartan and the cat itself and its plight. As for me I will continue to design what I and the majority of people on this site actually like. Thank you for your input.

[unixken]

I think that you're looking at this backwards. You're all jumping on the wildcat bandwagon without actually paying attention to the cat itself. While yes, a good commercial tartan is nice, it's not what the design should be centered on. Once you've identified what it is you want to be passionate about, a good design will come. But, starting with the idea of 'hey, let's have a tartan! Who wants to buy!' is just not right.

I caution, however, that if the fabric will go for anything in the price range thus far bandied about, add to that any percentage that you'd want directed to the Haven, plus VAT/Duties, plus shipping... if my $90/yard fabric is going to cost me $110/yard when all is said and done, it has to be something that appeals to the eye (not just the heart), else, I'd say "that's nice", and just give $50 directly to the Haven, without the expense of the fabric. I'd save, the Haven would get more than it would from a percentage of my tartan purchase, and the tartan itself might thus be little more than a thread count in the STR. It has to be INSPIRED BY the cat. But it also has to be marketable, if there's any hope for widespread sale.

As for the flecks/speckles in the actual cat's coat, I believe a tweed, with it's blends of many colors in any given thread, would more closely be able to replicate that look, than a tartan made of single-colored threads.

[Dixiecat]

First off I am a designer, yes a graphic designer but I have had over 25 years at that, as such I do understand colour theory. I think you have taken my interest in this all wrong and you need to know that any design I do here will be no charge, my concern is a commercially viable tartan that may help the cause. So before you go and call us all down for just wanting a tartan you may want to re read the threads Alan has started both on the tartan and the cat itself and its plight. As for me I will continue to design what I and the majority of people on this site actually like. Thank you for your input.

Try not to take this personal. I'm not talking colour theory, but tartan design with heart. I haven't said that the tartans that you've designed haven't been pleasing, just that they aren't representative of the wildcat. And, I can read, yes, over 50years I've been reading and knew about the plight of the wildcat before the bandwagon hit xmarks. I've read the threads and they're more concerned with commercially viable while I'm asking for both viable and representative. So while I haven't been as vocal on the subject as the members who've posted, I still think my input as good as anyone else's here. And, if you're not listening to me and my suggestions it shows that you're only in this for yourself and not the cat and it's survival.

[Dixiecat]

I caution, however, that if the fabric will go for anything in the price range thus far bandied about, add to that any percentage that you'd want directed to the Haven, plus VAT/Duties, plus shipping... if my $90/yard fabric is going to cost me $110/yard when all is said and done, it has to be something that appeals to the eye (not just the heart), else, I'd say "that's nice", and just give $50 directly to the Haven, without the expense of the fabric. I'd save, the Haven would get more than it would from a percentage of my tartan purchase, and the tartan itself might thus be little more than a thread count in the STR. It has to be INSPIRED BY the cat. But it also has to be marketable, if there's any hope for widespread sale.

As for the flecks/speckles in the actual cat's coat, I believe a tweed, with it's blends of many colors in any given thread, would more closely be able to replicate that look, than a tartan made of single-colored threads.

I can say that none of the designs I've seen actually seem to be inspired by the cat. They've just been brown and seem kinda dull. The cat is striking and the tartan should be as well. You can have both, commercially viable AND representative. I just don't think we've hit it yet.

As for your suggestion for the tweed, I don't think it would accurately represent the ticked fur which is not what you're calling flecks or speckles. I'm thinking along the lines of the Canadian Maple Leaf tartan. How the gold graduates from gold, medium gold to light gold. The wildcat tartan could do that with brown, medium brown, light brown. One of Glen's designs kinda does that and it looks good.