Makin' The Tartan

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

1- 8 1s set, full turn RH and 1s+2s dance RH across once round
9-16 1s+3s dance double Fig of 8 round 2s (1s down to begin)
17-24 1s followed by 2s+3s+4s dance down the middle and back (with 2s+3s+4s separating), 1s end at top facing down and other couples facing up
25-32 All set (1s progressing down to bottom passing each couple LSh), all turn 2H
33-40 2s+3s also 4s+1s dance R&L

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)

Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams

Makin' The Tartan - Full Size And Key To Symbols

Dance Instruction Videos

Dance Information

Tartan is made with alternating bands of coloured threads woven as both warp and weft at right angles to each other. The weft is woven in a simple twill, two over-two under the warp, advancing one thread at each pass. This forms visible diagonal lines where different colours cross, which give the appearance of new colours blended from the original ones. The resulting blocks of colour repeat vertically and horizontally in a distinctive pattern of squares and lines known as a sett.

Tartan is often mistakenly called "plaid" in the United States, but in Scotland, a plaid is a large piece of tartan cloth, worn as a type of kilt or shawl, or a plain ordinary blanket such as one would have on a bed.

How To Make Tartan - Information Video

Makin' The Tartan, Edinburgh, 2005

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