Why is plaid popping up everywhere?
We need comfort. It’s just that simple. In stressful times, there is a trend to familiar, traditional, and comfortable textures, patterns, and colors. We retreat into what we can rely upon, timeless things that have been around for a long time. Plaid is an historic pattern that has been used for centuries. It is a pattern associated with coziness, since it usually covers thick, insulated, cold-weather gear like blankets and scarves.
We need strength. In times of struggle and unsteadiness, we need to feel powerful and capable in order to face the challenges appearing everyday. There is a sense of ruggedness and virility associated with plaid patterns. It’s a hardworking pattern that shows up on building contractors, camping enthusiasts, and hunters, so it’s identifiable as a pattern we wear to accomplish something tough, rugged, or physically demanding.
Why is plaid associated with comfort?
Plaid is a traditional pattern that has its roots as far back as the 8th century BC, with the evidence of tartan leggings on a mummified body in Central Asia.
While we know that it existed, we don’t know how popular plaid was during the 8th century BC. But we do know that the pattern started gaining popularity in Scotland around the late 16th century. Local weavers would use their limited resources available to make fabrics, and the patterns of those fabrics became associated with those locations. These patterns eventually became identifiers for families and clans.
(Still used as an identifier of place, plaid is used as Catholic school uniforms. Schools choose different plaid, so that it’s easy to identify which school a child attends.)
Grown out of a colder climate, plaid is popular as a pattern for winter-weather items, including blankets and coats. The Scottish heritage lends itself to a layered bundled-up look, ready to take on the coldest of temperatures.
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Very interesting. Plaid does convey hardiness maybe because it is strong lines intersecting that seem impenetrable.