State Tartans

[Brian K]

I'd be really interested in a New York State tartan... if one existed!

Still waiting for a talented tartan designer* to remedy the situation...

* I'm not...!

From one Brian to another, and as a fellow New Yorker, I've thought about designing one myself. I've designed a lot of tartans with the Scotweb tartan designer but as yet haven't done anything about a state tartan. Of course, for all I know, I could already have designed one that would work.

The biggest difficulty, I think, would be getting someone in Albany to be interested enough in a state tartan to push some legislation through approving a design and then getting the Governor to sign it. I could design a New York tartan (any ideas, Brian?) but it means nothing if it doesn't have official sanction.

Regards,

Brian

[Woodsheal]

Hi, Brian!

In terms of design elements, my ideas would be: a dark green base for the forests and mountains (maybe with brown added somehow), blue bands for the all of our lakes (Great, Finger, George and Champlain), gray lines for our famous cities. Something along those lines, eh?

I have an aquaintance with my local state senator and when the time comes could run the idea by him, and my local assemblyman as well.

Other New Yorkers can weigh in here on design ideas, and I'm sure we could get other state legislators involved as well.

But, since you have tartan design experience, Brian, why don't you run with this and and let us see what you come up with...!

[macwilkin]

From one Brian to another, and as a fellow New Yorker, I've thought about designing one myself. I've designed a lot of tartans with the Scotweb tartan designer but as yet haven't done anything about a state tartan. Of course, for all I know, I could already have designed one that would work.

The biggest difficulty, I think, would be getting someone in Albany to be interested enough in a state tartan to push some legislation through approving a design and then getting the Governor to sign it. I could design a New York tartan (any ideas, Brian?) but it means nothing if it doesn't have official sanction.

Regards,

Brian

Talk to some of the NY based Caledonian & St. Andrew's Societies for support in lobbying.

T.

[Galician]

I'll just add to my own experience of spending over two years trying to get the NYC tartan officially approved by the City Council.

Despite my own councilmember's expressed interest, his legislative aides put faaaar off to the back burner, and kept stonewalling me about its progress. I would try to recruit those few other kiltwears I met to contact their own representatives. I got no response.

Eventually I tried to reach out to the local Scottish societies. They showed no interest in supporting this legislation. I was told by some in the know that they had their own interests when it came to official tartans.

Finally I had personal matters arise which did not allow me to continue the effort.

[Semiomniscient]

I'll just add to my own experience of spending over two years trying to get the NYC tartan officially approved by the City Council.

Despite my own councilmember's expressed interest, his legislative aides put faaaar off to the back burner, and kept stonewalling me about its progress. I would try to recruit those few other kiltwears I met to contact their own representatives. I got no response.

Eventually I tried to reach out to the local Scottish societies. They showed no interest in supporting this legislation. I was told by some in the know that they had their own interests when it came to official tartans.

Finally I had personal matters arise which did not allow me to continue the effort.

I wasn't active in my local Scottish communities in Louisiana when our groups were pushing to get the Louisiana Tartan through the state house and senate. The local talk-radio station didn't help matters in that they made fun of the idea considering it a waste of legislative time. But what I've heard is that the first 3/4 of legislative sessions are "feel good" stuff because all the serious bills are held up in committee until the last. Anyway, we ended up having a lobbyist who happened to be a member of many of the major Scottish and Celtic societies in the capitol-area push the bill through. We probably wouldn't be able to have done this without that kind of support.