Tartan Designs for Weavers

I have to remind myself that tartan design is an art and art should be shared.My desire to create tartans began in November, 2010. After ten months of grief, I thought it was incumbent on me to design a tartan in honor of a friend who had been killed earlier in the year.

Nathan "Dirk" Smiler was often seen wearing kilts. Other friends and schoolmates would also wear kilts. Taking that into account, it appropriate to design a tartan that represented Dirk. With the help of a few friends who knew Dirk best and Dirk's Mother, Dirk's tartan was completed and registered in the Scottish Register of Tartans.

In 2012, I had designed enough tartans to compile into a catalog of original designs. Of the approximately 900 designs, 27 tartans were selected. Tartan Designs for Weavers is more of a portfolio or catalog of my original designs. Each tartan presented in the book include design details, thread count, color palette, and a large image to show detail and approximate color tone. What follows is each tartan designs image and tartan details. Thread count and color palette details have been excluded from this lens.

This portfolio of tartan designs is intended for weavers, artists, students, and textile mills the world over. The details in this book may be used to weave tartan textiles to be made into products one may sell locally or globally.

Tartan Designs for Weavers is formatted to reflect the Scottish Register of Tartans' registration criteria. It lists the required information on each tartan so any weaver can reference whatever detail they decide to weave. The book also includes a space beneath each tartan design detail for weaver's notes. This book may be used in conjunction with other tartan related books, weaving books/DVDs, and kiltmaking books.

Students of fiber arts and cottage industry weavers are especially encouraged to use the tartan design details. It should be used as a basic guide to tartan weaving in twill and herring bone weaving structures. Weaving instructors are encouraged to use excerpts from this book as part of their class curriculum. The book may be incorporated into the book list for the class. Each tartan may also be used as templates for teaching basic tartan design.

Aces High 2

Reference: JOTD-5

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 02/10/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This design is a variation of the Aces High tartan.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Alyssa's Theme

Reference: SRT-10656

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 10/07/2012

Registration Date: 25 July 2012

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was created for Alyssa Elliott as a thank-you for helping the designer recover from two reconstructive surgeries, one in 2006 and one in 2007.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

The Brotherhood of Dirk

Reference: SRT-10343

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 29/12/2010

Registration Date: 17 January 2011

Category: Corporate

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was designed to honor the life of Dirk Smiler. The name is that of the facebook group set up in the wake of Dirk's death.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Common Ground (Dress)

Reference: SRT-10579

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 03/03/2012

Registration Date: 8 March 2012

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: Designed to commemorate the bicentennial of the War of 1812. The United States of America declared war on Britain in 1812 for many reasons including restrictions on American trade resulting from Britain's ongoing war with France; British support of American Indians; and the potential American expansion into Canada. The 'common ground' referred to in the name of the tartan is the contemporary ability of the US and Britain to co-operate 200 years later.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

The Court of the Crimson King

Reference: JOTD-8

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 19/11/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was designed as a tribute to the fans and band members of the rock group 'King Crimson'.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Freeport

Reference: JOTD-11

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 07/12/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was designed to represent 'Freeport House' in San Francisco, CA. The house is so named to welcome family, friends and guests.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

The Golden West

Reference: JOTD-9

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 13/12/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was designed to represent the California Coast, the people and the geography of the region. Colors: blue grey represents the Pacific Ocean; umber represents the California golden bear (now extinct); gold represents the Gold Rush of 1849; black represents the lives lost in the San Francisco earthquake on April 18th, 1906; white represents the people's ability to recover from earthquakes that often occur in the Golden State.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

The Good Knight

Reference: JOTD-1

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 03/01/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan is intended to be a fashion design.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Humanitarian Mission (Gold)

Reference: JOTD-15

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 24/12/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan design is a gold version of the Humanitarian Mission (Dress) tartan. This design comes from the Humanitarian Mission tartan collection. Colors: red represents the Red Cross/Red Crescent; white represents its humanitarian mission; grey represents man-made and natural disasters worldwide, to which volunteers respond everyday; old gold serves as a reminder that volunteers are golden; black represents those volunteers who have lost their lives while participating in the International Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Humanitarian Mission (Memorial)

Reference: JOTD-16

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 24/12/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This design is a memorial version of the Humanitarian Mission (Dress) tartan. This design comes from the Humanitarian Mission tartan collection. It was designed to represent volunteers who have lost their lives while participating in the International Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Jon's Theme (Dress)

Reference: JOTD-6

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 14/11/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This design is a dress version of the Jon's Theme tartan.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Loyal Friends

Reference: JOTD-13

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 18/11/2012

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan was designed to celebrate the greatest and most important gift of all; friendship. It is a miracle of life that is quite possibly the highest form of love. Friendship is as essential to the soul as water is to the body. That is something worth

celebrating.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Piedmont

Reference: JOTD-19

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 22/05/2013

Registration Date: Not registered.

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This tartan is intended to be a fashion design.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Riley's Theme (Dress)

Reference: JOTD-7

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 14/11/2012

Registration Date: Not registered

Category: Fashion

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: This design is a dress version of the Riley's Theme tartan.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes

Gerald William Orr Senior

Reference: SRT-10534

Designer: Orr, John

Tartan Date: 20/12/2011

Registration Date: 29 December 2011

Category: Name

Restrictions: No.

Registration notes: Designed for the family of LTC Gerald W Orr Sr., US Army (retired), and his descendants. Anyone bearing the surname ‘Orr’ and associated surnames is welcome to wear this tartan.

Symmetrical: Yes

Warp and weft identical: Yes