Hemming a kilt....

[csbdr]

I've done a search and saw lots 'o stuff, but had a few questions....

I am to be the soon owner of a Isle of Skye 16oz 8 yd kilt from Locharron, purchased off ebay! It is 25" which is 1-11/2 " too long for me. I will pass judgement when I get it, as to whether it is needed, but I'm thinking of hemming. Questions....

1. Taking it up that much, do I cut some off first?

2. one thread raised the question, why hem? Older kilts were often cut to length and left, no selvedge or hemming, with no unravelling. Is it necessary to hem? this question wasn't answered in the thread....

3. where does one learn a blind hem stitch? I have no clue....

4. I might prefer taking it to someone. Is there anything specific I should tell them so it's done properly?

5. Anyone here do this sort of thing for fee and shipping? I'm not sure I trust myself, or have the time, to hand hem 8 yrds of kilt.

Thanks all! Chris

[Kilted in Maine]

Check the search engine....

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/h...hlight=hemming

[BEEDEE]

Barb T has a good explanation in her book The Art of Kiltmaking. http://www.celticdragonpress.com/

Brian

[csbdr]

Check the search engine....

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/h...hlight=hemming

ummmmm....yup.....as mentioned I did that and still had a few questions which were not really answered.

[Dixiecat]

1. Nooooooooo! I'm of the mind to never cut when turning up the hem. It means you're limited to always have a hem.

3. Blind hemming is NOT recommended for kilt hems. It's just not strong or flexible enough for the weight of a kilt. Barb's book (as has been mentioned) has a good explanation. Also, try a google search for catchstitch and several videos will pop up. Don't forget to practice before hemming for real.

4. What to say to the person hemming your kilt: Please and thank you!
Seriously, check out Barb T's post on the little bits of hemming to see where the hem has to be higher than the amount you're shortening. The person hemming needs to know where to do this so that the behind sections don't hang below the front ones.
http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/l...778/index.html

5. Give the hemming a try yourself. I don't tell many people my guilty secrets, but I like to iron (when I'm not pressed for time - and boy does my Rowenta really help) and I like hand sewing as a relaxing pursuit. I find that if I can get in a comfortable spot, have a good show on TV, I can get into the rhythm of it and the hemming flies by! It might take 2-3hrs to hem, but broken into 2 Stargate SG-1 episodes and a Law and Order (not all at once mind you), it really doesn't take that long.

[csbdr]

Barb T has a good explanation in her book The Art of Kiltmaking. http://www.celticdragonpress.com/

Brian

I don't yet have the book.

[csbdr]

1. Nooooooooo! I'm of the mind to never cut when turning up the hem. It means you're limited to always have a hem. well, unless my height changes at 41, I'm not sure this would be a concern. I was just wondering how much the pleats/swing is affected by having this extra fabric there.

3. Blind hemming is NOT recommended for kilt hems. It's just not strong or flexible enough for the weight of a kilt. Barb's book (as has been mentioned) has a good explanation. Also, try a google search for catchstitch and several videos will pop up. Don't forget to practice before hemming for real. I actually found many posts where this stitch WAS recommended. I'm confused then.

4. What to say to the person hemming your kilt: Please and thank you!
Seriously, check out Barb T's post on the little bits of hemming to see where the hem has to be higher than the amount you're shortening. The person hemming needs to know where to do this so that the behind sections don't hang below the front ones. i did see that one. Thanks

5. Give the hemming a try yourself. I don't tell many people my guilty secrets, but I like to iron (when I'm not pressed for time - and boy does my Rowenta really help) and I like hand sewing as a relaxing pursuit. I find that if I can get in a comfortable spot, have a good show on TV, I can get into the rhythm of it and the hemming flies by! It might take 2-3hrs to hem, but broken into 2 Stargate SG-1 episodes and a Law and Order (not all at once mind you), it really doesn't take that long.

I hear ya, but with a busy work schedule and a 6yo boy in my life, I don't have the time to allocate to doin it myself. I may try it anyway.

[The Wizard of BC]

The first thing you will need to do when this ebay Kilt arrives is measure yourself and then the Kilt.

This will insure that it is in fact the correct size for you.

From the photos on ebay it appeared that the Kilt was too big for the person wearing it. But that may only have been taken for the sale and not on the person the kilt was made for.

A Kilt with a 25" Rise may actually be 27" long from hem to top of waistband.

The bottom edge of a Traditional Kilt uses the selvedge edge of the fabric. There is no turned up hem as in trousers or skirts. This edge will not unravel and is the excepted way to make the Kilt. When the Kiltmaker is sizing the Kilt they start at the selvedge edge and work up.

To proper re-size a Kilt you do the same thing. You take the excess material from the top. This however is a complete re-build of the Kilt and would require an accomplished Kiltmaker.

The reason I suggest you measure yourself and the Kilt is not only to insure that the Waist size is correct but that the hip size is correct and that the Fell is the correct length.

A search on this forum will aquaint you with all these terms.

Buying a Kilt from ebay is fine as long as the Kilt fits in the first place. Buying it and then having to hem it or have it re-built seems a bit, how shall I put this, un-informed.

After you have spent the money on the Kilt and then you add the cost of the alterations you could have had a custom made kilt built for you from scratch.

Keep us posted when the Kilt arrives and we will be better able to advise when we see some pictures.

[Pleater]

Well - I'm not anything of an expert, but the advice I'd give is as follows;

Don't cut off any of the fabric.

If you can, turn up the spare fabric along a line of the pattern, fold it just once and then press it along the new lower edge - carefully, on the inside and use a pressing cloth. That will make it much easier to sew.

You will probably be keeping the kilt far cleaner than 'older kilts' and although eventually it would probably stop unravelling it might be with quite a long fringe and even some sliding and distortion of the threads within the fabric - far better to keep the selvage.

Secure the end of the thread to the back of the hem by making two small stitches and slide the needle eye first under them both to make a half hitch.

Work from the inside of the kilt. You might find it easier to fold the hem so you have the edge of the fabric and the line where it will be sewn clear of the rest of the fabric.

Make a small stitch vertically in the outer part, insert the needle just above the level of the selvage, catch perhaps two threads and bring the tip of the needle out and through the edge of the selvage. Do the same thing a little further along the edge. The distance between stitches depends on the thickness of the cloth. You are making a sort of spiral of thread through the edge of the selvage and just catching the fabric at the same level where it needs to be held. Don't pull it too tight, the pressing will actually make the fold, it just needs to be held to stop it getting turned down again.

When you have sewn the hem you can press the pleats in. A small piece of thin card pushed into the fold might help to get a sharp edge. The inside of the pleat will want to fold the wrong way. Remember to use a pressing cloth.

From the inside you see diagonal lines of sewing thread, the end of one stitch is vertically above the start of the next. That makes a very small vertical line of thread on the outside. You should match the colour of the sewing thread to the line of the pattern on the outside. If you can't get an exact match, then go for something slightly darker as that is less visible than thread which is slightly lighter.

Hope that helps.

Anne the Pleater

[Bugbear]

I'm not qualified to answer your questions, but in the thread that Kilted in Maine provided the link to, Barb T. does state that the best stitch to use on a kilt's hem is the herringbone or catch stich. It is a zig-zag looking thing that only catches a thread or two on the outside of the kilt at it's top and crosses down to the turned over side of the fabric then repetes. A blind hem is strait and not zig-zag, and will be more likely to leave a visible ridge on the outside of the kilt.

Good luck.

* Magicly, all of us posted at the same time; when will I learn... Sorry. *