Coming up is the Bradley Tartan Competition where students will create a design to be used on future Bradley apparel.
Tartan is a fabric woven with different colored yarn to create a crossbar pattern and it is commonly used in the creation of kilts.
“Its roots go back to a lot of different cultures, but it is probably most recognized for its Scottish history,” Kendra Brandes, family and consumer science (FCS) professor, said. “In more recent times, it’s become a globally recognized symbol of community and association to something.”
Students will use computer software to create a tartan based on Bradley’s history or traditions. Afterward, they will turn in a 500 to 1,000 word description on their design choices.
“We want the students to do a little research,” Brandes said. “For instance, maybe you have five black yarns because we have five colleges.”
Any full-time Bradley student is eligible to enter the competition. Training sessions will be held Feb. 12, and entries will be due March 7. For the weeks in between, students are able to use computers in Westlake Hall, which contained the necessary software, on their own time.
“[The software] takes about ten minutes to understand,” Brandes said. “It doesn’t matter if you have a major that seems related or not, we can get people up and running pretty quickly.”
After students submit their tartans, Brandes said she plans to have a committee of students, faculty and staff to choose the top three designs, and then put a vote out to all students, faculty, staff and alumni to select the winning tartan.
The first place will receive $500 and a certificate from the Scottish Register of Tartans. Second place will receive $300, and third place will receive $200.
The winning design will also be used to make Bradley apparel and products. Brandes said she hopes to be able to sell the products through the bookstore.
“We have met with the bookstore a couple of times, and they are very receptive to this,” Brandes said. “We will hopefully have some small products ready to go by the start of fall semester, and we are hoping by Homecoming we can have scarves.”
Junior retail merchandising major Annie Drummond has been leading the project.
“I am an Arnold Wheeler Scholar, which is a scholarship that FCS provides for two students each year, and along with that requires four years of research, so that’s where the project came from,” Drummond said.
Drummond said the company her and Brandes are working with gives back an 18 percent royalty for selling the products.
“We are trying to get that [money] back to the FCS department,” Drummond said. “We are going to use that in the form of a scholarship for future students, especially since this is coming from a scholarship project. They’ve given me so much, so I need to give back.”
For more information, contact Brandes at kbrandes@fsmail.bradley.edu or Drummond at adrummond@mail.bradley.edu.
