Aberdeenshire Council Tartan Commission

Friday 13 June 2014

Hi everyone,

We're very happy to announce that the Aberdeenshire Tartan is now complete! You may remember reading about the start of this project in one of our earlier blog posts here.
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Commissioned by the Aberdeenshire Council for the Be Part of The Picture Project, the new Aberdeenshire tartan was designed by Donna Wilson with the help of local schoolchildren of the county. The children were asked to present the colours they felt best represented their area of Aberdeenshire.

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With these suggestions, Donna designed Aberdeenshire's new tartan featuring colours that draw directly from Aberdeenshire's rich natural surroundings as well as elements of their cultural heritage, and which is completely unique to its namesake!

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The colours that are featured in the tartan are:

Old Meldrum - A gold/copper inspired by the stills at the Glengarioch Distillery, and as one pupil point out- it's also the colour of whisky!
Stonehaven - A pinky red seen in Aberdeenshire sunsets, and a colour often spotted at the infamous 'Aunt Betty’s' sweetshop in Stonehaven.
Aboyne - A frosty lichen green found in the Ladywood Forest.
Fraserburgh - A lilac/blue symbolising the seas and skies around Fraserburgh.
Kintore - A forest green from all the woodlands around Kintore.
Harvest - A barley colour that reminded Donna of the farm where she grew up, and her favourite time of year.
Peterhead - A minty green from the seas and sea spray of Peterhead.
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Here's a great video about the project, put together by the brilliant creative team Oliver's Island, who accompanied Donna on her visits to the schools and the mill. 




As a Scottish designer who grew up in Aberdeen, Donna feels very honoured to have been asked to design this very special tartan.

She adds: "Tartan is such an important part of our tradition and heritage, and we should never lose that. I hope to be able to make a difference to the manufacturers who will be weaving it and create something that will be a lasting symbol of Aberdeenshire.”

Donna is proud to be involved in the Be Part of the Picture project as it a program about celebrating the strengths of Aberdeenshire and showcasing the region as a place of beauty. The programme uses cultural and economic development projects to engage with local people and boost the sense of pride in Aberdeenshire’s communities.
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Donna is pictured above with Aberdeenshire Provost Jill Webster in the Banffshire Journal

We're proud to say that the tartan is woven in Scotland and is now available by the meter, as well as in two very special scarves hand-finished in Donna's London studio. 
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Available for purchase exclusively at www.donnawilson.com.