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5th February 21, 09:50 PM
#1
I picked up a second-hand P.C. What else do I need to buy to make the outfit work?
I got lucky this weekend, and ended up with a Prince Charlie in my size for $56 total. A minor victory here - I first offered $50, which was denied, and ended up winning the auction for just $36. An additional $20 in fees and shipping brought it to my door today. :-)
The garment has a made in Scotland label (the only label), and the material feels nice enough, but the buttons are rather cheap (seem to be chromed plastic or maybe pewter).
So, here's the deal: I live in California. Even after COVID, I will likely wear this jacket once per year or less - I've really only had one occasion to wear a tux so far in my life, and don't foresee many more when you get right down to it. There's a reason I jumped on the $50 eBay find, rather than ordering new from Scotland. ;-) Still, I'd like to put together the rest of the outfit, ideally with pieces that may work in other use cases as well. Further, I'd like to compromise in a few areas, without looking plain silly. I wonder which of these compromises you think I could get away with, and what might be too far?
- Shirt. I'll need a wing-collar tux shirt, not just a regular poplin dress shirt, correct?
- Do I need a bowtie? Can I wear a regular wool tie with a 3-button waistcoat? How about a 5-button? I'm not a fan of the rouche tie, but I've never tried a bow tie.
- Sporran. I really don't want to buy a fur sporran, and the faux fur sporrans just look cheap to me. USA Kilts offers a few leather dress sporrans, and I think I'd be ok with a victorian-style horsehair sporran. What I'd prefer to do is a hunting sporran, but I don't think these are "classy" enough. Is that right? If you weren't going to go for a fur or sealskin sporran, what would you go for?
- Shoes. I have particular wide feet (like 5E), and even "wide" fitting grille brogues are a no-go for me. I could get custom shoes made, but would rather not spend $500 on those right now. I have found a pair black of cap-toe oxfords that fit comfortably without looking like clown shoes, but are oxfords just not classy enough for a P.C.?
- Hose. Can I just wear some nice HoE lewis hose? I think diced hose or argyll hose are very nice, but I don't think I'll be spending $200 on them anytime soon.
Finally, a jacket fit question. This is only the second formal jacket I've purchased, and it seems to fit quite well - better perhaps than my tweed braemar. The P.C. is a 44L, the tweed is a 46L. I measure 44", and I was under the impression that most Americans should order 1 size up when it came to Scottish-made kilt jackets. However, this one fits so well I'm thinking I might jump on one of the second-hand 44L tweeds that are listed at ministry of tartan - 44L is a much more common size. What do you think? Do you usually need "one size up," or do you order your jackets as-measured?
Again, thank you for humoring me. I'm new to formal clothing period, and pretty new to kilts as well. I appreciate any advice you might have to offer.
Last edited by KennethSime; 5th February 21 at 09:57 PM.
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