Waistcoat dilemma's

[Bobby Gordon]

Hello guys

I'm in the planning stages of my next project, a tartan waistcoat to match my kilt. After that I plan on making making matching trousers and jacket so that I can either be suited or kilted. Something like Alan Cumming's outfit

alan-cumming2.jpg

I already have a grey Araca tweed jacket and waistcoat, but I've noticed the waistcoat is quite short. Am I right in thinking kilt waistcoats are made shorter so that they don't interfere with the sporran?

So I've tried it on with normal suit trousers so see what its like, but there's quite a gap between the top of the trousers and the bottom of the waistcoat.

So either I make:

1: trousers with a extra high waist line, (making me look like Simon Cowell if I don't have the waistcoat on)

2: or I make two waistcoats, one for a suit, and one for a kilt.

or is there a 3rd option? maybe a waistcoat somewhere in between the 2?

What do you recon? Has anyone had this problem before

[artificer]

Hello guys

I'm in the planning stages of my next project, a tartan waistcoat to match my kilt. After that I plan on making making matching trousers and jacket so that I can either be suited or kilted. Something like Alan Cumming's outfit

alan-cumming2.jpg

I already have a grey Araca tweed jacket and waistcoat, but I've noticed the waistcoat is quite short. Am I right in thinking kilt waistcoats are made shorter so that they don't interfere with the sporran?

So I've tried it on with normal suit trousers so see what its like, but there's quite a gap between the top of the trousers and the bottom of the waistcoat.

So either I make:

1: trousers with a extra high waist line, (making me look like Simon Cowell if I don't have the waistcoat on)

2: or I make two waistcoats, one for a suit, and one for a kilt.

or is there a 3rd option? maybe a waistcoat somewhere in between the 2?

What do you recon? Has anyone had this problem before

Yes, waistcoats cut for kilts have a shorter front - as you said, to avoid interference with the sporran.
Trousers USED to have a much higher waist than what is common today (think tartan trews), if you're wearing the waistcoat anyway nobody will see the trouser tops.

I say go with a waistcoat that is slightly shorter than normal for trousers and slightly longer than average for a kilt. Then make the trousers with a slightly higher waist than normal.

ith:

[Grizzly]

Hi Bobby. Yes the kilt waistcoat is normally shorter due to the kilt being worn higher on the waist than a pair of trousers. The traditional kilt is worn just below the bottom rib or even higher with a high rise whereas modern trousers are worn on the hip. This leads to the disparity between waistcoat lengths.

I would respectfully suggest that in order for everything to look proportional you need two vests. You may get away with something in-between but would you be happy? At the end of the day it's your choice. Wear whatever feels right for you.

Don't forget pictures if you make one or two.

[Jock Scot]

Alright, I have to ask. What, pray tell, is an "araca" jacket?

[Tobus]

I would respectfully suggest that in order for everything to look proportional you need two vests. You may get away with something in-between but would you be happy?

That's what I'm thinking too. I have a waistcoat that falls in that category. It's a little too long for comfortably wearing with a kilt, and a little too short to look right with trousers. So it doesn't get worn much. If I had the skills to make my own waistcoat, I'd just make two of them in the correct lengths for their intended purpose. That way, they would do what I want them to do. If you're the tailor, why compromise on your own clothing?

The same will apply, by the way, with the jacket. Any jacket that's short enough to work with the kilt is going to be too short to look correct for a suit. And vice-versa. A jacket long enough to look right for a suit will be too long for the kilt. You'll need to make two jackets.

[Grizzly]

Alright, I have to ask. What, pray tell, is an "araca" jacket?

Jock it's a grey tweed kilt jacket generally with a single button cuff, but can be Braemar or Argyll cuff too.

[Jock Scot]

Jock it's a grey kilt jacket generally with a single button cuff.

Good lord, is it?

I have to confess that I have never heard the term used before. Is it a new term? A Scottish term? Or, just something that seems to have passed me by for the last seven decades?

Still, never too old to learn. What?

[Grizzly]

I don't know where "araca" comes from but most on line retailers sell them. They only come in grey as far as I know. Which maybe where the term comes from.

[Paul Henry]

I don't know where "araca" comes from but most on line retailers sell them. They only come in grey as far as I know. Which maybe where the term comes from.

I suspect it come from Arrochar Tweed , it's a heavier thornproof tweed usually in a plain weave with a slightly coarser thread

[Cygnus]

I've actually noticed that most of these "Araca" tweed jackets are listed as being made in Eastern Europe, which makes me think the producers wanted a name that was similar to Arrochar but different enough to not be considered "misleading" to customers.

In the end, it's a tweed jacket cut for a kilt, though (probably) not made in the UK.