houndstooth

Houndstooth is a compound of hound (dog) and tooth. The pattern consists of abstract four-pointed shapes arranged in a tessellating check, with each shape having a notched, tooth-like edge. The Scottish name for the pattern is 'dog's tooth' or 'pied-de-poule' in French (hen's foot), reflecting different cultures seeing different animals in the same pattern. The Scots saw a dog's tooth. The French saw a chicken's foot.

The pattern is a twill weave variation, traditionally in two colors (usually black and white). It is created by alternating groups of dark and light warp and weft threads in a specific sequence. The result is a pattern that looks checked from a distance but reveals its toothy edges up close. Houndstooth was a working-class fabric in 19th-century Scotland — shepherds and farmers wore it because the busy pattern hid dirt and wear.

Christian Dior's 1948 'New Look' collection elevated houndstooth from workwear to haute couture. Dior used large-scale houndstooth prints in skirts and jackets, transforming a shepherd's pattern into a symbol of postwar Parisian elegance. The pattern has since become one of the most recognizable in fashion — Alexander McQueen, Chanel, and countless other designers have used houndstooth as a signifier of structured, classic style.

Bear Bryant, the legendary University of Alabama football coach, wore a houndstooth hat to every game from the 1960s until his death in 1983. The pattern became so associated with him that houndstooth is now an unofficial symbol of Alabama football. A Scottish shepherd's fabric became both Parisian couture and American football iconography. The pattern does not know it is famous.