10 Oct, 2024 @ 16:12
1 min read
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Spain’s fashionistas say a new ‘British trend’ is sweeping the country – but the Scots might want a word

October 9, 2024, Madrid, Madrid, Spain: Yolanda Diaz, Spanish minister of labor and social economy and vice-president of the government of Spain, seen at the Spanish Congress of Deputies on October 09, 2024 in Madrid, Spain; The government control session has been urgently called by the opposition parties to review and discuss the government's actions regarding the migration crisis. (Credit Image: © Alberto Gardin/ZUMA Press Wire)

A SPANISH newspaper has claimed a new ‘British trend’ is taking the country by storm- but is it really? 

From Dior’s new collection to Taylor Swift’s red carpet look, a new style is growing in popularity, and according to one Spanish website, it’s as British as fish and chips. 

Mujer.es claims tartan is the ‘latest ‘British’ pattern to conquer Spanish wardrobes.’ 

Yolanda Diaz has made headlines after this trendy blazer to parliament.
Photo: Cordon Press

It comes after Deputy Prime Minister, Yolanda Diaz sported the style in the Spanish parliament. 

She was spotted with Pedro Sanchez wearing the €395 tartan blazer and matching eyeliner.

Not only did the website claim the look was ‘British’, but forgot to mention it was designed by a luxury French fashion house, Claudie Pierlot.

That’s certainly one way to anger a Scot. 

Diaz, claims Mujer.es, is the ‘most stylish woman in Spanish politics’ so ‘it’s no surprise she was the first to rock the trend.’ 

The Deputy Prime Minister has been dubbed the ‘most stylish woman in Spanish politics’.
Photo: Cordon Press

They said: “Yolanda Diaz has gone for an autumn inspired look with this ‘British’ style blazer which has enamoured fashionistas.”

The French-designed tartan has nothing to do with Britain, never mind Scotland.
Photo: Claudie Pierlot

Far from ‘British’, Tartan is an integral part of Scottish identity, having been worn in the country since the third century A.D to identify your clan.

In fact, tartan was banned in 1746 after Charles Edwart Stuart led an army of tartan donning rebels to England to topple the protestant King George II. 

Much later, after Queen Victoria purchased Balmoral Castle, the Scottish Highlands became a ‘rugged’ tourist destination and with them, tartan was turned into a part of Scotland’s ‘brand’ identity. 

Then in the 1970s it became a key part of subversive youth culture, used by famous designers such as Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen as a ‘rebellion against the establishment’.

Whatever its roots, there is no doubt that today, tartan is deeply associated with Scotland. 

Shops line Edinburgh’s Royal Mile peddling thousands of tartan souvenirs and I challenge you to find a box of shortbread which doesn’t don the pattern. 

Perhaps Mujer.es should think again next time they describe something as ‘British.’ What’s next, a ‘British’ haggis recipe?

Yzabelle Bostyn

Yzabelle Bostyn is an NCTJ trained journalist who started her journalistic career at the Olive Press in 2023.
Before moving to Spain, she studied for a BA in English Literature and Hispanic Studies at the University of Sheffield.
After graduating she moved to the university’s journalism department, one of the best in the UK.
Throughout the past few years, she has taken on many roles including social media marketing, copywriting and radio presenting.
She then took a year out to travel Latin America, scaling volcanoes in Guatemala and swimming with sharks in Belize.
Then, she came to the Olive Press last year where she has honed her travel writing skills and reported on many fantastic experiences such as the Al Andalus luxury train.
She has also undertaken many investigations, looking into complex issues like Spain’s rental crisis and rising cancer rates.
Always willing to help, she has exposed many frauds and scams, working alongside victims to achieve justice.
She is most proud of her work on Nolotil, a drug linked to the deaths of many Brits in Spain.
A campaign launched by Yzabelle has received considerable support and her coverage has been by the UK and Spanish media alike.
Her writing has featured on many UK news outlets from the Sun to the Mail Online, who contracted her to report for them in Tenerife on growing tourism issues.
Recently, she has appeared on Times Radio covering deadly flooding in Valencia.

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