Plaid fabric is a type of textile pattern characterized by criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colors. TARTAN, madras, and maud are all types of plaid fabrics. TARTAN is a pattern of interlocking stripes in two or more colors, usually red, blue, green, and yellow. Madras is a lightweight cotton fabric with a bright plaid pattern. Maud is a type of TARTAN fabric that originated in Scotland.