Great Kilt for Renaissance Faire

**kiltedrennie** · 7th September 13, 01:01 PM

I started working on my great kilt for the Michigan Renaissance Festival. The temps tomorrow should be cool enough to wear it.

I was fortunate to find some 70% wool square weave "bastard" tartan in the red tag bin at Joann Fabrics last year for $6/yard. I had considered using it to make my first kilt and may still. But thought it would be awesome material for a great kilt.

Today I pinned down the pleats in preparation for cheater pleating it. I will sew the pleats down along the waist line, so I don't have to gather it into pleats every time I want to wear it. I will probably also add a canvas strip on the inside to give it more structure.

That's about it. I might add a couple of belt loops to keep it hanging at the right length. I'll post more photographs tomorrow with the whole costume.

**Nighthawk** · 7th September 13, 02:10 PM

Oh wow!! I love it! This one is mine:

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Obviously I love the muted colors. I didn't cheater-pleat mine, though... Too lazy. And I use mine as a blanket when I camp. I can't wait to see the whole outfit! One thing that annoys me to no end is going to the ren faire and seeing people wearing great kilts that aren't pleated, and are wrapped around their bodies like 10 times.

**Mael Coluim** · 7th September 13, 07:14 PM

Very clever. Look forward to seeing a pic of you with it.

**kiltedrennie** · 7th September 13, 08:21 PM

Thanks!

I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I ended up adding a lining to the inside against the pleats to help stabilize them and a couple of small strips of velcro to the panel ends to hold them in place. Much easier to put on now.

If I do any more I might as well make a tailored kilt :-)

I also just finished hand sewing lace holes to the front and cuffs of my shirt. I'm not sure when cuffs came into style but I've added them anyway. Added the lace holes to the front because it's just a bit too open for my taste.

**Liam** · 8th September 13, 08:35 AM

Looking forward to the finished product! Do you plan to iron the pleats?

**kiltedrennie** · 8th September 13, 05:56 PM

Originally Posted by Liam

Looking forward to the finished product! Do you plan to iron the pleats?

I left the pleats alone. Didn't want it to look tailored.

**kiltedrennie** · 8th September 13, 06:23 PM

Here's the final product after a long day of renaissance faire. It held up well without any need for adjustment. My wife was able to put the remaining two yards of cloth to good use.