Glen plaid explained

Glen plaid (short for Glen Urquhart plaid), also known as Glenurquhart check or Prince of Wales check, is a woollen fabric with a woven twill design of small and large checks.[1] It is usually made of black/grey and white, or with more muted colours, particularly with two dark and two light stripes alternating with four dark and four light stripes, which creates a crossing pattern of irregular checks.[2] Glen plaid as a woven pattern may be extended to cotton shirting and other non-woollen fabrics.

Name

The name is taken from the Glenurquhart Estate in Inverness-shire, Scotland, where the checked pattern was first used during the 1840s by the Countess of Seafield[3] to fit out her gamekeepers, though the name 'Glen plaid' does not appear before 1926.[4]

Glen plaid is also known as the Prince of Wales check, as it was first made famous by King Edward VII when he was Prince of Wales.[5] The pattern was later popularized by King Edward VIII when he was Prince of Wales.[6] In other words, despite its internationally known name (French prince de Galles, Spanish príncipe de Gales, Italian principe di Galles, etc.), the Prince of Wales check is not a Welsh pattern but a Scottish one.

Notable wearers

Pee-wee Herman was famous for his light-grey Glen plaid suit, and U.S. President Ronald Reagan was considered "unpresidential" in a gray-and-blue Glen plaid suit on a European trip in 1982.[7] In addition, Cary Grant wore a grey suit in a subtle Glen plaid during the 1959 American spy thriller film North by Northwest.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ralph Lauren Style Guide . Glossary: Glen plaid . 23 November 2008 . 13 November 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071113035515/http://style.polo.com/glossary/default.asp?letter=G . dead .
  2. Dictionary.com
  3. Web site: Glenurquhart Estate Check . 24 November 2023 . Scottish Register of Tartans.
  4. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/glen+plaid Merriam-Webster Online dictionary
  5. https://www.parisiangentleman.com/blog/how-to-identify-a-glen-check-within-seconds-vbc-fabric-academy-6 How to Identify a Glen Check
  6. https://www.gq.com/story/dropping-knowledge-glen-plaid GQ
  7. http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1997/06/30/back.time/ Hugh Sidey, "Live Men Do Wear Plaid"