Casual Accompaniment for the Kilt?

[Buckybronco]

Hey Folks,

Just wondering what sort of items you have worn with the kilt to carry it off as an informal casual outfit? The obvious ones to my mind would be the woolly Arran sweater type affair and t-shirts. Has anybody got any good combinations (photo?) they use which integrate the kilt brilliantly into a casual outfit? I'm basically just looking to expand the options available for casual day use of the kilt.

Cheers,
Ross

[MacLowlife]

Quarter zip polar fleece or down vest.

[Laird_M]

Walking boots and a fleece. Got several positive comments including one from a guy zipped up in thick parka, gloves and wooly hat who couldn't believe I wasn't cold...(Cold and wet New Years Day).

[Father Bill]

Have a look at our own ever-popular "sticky" here: http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...-attire-46888/

[CMcG]

It would help if we had a bit more info... What kind of kilt? How casual/informal? Traditional or modern style?

Here's a few my photos to get you going, starting with the Arran sweater you mentioned:


Some traditional looks that are all casual, but are layered according the weather:




And a more modern look that I wore to the pub recently:

[Tarheel]

Well met Ross, you are in the right place with the right folks to get your answers. You'll find that you probably have many of the regular items in your wardrobe now that will fit into schemes that hadn't occurred to you before. Be inventive in front of a mirror at home, then try it on the public. From Oxford, MS. where cotton and wool are worn together in harmony.

[Buckybronco]

Thanks for the answers folks. Some inspiration out there alright! The "sticky" gave an interesting perspective on the differing degrees of formality. I am basically wondering about which garments people have paired with either a 5 or 8 yard kilt for day to day wear other than the typical Jacobite shirt or any of the typical jackets (Braemar, Argyll, Prince Charlie etc).

Cheers,
Ross

[The Wizard of BC]

One of the hardest things to get used to when you start to wear a kilt is that "This is not a uniform". There is no proscribe way to wear the kilt or set down rules about what you can or should wear with it.

I guess I approach what to wear from a unique perspective. I have to because I wear the kilt every day. I wear it to work, to shopping at the Mall, on the street, everywhere.
I can't afford to have "My kilt outfit". I have to have something to wear 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

When I first began to wear the kilt I could not afford special dedicated kilt clothes. I had whatever was in my closet.
Today in a kilt I am usually dressed just about the same as I did when I wore pants.

Now, yes, I do dress a little better than some other guys on the street but that is due to my generation not some set of rules. I will most often be seen in a casual shirt. Sometimes in a t-shirt but I don't own many t-shirts.
On Saturdays at my shop I will often dress up a bit with a tie and about once a month with a jacket that looks just like one worn with trousers. The other 29 days I could swap out the kilt for a pair of trousers and would look much the same as everyone else on the street.

So my guidance usually comes from what is hanging in the closet.

I do own a Prince Charlie. I've worn it once.
I no longer own a black Barathea Argyle.
I no longer own a Tweed Argyle and never owned one in Lovat Green or Lovat Blue.
I wear my Kilt Kut Suit Coat about once a month. Seldom with a matching vest as I also have contrasting ones.

So this leaves me with pretty standard shirts, sweaters, T's and such. As there are 7 days in a week I wear 7 different outfits each week. I mix and match using the same color sense I would with pants. With a kilt I will usually pick my shirt first. Then go to my drawer and pick a pair of hose that coordinate with the shirt.

I will sometimes wear wing tip shoes but that is just because I like wing tip shoes. I always have. Even with pants.
I also have penny loafers and three or four other options for footwear. Sorry I don't own any crocs or flip flops.

I guess what I'm trying to get across is that I don't worry about "is what I am wearing proper?". I have to come up with 7 different outfits each and every week and I have just what is in my closet to choose from. Everything in there gets worn. I don't have any "Kilt outfits".

Here is pretty much what I look like on any given day.

At the kilt shop


At a car show on a hot sunny day.


On a cold and rainy day


Being a tourist


As a tour guide


Working my booth at a Highland Games


Does that give you some ideas?

If I were to give advice to a new kilt wearer (and I do on a daily basis. It's my job) I would say this.
The one most commonly overlooked item is the socks. If you want to spend some money on things to wear with your kilt, start with about 6 or 7 pair of hose in different colors. This way you still have something to wear until laundry day.

[tpa]

On a cold and rainy day

As another full time kilt wearer (except when mountain biking), this would be my choice for Argyll weather most of the time, as it is in Derbyshire with the exception of slightly stouter shoes. I'd have posted a picture but Steve beat me too it. The only other addition would be the anti-midge cream through the summer months and a few less layers when its warmer as does happen once in a while where you are.

[scottmphoto]

I'm an outdoorsy kind of guy. I always wear some kind of hiking boots. The closest thing that I get to dreesy is when I wear my Boy Scout uniform shirt with my kilts. I usually wear some kind of t-shirt (quite often some kind of Boy Scout related t-shirt). As for socks, around town I mostly just wear white ankle socks. When I'm doing Boy Scout stuff, I wear the official socks. I love the old ones, they were the olive green with a red band on the top, they go well with the kilt and look like kilt hose. The new ones are just olive green.