Misc
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Follow the White Rabbit
Entrechat
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
In the enigmatic world of "Alice in Wonderland," Alice's journey leads her to a garden where a fork in the road presents itself, each path marked by signs pointing in every possible direction. Nearby, a caterpillar reclines on a mushroom, lazily puffing on his hookah. As Alice seeks his counsel, he offers cryptic riddles, hinting that choices in Wonderland carry unforeseen consequences. "Choose wisely," he intones, before morphing into a butterfly and drifting away. This tartan reflects the pink nose of a white rabbit; the Alice blue of Alice's blue gown, and the red waistcoat of the White Rabbit; and the silver of the looking glass that may show a different view of the world. Remember, once you fall down the rabbit hole, your world will change forever. Follow the White Rabbit! 💗 🤍 ❤️ 💙 🐇 🪞
"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat."
~ Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, 1865
Red King
Carol A.L. Martin
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
Red Knight
Carol A.L. Martin
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
Red Queen
Carol A.L. Martin
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
“Now, here, you see,” says the Red Queen, “it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!”
~ Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll, 1871
Happy Alice in Wonderland Day! Today marks the anniversary of the "golden afternoon" in 1862 when Charles Lutwidge Dodgson—better known to the world as Lewis Carroll—first shared his whimsical tale with 10-year-old Alice Liddell, the curious middle daughter of the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford. That enchanting riverbank storytelling session gave rise to the beloved classics Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871).
While Wonderland follows a dreamlike descent into absurdity, Through the Looking-Glass is something more structured—a hidden, playable, and delightfully peculiar game of chess! The story is mapped onto an actual chessboard layout, with each character and movement reflecting the rules and logic of the game. Among them is the imperious Red Queen, a sharp-tongued, bossy figure obsessed with arbitrary etiquette. She represents the red queen chess piece and convinces Alice to join the match as a humble pawn for the White Queen.
As Alice makes her way across the board, square by square, readers witness a fantastical journey filled with puzzles, poetry, and transformation. Each step Alice takes through Looking-Glass Land mirrors a legal chess move, culminating in her promotion to Queen. This unique structure inspired the creation of a chess variant in 1953 aptly named Alice Chess. In this game, two boards—A and B—are used instead of one. After every move, the piece is "transported" through the looking glass from one board to the other, much like Alice’s leap into the mirrored world.
This tartan, with its commanding red and black grid, echoes the Red Queen's presence and mirrors the structured paths of a chessboard—visually embodying Alice’s journey across the squares of Looking-Glass Land.
Curiouser and curiouser, indeed! Fancy a game of chess—or a spot of tea—this afternoon in celebration? ❤️ 🖤 ❤️ 🐇☕️🎩🍰🃏🪄🫖🐁🍄💐⏱️🐈⬛🔮
Tweedledee
Carol A.L. Martin
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
"Tweedledum and Tweedledee
Agreed to have a battle;
For Tweedledum said Tweedledee
Had spoiled his nice new rattle.
Just then flew down a monstrous crow,
As black as a tar-barrel;
Which frightened both the heroes so,
They quite forgot their quarrel."
Tweedledum
Carol A.L. Martin
Alice in Wonderland Day
Jul 4
"Tweedledum and Tweedledee
Agreed to have a battle;
For Tweedledum said Tweedledee
Had spoiled his nice new rattle.
Just then flew down a monstrous crow,
As black as a tar-barrel;
Which frightened both the heroes so,
They quite forgot their quarrel."
Cheshire Cat
Carol A.L. Martin
Smile Day
Oct 3
"All right," said the Cat; and this time it vanished quite slowly, beginning with the end of the tail, and ending with the grin, which remained some time after the rest of it had gone.
"Well! I've often seen a cat without a grin," thought Alice; "but a grin without a cat! It's the most curious thing I ever saw in my life!"
~ Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, 1865
Curiouser and curiouser! Like the Mona Lisa’s mysterious smile, the Cheshire Cat’s grin remains one of the most unforgettable in both literature and art. Part of the Alice in Wonderland tartan series, the Cheshire Cat tartan draws its colour and geometry from vintage book illustrations of this striped trickster, who delights in conversation with Alice before vanishing into nothing but a mischievous grin.
The phrase “grinning like a Cheshire Cat” actually predates Lewis Carroll’s tale, with many fanciful stories attempting to explain its origin. Perhaps the most whimsical involves a cheese once sold in Cheshire, moulded in the shape of a cat’s face. It was cut from the tail forward, leaving the smiling head for last.
Over the years, artists have painted the cat in every hue—earthy browns, luminous blues, vivid purples and pinks. In this tartan, a single bright band recalls that famous grin, lingering after the rest of the striped cat has slipped away. Look for the Cheshire Cat’s smile—and don’t forget to follow the White Rabbit! 💙 🤍 🖤 💙 😸 😸 😸 🙂 🙂 🙂
Mad Hatter's Tea Party
Carol A.L. Martin
Mad Hatter's Day
Oct 6
“Take some more tea,” the March Hare said to Alice, very earnestly.
“I've had nothing yet,” Alice replied in an offended tone: “so I can't take more.”
~ A Mad Tea Party, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, 1865
"Clean Cup... Move Down!" With a tartan design that tosses color and symmetry out the window, today is your chance to be as mad as a hatter! This day tips its hat to Sir John Tenniel’s illustrations of the Hatter from Lewis Carroll’s Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, where the Hatter sports that iconic "10/6" price tag (a neat ten shillings and sixpence, if you please). But did you know "mad as a hatter" goes back even further? In the 19th century, hat-makers used mercury in their felt hats, which caused mercury poisoning and some peculiar symptoms: slurred speech, memory lapses, and hallucinations! This condition was called "mad hatter disease," giving rise to the saying "mad as a hatter"! So, if you've a mind to, pop on your brightest tartan, a hat of your choice, pour a cup of tea, and let the madness begin! ❤️ 💚 💜 💙 💛 🎩 🐇 ♠️ ♥️ ♦️ ♣️ 🎉 ☕