Today I’m linking up with Ashley’s “I ♥Thursday”!
The Rules (so you can join the fun, too!):
1. Be sure to have I ♥ Thursday in your post title. {You can copy & paste the ♥ into your own post. That is what I do.}
2. Have the button in your post, or link to back to Bramblewood Fashion and have the button in your sidebar.
3. Share anything that you are loving right now. Tutorials, fashion, crafts, music, movies, recipes, quotes, what ever.
4. Have fun visiting everyone's link!
So what am I loving lately? Well, I must
confess to being a wee bit obsessed with tartan!
02.jpg) |
| MacLean variation Tartan [source] |
I’ve always
liked plaids, although I don’t seem to have worn them much growing up. Then I
discovered a wee bit of Scottish blood in our family’s background
(Great-great-great-grandfather McSpadden) and met the adorable Miss Kellie,
whose love of her own (less distant) Scotch roots inspired me to appreciate my
own. My search for the McSpadden clan tartan proved to be a bit confusing
(although one of the MacLean tartans—pictured above—looks a bit like what
was described in this article), but it sparked an interest in other tartans,
specifically in skirt form to go with my solid-colored sweater-sets* and/or
blouses. Pictured below are my favorite finds on Etsy. Enjoy!
* Sweater-set
= A turtlenecked T-shirt with a sweater of the same or similar color.
~Tom’s Dictionary of
Whacked-out Terms and Old Family Sayings
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| [source] |
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| CU of Purple Tartan |
It looks
blue, but it’s really royal purple! How could I resist? ;-)
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| [source] |
Here’s a
color you don’t often see in a tartan—robin’s egg blue! Very striking.
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| [source] |
This pretty
pink skirt reminds me of one my mom had for years. Mom’s was more of a
peach-pink, with grey and white in it. She offered it to me a couple years ago,
but at the time I wasn’t into printed skirts of any sort, and I thought I was still
allergic to wool. So it went to the thrift shop…and I’m still kicking myself.
This skirt is even the same style. Love the minty-greens in it, too!
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| [source] |
Another
purple tartan—probably too “warm” for me (even if I could afford it, that is),
but it’s a very sharp, classic-looking plaid, notwithstanding.
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| [source] |
Speaking of
classic, what could be more so than this Black Watch-looking tartan (right)?
EDIT: Having read the listing again, this is actually an authentic MacCallum tartan. So to any of my Gentle Readers who are MacCallums--this is your tartan!
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| [source] |
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| [source] |
These two
skirts have a similar pattern to them—red plaids on a bluish background— only one
is a true blue, whereas the other is more of a teal-blue. The brighter blue has touches of green and purple, too. Both look very smart!
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| [source] |
Here’s yet
another “purple” tartan—although it’s mostly navy- and royal blue. Normally I don’t care
for purple and blue in combination—too similar—but this pattern makes them look good together.
It’s one of those “I don’t like XYZ… except when I do” moments. :-P The white
plaids make it look really snazzy, too!
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| [source] |
While I
wouldn’t pair any tartan with, say, a floral print, this grey-and-white combo
would go smashingly with any solid-colored top, while still having that classic
tartan look to it.
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| [source] |
On the other
side of the coin, this bright little frock will go with any number of other colors.
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| [source] |
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| CU of Blue Tartan |
Lastly, we
have two tartans with a lot going on in them. The first one is basically
baby-blue and dark green, with checks in between of both colors. The blue
checks have red lines running through them that form a little grid in the
center, and the green checks have red gridlines all over. The blue/green checks
also have red gridlines, but in a narrow band across the center of the checks,
with single red lines above and below. And all are bordered with lines of white
and yellow. Whee!
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| [source] |
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| CU of Red/Grey Tartan |
The second
tartan may look a bit drab at first—just red and grey—but a closer look reveals
checks of blue and green in a complex pattern, stripes of bright blue, and touches
of yellow, black and white, with textured striping between the checks. And
those grey ones? A closer inspection reveals they are actually a hound’s-tooth
check pattern! Wow!
Mind you, those
two drops of Scotch blood (and my poor, starving bank account) prevent me from
actually buying these lovelies…unless they were to go on clearance. I can
dream, can’t I? ;-) But I’m confident that if God wants me to have them (or something
similar and waaaay less pricey), then He’ll provide them, in His time. Until
then, I have these:
This is of
course my “Scottish Seafoam” skirt, featured here a while back. It’s quickly
becoming my favorite skirt, as it looks good with both mary-janes and boots, so
theoretically I could wear it in all but the very hottest weather (all two
months of it, LOL). Hurrah for versatility!
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| Christmas 2011 |
And you all
remember my Lassie Skirt, aye? It’s not quite as versatile as the seafoam one,
but it’s very elegant—especially under my green velvet dress (christened “Celtic
Princess”)!
This smart little
number is one I actually picked up at (where else?) the thrift shop earlier this Fall (or was it in Summer?),
but as usual, I haven’t been able to feature it on the old blog until now. :-P It’s
a size 20, and it has a few “boo-boos” that need fixing. My plan is to take it
apart and re-pleat it to fit my own (size 14) waist. This is the most versatile
tartan in my current collection, as it will go with green, red and navy-blue,
and also my seafoam sweater-set!
What’s really amazing is that it’s a poly-silk-rayon blend, which the label dictates should be Dry Clean Only, yet it came through the washer and dryer with no ill effects! PTL!
What’s really amazing is that it’s a poly-silk-rayon blend, which the label dictates should be Dry Clean Only, yet it came through the washer and dryer with no ill effects! PTL!
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| The whitish stuff is embroidery on some trim I was thinking of using |
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| CU of Tartan pattern |
I call it “Highland
Kelly.” Why? Because of a blouse I once had (see picture) that was the same
deep green as some of the checks in this skirt. The original “Kelly”
blouse was a long-sleeved shirtwaist that I altered by removing the too-long cuffs and using the resulting fabric to make sleeve-bindings and a collar-ruffle (which I never got a pic of, sadly). After that, I tailored the sides so it'd fit more nicely…and then promptly outgrew it that Fall. :-( I still
miss that blouse…anyway, I plan (Lord willing!) to make another one to go with this
skirt.
What are you
loving lately?
Until next time,
Gentle Readers,
God bless,
~“Tom”~
♥
