The Plaid Studio / What to create / Tartan
Tartan pattern generator
A tartan is the one check in this family that is written rather than measured: a list of thread counts, mirrored about its first and last stripe, woven in 2/2 twill with the weft repeating the warp. The mirror is what makes the guard lines meet in the middle of a block instead of running off the edge.
- Thread count
G36 F6 G6 A20 G4 B4 G6 F12 - Weave2/2 twill
- SymmetryMirrored about its pivots (reflective)
- SeamlessYes — the tile repeats by construction, in every engine
- ExportPNG and SVG, A4 spec sheet with a centimetre ruler, WIF weaving draft
What makes it tartan
The sett above reads as threads: thirty-six of the ground, six of the field, and so on to the pivot. Every crossing is drawn thread by thread, so where two colours cross you get the real blend a loom would give you, not a multiply filter.
Kilts, skirts, scarves, blankets, upholstery — and any print that wants a plaid with a proper structure behind it.
How to make one
- Open the Sett engine and pick tartan from the ready-made checks in the panel. The studio writes its thread count into the cloth for you.
- Put your colours on it. Choose a palette or paste your own hex codes; the ground, the field and the lines take their colours in that order.
- Set the scale in threads. The bands are threads, not pixels, so the check keeps its proportions when you change the yarn count or the repeat width.
- Export what the job needs. A seamless PNG for print-on-demand, an SVG for vector work, an A4 sheet with a ruler for a mill, or a WIF draft for a loom.
Questions
Can I export a tartan for a loom?
Yes. Creator and above export a WIF weaving draft with the threading, tie-up, treadling and thread colours, plus an A4 sheet with a centimetre ruler for a mill.
Do you carry named clan tartans?
No. The studio builds tartans from thread counts you set or a sentence you write; it does not publish a register of clan setts.
