Kilted Englishman

[Welfare]

Hi everybody,


Just thought I would introduce myself.

Last year I got married at the Standing Stones of Steness on Orkney and decided I would wear a kilt in honour of the occasion. I'd seen a few people wearing Utilikilts at festivals over the years and thought a modern kilt would be the style for me. I'm not a Scot and can't legitimately claim any heritage connections either; my Grandmother's maiden name was Baxter but my family has always been based South of the border as far as I know. So that rules out any tartans for me. I'm an Anthropologist and I hold a certain respect for cultural forms, their inherent meaning and the improtance they can hold for the group that 'owns' them. To me an Englishman wearing tartan just isn't appropriate; but a kilt, that's just a garment and a pretty fine one too!


Couldn't afford a Utilikilt so did some hunting round and came up with a close approximation from eBay. It was advertised with exactly the same images as I had seen used for a company called "OZ Kilt"; they don't seem to have much of a profile but the kilt looked good.


I wore it for the hand-fasting on the day and, under the advice of our celebrant, wore underwear with it.... I know, broken a cardinal rule there and invited scorn as a "soft Sasanach". In my defence I won't be doing it again; also at the time I didn't want to give my guests too big a surprise and it is fairly windy up on Orkney. The day was a wonderful event and the wife (Kathrin) loved how I looked in my kilt.


Since then I have continued to wear my kilt at weekends and in the evening, not everyday but more and more as I come to appreciate the comfort, convience and look of being kilted. The fact that Kathrin appreciates it too makes it very easy to put on!


The result has been that I am committed to wearing a kilt more of the time, which in turn means that I will need to have more than one and either make or buy additional options.


Right now I am looking for another modern (narrow apron) kilt in black to wear for work, but I am looking for one without cargo pockets so I can add a sporran. Haven't found any that fit the bill and don't exceed my meagre budget - the www.skilt.co.uk range look amazing but I can't stretch that far yet - so I am considering the x-kilt route.


That's all about me for now; so Hello to you all!!

[Chas]

Hello Welfare,

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

Regards

Chas

[Standard]

from the USA!

[Piipriker]

welcome from Germany

salü Jörg

[tulloch]

Congratulations and welcome from the highlands of Central Massachusetts, USA, North America.

[Jock Scot]

Welcome, from Inverness-shire. I cannot say for sure, but I am pretty certain that there are tartans with English connections about that might be of interest to you. No doubt an expert will chip in before long to help you out.

[Father Bill]

Welcome to the "Great Rabble!"

[John_Carrick]

Welcome from Northern Ireland. I'm half English and half Irish and wear a kilt more and more, usually at weekends and on holiday. I have appropriated the odd tartan in addition to my my own to be honest but wear them with nothing but respect and admiration for the clans and tradition of Scotland.
I respect your stance on tartans but there are scads of them which are either modern inventions or which are appropriate for those with no clan affiliation and should not provoke offence. There are plain colours and tweeds too.
Budget permitting, if you are into kilts get yourself a proper, made to measure kilt from a reputable kilt maker. Eight yards of 16oz Worsted was fairly wind proof in Orkney except on the ferry, where the trick is to sit or lean against the railing.

Good luck with your next purchase

Your fellow Sassenach

John

[Spartan Tartan]

from Oklahoma.

[Welfare]

Thanks John,

I hadn't realised that there were that many that were "unspecific" enough for anybody to wear them. I'll have to take a look into them.

I don't wear tartan purely out of respect for the identity they are attached to; just as I probably wouldn't appreciate it if someone went around using my family name with out being in the family.

A heavy 8yrd kilt would be a little beyond my means at the moment but having come in from a walk in the -3 winds here today I can see how it would make all the difference!