Which tartan can i wear

I'm getting married soon and would like some Russell ribbon for our bouquets - where can I get it? What we usually try and do if possible is to suggest a ribbon that might pass for the required one. In this case the 'Rose' ribbon has the same colours as the Russell although not quite in the same place!

If you're going to be using a fairly narrow ribbon it will hardly show! Have a look at our on article on Ribbon. We are considering the creation of a tartan for the MacTufty surname.

To my knowledge there is no family or clan chief - is there any reason why we could not proceed in creating a MacTufty tartan and calling it a "Family Tartan"? You're certainly free to design your MacTufty tartan but you can't expect it to be regarded as a clan or family tartan since it is A MacTufty tartan and not THE MacTufty tartan since you have no authority to decide on a tartan that all MacTuftys would wear.

If you were happy for any MacTuftys to wear your design, then its category would change from Personal for you, your family and whoever else you authorised to wear it to what we call a Name tartan - one that can be worn by all of the name.

This may sound pedantic but we have to try and safeguard the traditions that surround tartan. There is a tiny light on the horizon for you of course and that is if your unofficial MacTufty tartan finds favours amongst those of the name, then in time 'by use and wont' it could become recognised as THE MacTufty! I've heard about septs - what are these? Sept is actually an Irish word and we prefer to use the word 'associated' when it comes to linking surnames with traditional clan tatrans. Associations could have come about by various means - marriage, mutual defence packs, seeking of protection or possibly outright takeovers.

Most associated families don't know how their links came about but the happy outcome is that they regard themselves as part of the parent clan and they thus have a traditional tartan to wear. I want to wear a kilt but there doesn't seem to be a tartan for my surname. There are probably still some purists around who say that you can only wear a clan tartan if you have the clan's name as a surname.

If you have some Scottish heritage and want to celebrate it by wearing the kilt then there's nothing to stop you. Look at the surnames of your grandparents and then your great grandparents on both sides of the family and see if any of them give you a genuine link to a tartan. If you come up with nothing then you can always fall back on what we call a District tartan.

This is one that has been designated as being suitable for people from a particular area - a city or locality in Scotland. If you don't fancy that idea then, then there are quite a few general tartans that can be worn by anyone plus a growing number of 'Fashion' tartans. At the end of the day you can actually wear any clan tartan that you like even if you don't have a connection, but most people like to feel their use of a tartan is 'genetically' justified - even if it was only that their Great Granny was frightened by a MacDonald!

If in doubt, have a look at our surname search facility. I'm due to get married to an Aberdonian and would like to wear a kilt, although I am English. I have a Scottish great grandfather who was named Cuthbertson.

Your website has the Angus district tartan listed. While another site has Angus, Inverness and Lothian. Please can you confirm which is correct? Statistically Angus seems to be the winner! Over the decades the Scottish tartan industry has sought to fulfil the huge public demand for tartans. When there was no discernible clan connection, weavers would often seek some other way of linking a name to a tartan.

In the case of Cuthbertson, the scenario may well have been that researchers studied Scotland's electoral rolls or telephone directories to identify where there were large concentrations of that surname. That's not an unreasonable method bearing in mind that probably all clan tartans started life as district tartans - most of the people living in one glen would use the output from the same weaver and since they invariably belonged to the same clan or were dependants of that clan chief, that district tartan eventually became associated with the people from that area rather than the area.

One researcher may have decided that since the county of Angus had the most, he would stick at that. A later researcher may have added areas where there were sizeable but lesser numbers of Cuthbertsons and so we end up with an anomaly, the solution to which may never appear. Sorry not to be more helpful.

Try looking at names further back on your great grandfather's and great grandmother's side and see if you can come up with one that has a clan connection.

If you're going to hire a kilt for the wedding then your research may have been wasted since you'll have a pretty limited choice of tartans to choose from.

Whatever tartan you wear, enjoy it. A closing thought - if your bride is an Aberdonian why not get married life off to a good start and show her who's boss by wearing the Aberdeen tartan!

SALE view all sale items Ethical Kilts. Tartans What Tartan can I wear? What Tartan can I wear? Tartans A — Z. People wore tartans they liked. And you can feel free to do the same today.

In fact, it's probably the most traditional thing you can do. That being said, time does not stand still. Today, the tradition has evolved to the point where tartans are representative and symbolic. Tartans that represent clans are the most familiar, but tartans can also represent families, regiments, cities, states, events, businesses, individuals, occupations, you name it.

When you wear a particular tartan, you are identifying yourself with whatever that tartan represents. Most people choose to wear a tartan that has some connection with their heritage. But the choice of which tartan to wear is entirely personal. There are no requirements to wear a tartan, no authorizations needed. You simply pick the tartan you want to wear, whatever your reason. Most people, no doubt, choose to wear a tartan associated with their family.

Typically, if the surname you bear has a tartan affiliated with it, this is the first choice. However, there is nothing wrong with wearing a tartan from your mother's side of the family, or your great-great grandmother, for that matter. Maybe you like that side of the family better and wish to honor them by wearing their tartan. Maybe you find your father's tartan unattractive.

Maybe one tartan is simply more easily available than the other. There could be many reasons to consider, but it is entirely up to you. Once you have selected your tartan, you may still find yourself faced with a variety of choices. You may find that your clan has an ancient, modern, and weathered tartan, as well as a dress and hunting version.