Great Gifts Under $100

Something used rather than displayed. A scarf, a wallet, an apron or table linen all carry a family sett into daily life and need no size. Clothing is the riskier choice as a gift because sizing and taste both have to be right.

Choose a district, regional or universal sett, which belong to no single family. That removes the risk entirely. If you want their family tartan, ask someone in the family rather than guessing from a surname, since spelling variants and septs make guessing unreliable.

Usually not. Try spelling variants first, since standardised spelling is modern and MacDonald, McDonald and Macdonald are frequently one line. Many surnames are also septs of a larger clan and share its tartan. Send us the name and we will check both.

Entirely. Nobody polices who wears tartan and district, universal and fashion setts carry no family claim at all. If it feels safer, choose a fashion sett or a piece where the tartan is a detail rather than the whole item.

A scarf in a district or fashion sett. It needs no size, carries no family claim that could be wrong, works over ordinary clothes, and shows the pattern at a scale where it actually reads.

It makes the gift considerably better, particularly with a district or clan sett. Knowing that the tartan belongs to a place their family came from turns an accessory into something with a story attached. For larger budgets, see Scottish gifts for the home.