Kilt for St. Pattis?

**MJB** · 13th March 13, 02:18 PM

Sooo... I rarely wear a kilt, but I got a bright idea of wearing my kilt for st pattis day, it would be black watch, which is obviously not an Irish tartan.

Does anyone have ANY advice on if this is a good idea or not? would it maybe offend some people for some reason?

If it IS a good idea, what do you suggest I wear with it? colours/actual clothes, I don't have a whole lot of 'kilt wear' though I do have the hose, sporran and all that(I would pick up a cheaper day one for the bar) But I do not mind going out and picking anything up as long as it can be done in time for this sunday..

Let me know your thought please and thank you!

**Rob, ClanMacMillan, NM** · 13th March 13, 02:34 PM

Go for it -- 99.9999% of the people you will meet won't have a clue -- but they'll "know" you're Irish because you're wearing a kilt! It has happened to me more times than I can count. I've always worn a tartan kilt for St. Patrick's Day (St. Paddy's - not Patti's) and not once has anybody asked "Is that an Irish kilt?" -- and the rest of the year I'm asked if I'm Irish more often than if I play bagpipes. Good opportunities for a> educating the uninformed or b> laughing quietly -- whichever suits your style best.

As for what to wear with it -- dress up or down as the situation calls for... Last year, just for fun, I found some bright "Kelly Green" ribbon and made what I called "Irish Flashes" for my hose (just plain black hose that time). The green looked really good and tied in nicely with my "On St. Patrick's Day - everybody's Irish" T-shirt. I actually had two outings that day -- one for lunch at a local pub dressed in traditional Scottish kilt-wear -- and the pseudo-Irish kilt-wear that evening. On both occasions a great time was had by all.

Rob.

**cable scot** · 13th March 13, 02:37 PM

I'm going kilted for all the St.Pat's events.Really no one really cares and here in the us about a third of the people asking about my kilt ask if I'm Irish anyway

andy

**MJB** · 13th March 13, 02:50 PM

posted twice

**MJB** · 13th March 13, 03:01 PM

Excellent, that's what I was hoping to hear

and yes, St. Paddy's, I knew that, just too excited

I will have to play around with what looks decent, won't be able to wear just a shirt, its going to be as low as -8 (or 17F) so I will need a sweater or a jacket, I dunno if a pullover would look any good, but I suppose it's a party day so it doesn't matter a whole lot, we will all have had a few wobbly pops!

**unixken** · 13th March 13, 04:08 PM

I wear my Scottish National kilt (it's the greenest kilt I own.) And I counter all the phoney "Kiss me, I'm Irish" t-shirts and buttons by wearing a t-shirt with this on it:

blow_me_im_scottish_postcard-r94fa426f1ba64a2f8294fc62daeb3603_vgbaq_8byvr_512.jpg

**Ozark Ridge Rider** · 13th March 13, 04:24 PM

There's certainly a belief among many that St Patrick was Scottish anyway. He most probably wasn't Irish.

**Phil** · 13th March 13, 04:40 PM

If you are comfortable with it then why not? It is always good to dress up for special occasions and, as far as I can gather, people on your side of the pond have great difficulty differentiating between Irish and Scottish people. If I must be honest, however, kilt-wearing is not something that is very normal amongst genuine Irish people. Some might hire a kilt for a wedding (mostly in the Protestant North where they have an affinity to the Plantation Scots) but in all my trips to Ireland it is not something I would ever associate with the culture there. As a Scot, however, I would take issue with you wearing a kilt as some form of fancy dress for St. Patrick's day. Please remember that it is our national dress and to treat it as some form of costume in the way you intend is not respectful of that tradition. I do hope that you will consider this before deciding what you will wear but whatever you do decide, please do not team up your kilt with some representation of a leprechaun or unixken's take on suitable attire!

**MJB** · 13th March 13, 04:39 PM

Originally Posted by unixken

I wear my Scottish National kilt (it's the greenest kilt I own.) And I counter all the phoney "Kiss me, I'm Irish" t-shirts and buttons by wearing a t-shirt with this on it:

blow_me_im_scottish_postcard-r94fa426f1ba64a2f8294fc62daeb3603_vgbaq_8byvr_512.jpg

hahahah *win*

**Tobus** · 14th March 13, 05:54 AM

Originally Posted by MJB

Does anyone have ANY advice on if this is a good idea or not? would it maybe offend some people for some reason?

We have to be very careful on subjects like this, lest we run afoul of board rules. But yes, it's possible that someone could be offended by seeing the Black Watch tartan worn to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. As O'Callaghan mentioned, this is a military tartan, and the Black Watch does have a bit of history in representing the British government's interests during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. It's not overly likely that anyone in your area will know or care about the connection, but it is indeed possible that someone could see you wearing that tartan and take the wrong message from it.