>That's a phrase I found myself using the other day. Growing up with English parents it seemed completely natural but then I wondered what does "tatty" actually mean?
>
>The verb "to tat" means to make lace; maybe it refers to a lacy/holey/worn appearance?
>
>Can the English contingent shed any light on this pressing issue? ;)
>
>UPDATE: apparently "tatty" is a dictionary word for "shabby/dilapidated". That was news to me; I thought the phrase was an English colloquialism.

As you suggest, I'm guessing that it may have originally been applied to cloth, or clothing, that was full of holes and usage has broadened to include anything shabby. Which just leaves me wondering where 'shabby' came from :-{

Update : Old English 'sceabb'