I'm going to make a kilt!

**revbook** · 25th April 13, 04:54 AM

My name is Don and I live in McKeesport, PA (east of Pittsburgh). Boy am I glad I found this Forum. I have worn a kilt before and purchased one from Geoffrey Tailor on the High street in Edinburgh. It sure spoils you to be measured for and receive a custom made kilt that fits like a glove. I have also worn band kilts, McDonald Pipe Band, that probably fit someone at one time but barely make due when you wear it! I have some sewing experience and purchased Barbara's book, so glad she is a member here, but think it may be more then I can handle YET. I stumbled upon the XKilt and think that would make a good first kilt. I look forward to reading the posts from the more knowledgeable members and look forward to being bailed out when I get lost.

**Father Bill** · 25th April 13, 05:15 AM

Welcome to the "Great Rabble!"

**kiltedrennie** · 25th April 13, 05:24 AM

Welcome from Michigan!

I just purchased Barb's book and eagerly await its arrival! Cannot wait to get started.
Sounds like may have more sewing experience than I have. I looked at the x-kilt instructions and they do sound easier. However, I'm waiting until I get AoKM so I can make a comparison before getting started.

I've done some quilting, made a ren-faire shirt, hand sewn a doublet and a tweed sporran. I think the precision from hand quilting will come in handy but I'm also used to working in cotton - entirely different beast from wool. The amount of distortion inherent in the tweed I used in the sporran was enough to give pause.

There is another newbie, Elizabeth, who just purchased AoMK and is planning a kilt project. I look forward to sharing the experience on XMTS.

**JohntheBiker** · 25th April 13, 05:38 AM

from Toronto.

Good luck on your kilt making!

**usonian** · 25th April 13, 05:41 AM

Welcome and good luck! Barb's book is great.

kiltedrennie: worsted wool tartan (or polyviscose) is different to work with than tweed, the weave is tighter and the fabric has less give. (At least, compared to the tweed I've worked with.) I made an 8 yard kilt with 16 oz wool tartan, and it was terrific to work with. I have a box pleated tweed kilt that I've been working on in fits and starts for months, and tweed is definitely a little tricker to wrangle.

**kiltedrennie** · 25th April 13, 05:50 AM

Understood. I'm preparing myself mentally for fabric that is closer to tweed than cotton. Kind of the prepare for the worst, hope for the best mindset. The tweed was recovered from a jacket and was very roughly woven. I didn't measure it, but off the top of my head I'd say I could easily skew a square of it into a parallelogram by 30%. I brushed tacky glue on the interlining layer of my sporran panel before sewing it to keep it square. Can't do that with a kilt. :-)

**Pleater** · 25th April 13, 06:31 AM

Originally Posted by kiltedrennie

I didn't measure it, but off the top of my head I'd say I could easily skew a square of it into a parallelogram by 30%. I brushed tacky glue on the interlining layer of my sporran panel before sewing it to keep it square. Can't do that with a kilt. :-)

If you go for the Barb T book version and make a kilt from tartan then you do join the fell to the interlining, but with stitches rather than glue - almost like quilting but you don't sew through the outermost layer so there is no evidence on the outside of the kilt that there is reinforcement on the inside.

The malleability of wool is what makes tailoring unlike dressmaking - and a wool kilt, particularly if it has those handy guidelines woven in is easier to make than one in plain cotton. Be wary of fabric with a printed pattern - it is not always printed square on the fabric, so it wanders off the side of the pleats.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

**Chas** · 25th April 13, 06:40 AM

Hello Don,

Welcome to XMarks from the other side of the Atlantic in Norfolk, England.

Regards

Chas

**kiltedrennie** · 25th April 13, 06:47 AM

Originally Posted by Pleater

Be wary of fabric with a printed pattern - it is not always printed square on the fabric, so it wanders off the side of the pleats.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

Thanks for the caution on printed fabric! I've never considered regular patterned rectangular fabric for quilting. Now I know why.

I'm thinking about two kilts. One using plain weave "bastard tartan" mill-end I picked up for $6/yd. The second, possibly an x-kilt, if I can find something suitable for our local breast cancer "pink party" held in my hometown every year. I was thinking about using a printed cotton fabric - it's easy to find breast cancer ribbon fabric. Glad I haven't purchased anything yet. I was looking at cotton plaid patterned stuff on-line.

**Madpiper1130** · 25th April 13, 07:01 AM

Welcome from the midlands of Ohio. I have studied Barb's book amd managed to make 4 tartan kilts. If I can do anyone can. You will really enjoy the expierence and the end product.