From Coat of Arms to Tartan: The Cadilhac Case.

[Tarheel]

My favorite (box pleat) will look good in this tartan. Sometimes a budget brings unexpected treasures. I think you will be pleased.

[AFS1970]

Coming into this a bit late but reading this brought up some questions.

With the use of the Quebec tartan, is this because of some family connection or simply because you like it? If there is a family connection then using it as a starting point makes more sense to me. If not is there a district or regional tartan that there is a family connection to that might provide some more inspiration?

Using the colors of the coat of arms is an interesting idea, but as has been shown there has to be some changes to the proportions. The white or grey being a major part of the coat but not all that attractive as a major part of a tartan. The open collar being a relatively small part of the coat but a big part of the tartan. I think all of these factors can still work, as has been shown by some of the later suggestions.

The main color, which is almost a background color (at least to my mind), can set the tone of the tartan. I personally am not a big fan of black tartans, although I have seen some that I like individually. I wonder if swapping the black and blue might make for a brighter and more blue based tartan? When I look at the coat of arms my eyes are drawn to the blue at the top and not so much to the black of the dog, although I think they are probably somewhat equal in proportion to the entire coat.

All in all, nice job with the design(s) and this has helped me learn more about designing a tartan.