Kilt

Mike, that article was reprinted in Techniques for Casual Clothes by Taunton Press. ISBN 1-56158-071-6. If you can't find it I can try copying it for you. The pictures are detailed and would be better in color for you (would be for me, at least). Jean M.

Thanks Jean, I'll see if I can find it. I doubt if any stores here have it though. Even the BN here has a very limited selection of sewing books.

That may be true, but with an ISBN number, they should be able to order it for you.

If they won't, the book is available at the TauntonPress website.

jenn

-- Jenn Ridley snipped-for-privacy@chartermi.net

Re: Kilt

My wife is looking at me like I grew another head over the kilt thing Her comment was "You're not planning on wearing that in public, are you?"

Tell her she is in the minority! Once she sees your bonnie knees beneath your kilt she'll swoon! After yours, you can make her a kilt skirt to match, or maybe she has a connection to a tartan?

Jean M. (whose ancestry is more than half Scottish)

That title shows up rather frequently for

Just make sure it IS a kilt, and not just a skirt pretending to be a kilt...

No hem

No waistband

Proper kilt woven plaid

Pleats ALL properly graded from waist to hip

Good heavy straps and buckles

And remember that the pin is a weight and does not pin the layers together - no matter how breezy the day!

14 oz worsted wool plaid is the best weight: 12 oz is really too light, and 16 oz is a tad stiff for every day wear: softens up with use, but not what you want unless you feel the cold or are using it for every day in a Highland regiment.

And for heaven's sake, get it the right length! It must fit round the waist (not under the beer gut) and be a tad longer than the crease at the back of the knee... As it swings in, the lower edge should hit that crease. You eventually grow callouses there... ;)

And you'll need a 4" or so square bit of light weight sued or chamois leather to sew onto the inside of the apron... Sew it carefully, by hand: you shouldn't be able to see that it's there from the other side of the cloth. You do NOT want to be growing callouses THERE! ;P

Speaking of kilt, did anyone see Sting wearing one on the Grammy Awards last night? I missed it, but AOL had a photo of him, his wife, and their daughter. I do love to see a man in a kilt. His legs are a little too skinny for my taste, though. Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

What you describe is the pattern adopted by the Scottish army. Outside of the military, pattern varies widely.

Unless you want to.

Again, only according to Scottish military standards. The pattern has varied widely through the years to include solid colors.

Military again and that is only the recent variation. Originally, the kilt was never sewn in any way. The pleats were folded by hand and not pressed.

Modern variation.

If that is what you want to use.

Here again, military. Historical records show that the most common length was shorter than that but most always above the knee.

Never heard of that but couldn't hurt.

I'm specifically looking for MacNeil of Barra and Hamilton tartans. For Hamilton I prefer the hunting rather than the red and the MacNeil Ancient. As for my wife, she's German, Irish and Choctaw. Don't think she has any Clan connections except me

You do know why it's called a kilt, don't you? Because the last person that called it a skirt got kilt for it

In these parts a guy has to be pretty secure in himself to wear a kilt. Liable to get called Suzy down at the tavern. But then, it's easy to point out what men in "skirts" have historically done to men in pants

The pleats vary alot too. Much depends on the size of the set and if you pleat to the line, as is usual for military kilts, or pleat to the set.

I always found this rather amusing. Picture this: The brave macho man. Drop him in the middle of the woods with nothing but a big knife (picture Rambo here) and he will survive for months. He will skydive, white water kayak, jump his motorcycle over canyons but take off his pants and wrap a piece of cloth around him and he will cower in fear that someone may question his macho image.

Yes, their is room for variation.

Actually, I'm looking forward to making the thing and wearing it, but then, I've always been kinda unconventional. Might even go commando so if someone gets smart it'll be easy to moon em