Matching like a Scot

[Cygnus]

I think I finally get it!

As an admittedly ignorant American, I have struggled to wrap my mind around the advice given by our local Scots (principally Jock Scot) to not be so "matchy-matchy" when it comes to highland dress. I'd look at outfits and see clashing colours left and right and just couldn't do it.

But this evening I was perusing pictures of The Highlanders of Scotland and paying extra attention to waistcoat colours when the lightbulb flickered briefly and switched on (albeit dimly). The kilt is to Scots what blue jeans are to Americans!

I know it sounds odd, but if you look at "normally-dressed" citizens of the US (in particular, though the same could be applied to many countries now days), you'll notice that when blue jeans are worn nobody makes any effort to match their other clothing to them. I'm not sure when it happened, but at some point along the line, blue denim became "neutral".

I imagine the Highlander back when kilts were worn more regularly but after the romanticization of clan tartans - such a man would have one kilt in the tartan of his clan (and maybe a hunting variant). If he had to match everything he wore to that one kilt, his wardrobe would start to look a bit bland over time. So, in much the same way as has happened with blue jeans, I imagine the kilt found its way to that "neutral" ground to those who were accustomed to seeing it.

That might not be exactly how it is, but for once the advice to not be so worried about matching makes sense to me - I hope the analogy is helpful to someone else who is having the same trouble!

EDIT: I'll admit that it's not exactly the same and that it is a good idea to match some accessories to colours in the kilt, but the idea that you don't need to to still look well turned out compares well to jeans in my mind.

[Jock Scot]

Yes I can see where you are coming from and in many ways you are right. Indeed most Scots(those that have a kilt) have one in their clan tartan and that will be it. I think that we have the advantage of knowing what colours work(not necessarily match) with "our" particular tartan so there must be some subconscious colour arranging going on. We also have the advantage, sometimes, of family input too.The end result is that we have an in depth knowledge of knowing what we can get away with and what we can't.

Even today when I see some one wearing the kilt at an event I find myself saying to myself, humm yes that outfit works, or, humm those such and such don't quite work. I think we kilt wearing Scots are lucky to be able to see before our very eyes all sorts of colour combinations and that is a natural advantage for us. However the Internet is helping to do the same thing, although I don't think I have ever spent a second discussing the finer points of a tie, hose, shoes, shirt, tartan hue before, like we do here!

[The Wizard of BC]

Virtually every day in my shop someone walks in and begins to pick accessories for the kilt they have just ordered.
The first thing they always seems to ask is for matching Tartan flashes. Then hose that match the Tartan. Then they start to look for a matching Jacobite shirt.

This is usually where I stop them and fall into teacher mode.

I start by standing in front of them and spreading my arms as I say "Does this outfit look good to you?" When they say yes I ask, "What parts of this outfit match?"

I am usually dressed in a regular button down collar shirt, Kilt with Contemporary style kilt belt and daywear sporran, one of my kilts, kilt hose that match or compliment the color of my shirt, and penny loafers.

I tell the customer that they should start building their outfit with the shirts already in their closet. Then get some kilt hose to go with the shirt. Then make sure the leather items in the are all either brown or black.

Then comes the secret.........

THE KILT IS VERY CAPABLE OF STANDING ON ITS OWN!

I then explain that if they start buying all new clothes just to match the kilt they just bought that they will be broke in about 30 min in my shop.

Most new kilt wearers have never seen the kilt worn in any other way than a pipe band, the military, or on some rental outfit website. They just don't know any other way.

That is why seeing photos of our members who have grown up with the kilt are such a valuable part of this site.

[Paul Henry]

That is why seeing photos of our members who have grown up with the kilt are such a valuable part of this site.

While I'm sure that helps, I don't really think that is the complete answer, over here in the UK lots of us are a little perplexed as to why so many kilt wearers elsewhere (but mainly in the States) seem to agonize so much over what goes with what.Perahps there is simply a lack of confidence in clothing, I don't know, but a very good idea is jsut to think what would I wear if I was wearing trousers , and not to get to caught up in something "special" or different , just because you are wearing a kilt.
Of course kilts sometimes do need attention, but it's amazing how easy it can be to put together a kilt outfit from the bits most of us already have in our wardrobes

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I think that men in the UK in general (kilted or no) are more accustomed to mixing and matching patterns in their dress than men in the US. I know many Americans, who are new to kilt wearing, cannot imagine wearing anything other than solid hose, a solid color shirt, or a solid color jacket with their tartan kilt. When I start to recommend tattersal shirts, or show them tweed samples for their jackets that have a windowpane pattern, or a houndstooth or check pattern, they cannot believe I'm suggesting all that to wear with their tartan. It's too busy! It will clash!

But if you look at photos of many men in the UK that is precisely how they dress. And they look quite well put together.

I think it is because they have more of an eye for what colors and patterns will "tone well" together; not necessarily "match."

Often times, after someone orders a kilt from our gift shop, they take the swatch book with them over to our kilt hose shelves so they can find a pair of hose that matches their tartan. You should see how some people agonize over finding just the right shade of green (or blue, or red, etc.) that is a precise match for the color in their tartan. And then the agonizing begins all over again when they are picking out their flashes.

I always tell people not to worry about whether the color is an exact match. Does it look good together? Does it tone well? If yes, then who cares if it matched perfectly?

To me, when things all match perfectly, a person looks a little "too put together" if you know what I mean. There is something almost phony or fabricated when things match too well. It screams, "This is my kilt outfit," rather than "These are my clothes."

[pdcorlis]

I don't know if is makes much sense at all, but I call it casual indifference - confidence born of experience. It starts with a feel for how colors, textures, and patterns can work together to create a harmonious palette. Not matching but playing elements off against each other. With a little imagination and experience one should be able to look in the closet and pull things together without much fuss and bother.

[Cygnus]

Yes I can see where you are coming from and in many ways you are right. Indeed most Scots(those that have a kilt) have one in their clan tartan and that will be it. I think that we have the advantage of knowing what colours work(not necessarily match) with "our" particular tartan so there must be some subconscious colour arranging going on. We also have the advantage, sometimes, of family input too.The end result is that we have an in depth knowledge of knowing what we can get away with and what we can't.

Even today when I see some one wearing the kilt at an event I find myself saying to myself, humm yes that outfit works, or, humm those such and such don't quite work. I think we kilt wearing Scots are lucky to be able to see before our very eyes all sorts of colour combinations and that is a natural advantage for us. However the Internet is helping to do the same thing, although I don't think I have ever spent a second discussing the finer points of a tie, hose, shoes, shirt, tartan hue before, like we do here!

I envy you greatly in that - I come from a predominantly Scottish family that once had a great deal of pride in its roots and practiced the traditions that went with them. Sadly, from about my grandfather's generation, there has been no interest in keeping those traditions alive. So I (with the help of you kind folks) am starting it again from scratch.

I hope one day to have the "confidence born of experience" that you most helpful gentlemen quite obviously have.

Thank you for your replies and guidance.

[Monkey@Arms]

I think that men in the UK in general (kilted or no) are more accustomed to mixing and matching patterns in their dress than men in the US. I know many Americans, who are new to kilt wearing, cannot imagine wearing anything other than solid hose, a solid color shirt, or a solid color jacket with their tartan kilt. SNIP

I really think it comes down to that. I've seen plenty of of non-kilted traditional men's fashion from the UK that is very different from anything that I would wear in terms of mix of colors and patterns. I'm not saying something is right or wrong, just different from what I grew up with fashion-wise.

Best regards

Jake

[auld argonian]

One of my many jobs, some years back, was working in an art supply store. One day a fella came in and wanted to buy a color wheel...these are a sort of chart that has all of the colors of paint arranged in a circle so you can see just how harmonic or dissonant your choices of color will be. The fella said that he wanted one so he could use it to pick out parts of his wardrobe and be sure that they went together. I was sort of taken aback by this because it always seemed that finding colors that coordinated wasn't that difficult...that someone would need a chart to do it seemed a bit wacky...that someone would be so insecure about it that they would buy a color wheel seemed a little extreme.

For some people, it's almost natural to be able to put colors together but there are those who need to kinda learn the skill...and not everyone sees every color the same way. Add to this that there are all sorts of designers out there working on "this year's colors" and sometimes those "this year's colors" don't go with anything other than another "this year's color". I have a very nice rug here that looks so dated because it has "this year's colors" from 1991 in it that I'm often tempted to brew up about twenty gallons of tea and give it a good soak in the hope that it'll shift the colors toward something more agreeable.

I'd like to blame Regis Philbin and his choice of way-too matching shirts and ties on "Millionaire" but, having lived through the 60's, 70's and 80's, I know that the "matchy-matchy" thing goes back waaaaaay before Regis. You've got to cut those that buy into it some slack, though, since it's always presented as what's "in" and a safe wardrobe choice.

All I gotta say is: t'ank God for neutral colors...grey being my personal faorite. Take it easy and remember that "less is more".


Best

AA

[Livingston]

While I'm sure that helps, I don't really think that is the complete answer, over here in the UK lots of us are a little perplexed as to why so many kilt wearers elsewhere (but mainly in the States) seem to agonize so much over what goes with what.Perahps there is simply a lack of confidence in clothing, I don't know, but a very good idea is jsut to think what would I wear if I was wearing trousers , and not to get to caught up in something "special" or different , just because you are wearing a kilt.
Of course kilts sometimes do need attention, but it's amazing how easy it can be to put together a kilt outfit from the bits most of us already have in our wardrobes

I would say it is more of a lack of experiance with kilts. At first those deciding to wear the kilt do think about "does this shirt match" " I need tartan flashes" etc. Then, after being on XMarks for a while, time varies per person, we each have that "HEY, I can wear this just like I do jeans" moment and go through the closet with our eyes wide open now. I know that for me it was about a year or so into wearing mine once in a while before I became that comfortable with "non-standard options" and about 6 months later getting that moment. I'm still not comforatable wearing a striped shirt with my kilt but, maybe, that day will come. Colors (colours to those across the pond) I don't have a problem with, my father has been an interior designer for over 60 years and I've learned a lot of that by osmossis.