Gordon tartan variations

[Danwell]

I'm hoping a few of the more experienced kilt makers (or Gordon wearers) can help me out.

I have borrowed, a couple of times, a Gordon kilt that a friend owns. I particularly like the set of this tartan because the blue blocks in the sett are of a slightly purplish blue instead of what appears to be the straight blue that all of the other Gordon tartan looks like (see below).

vs


I'm interested (somewhere down the track) in a Gordon kilt in these colours but I want to be sure of getting a tartan sett with the more "purple" blue. Can any kilt makers verify which mills and variations will give me the purple sett I'm looking for? (or even suggest another sett which may be similar)

[Gryphon noir]

There are at least 20 Gordon tartans, as well as variants like the "weathered" which is a favourite of mine.
I also found the purple/indigo colour attractive, so when I received a woven sample of my own tartan (also strongly influenced by the Gordon tartans) with the indigo colour, I knew I had exactly what I wanted. My avatar is close to what you will find under entry #10108 on the Scottish Register of Tartans, but by comparison to the actual material, it's more of an "ancient" version. The actual material has a rich leaf green with indigo blue, much like the colours in your first example (except with a purple stripe instead of the yellow).
If you are ordering a kilt, I'd suggest getting a swatch first to be sure you get the one you like.

[Downunder Kilt]

Danwell, you may like to take a look at the House of Edgar site, they seem to have richer colours in their tartans than other mills. They also have a line of muted tartans which some say are in the middle of modern and ancient colours.

[AKScott]

Definitely order swatches. Eight or ten bucks each, takes about two months to get them in Royal Mail, worth every penny. Sounds like you have time.

And do order one swatch from the Loch Carron Strome line. I got a piece in about a week ago, I see that the tuck-in selvedge on it is going to make the bottom edge of the kilt almost bullet proof.

EDIT: Also keep an eye on the remants pages. Remnants of double wide under one meter long are often priced like swatches. http://www.scotweb.co.uk/buy/tartan-...amily_id=40770

[OC Richard]

The specific shade of blue varies from mill to mill, from weight to weight, and from colour scheme to colour scheme.

There are a number of available colour schemes such as modern, ancient, weathered, muted, etc.

Each mill's "modern" will have slightly different shades.

And the same mill's colours/shades might vary a bit between their 13oz and their 17oz fabric.

So yes you will need swatches.

People often don't notice, by the way, how much purple is present in the colour we call "navy blue".

[M. A. C. Newsome]

The two examples you showed to us are both computer generated images, rather than photographs of woven fabric. The issue you are discussing is not really one of choosing between two different Gordon tartans, but simply one of which mill's "blue" you like better than another. That will of course vary from mill to mill.

If you like the shade in your friend's kilt, why not ask him where he got it, and does he know what mill wove the cloth?

Barring that, do as others have suggested and request sample swatches from various mills before you order your kilt.

[RockyR]

Your FIRST picture looks like a variation of Gordon... it has black lines surrounding the yellow stripe. All of the mills in Scotland weave it without the black surrounds. The 'Standard' Gordon tartan is just yellow flanked by green.

[Downunder Kilt]

Danwell, first photo is your original, second photo is House of Edgar, heavyweight tartan, closest I could find







Good luck with the hunt

[OC Richard]

It was common in the 19th century for weavers to add black lines to either side of light stripes to reinforce them. So you'll often see the same tartan both with and without these lines.

[RockyR]

It was common in the 19th century for weavers to add black lines to either side of light stripes to reinforce them. So you'll often see the same tartan both with and without these lines.

Yes, but in some cases, it changes the name of the tartan. Case in point: Lamont Vs Forbes.