In Your Face Kilting

[Alan H]

I just strap the thing on....or velcro it on, as the case may be, in the morning, if I happen to feel like wearing a kilt that day. I got over the "aggressive" bit in about...oh, a month, maybe? Maybe two months, at most. I suppose that I'm making a "great personal statement about my individuality" by wearing a kilt. I suppose. It's nothing that I spend any time thinking about or analyzing. I just put the thing on and go about my business.

As for having a "style", you lads who worry muchly about your "personal style" and the messages that you send and receive by having this unique style are welcome to have one. Me? I just get dressed in the morning.

[Spoone]

I was told by former boss once to "Go put on a pair of G-D pants!"
My response was typical of me. "Make me."

They're comfortable, and I like'em. The company didn't have a dress code that forbade them, so that was that.
Moral of the story? Well, I dunno that there has to be one, but if there is...well...it's "Be yourself."
The rest is just a nice backdrop to live your life against, innit?

[MacSpadger]

Do understand that the thoughts may not apply in Scotland

Reading through the whole thread, it's apparent they don't. There's nothing really individual about owning a kilt here, some do, some don't. Some folk prefer rugby to football, or gowf to fishing, and that's that.

For what its worth the original thoughts come from a big beautiful woman type talking about how she dressed and why...for those old enough - think Auntie Mame.

I probably am old enough, but don't have a clue who Auntie Mame is, probably yet more evidence of the cultural divide.

[sailortats]

I probably am old enough, but don't have a clue who Auntie Mame is, probably yet more evidence of the cultural divide.

MacSpadger I am truly sorry that you do not know of Auntie Mame. It was a broadway play and then a movie with Rosalind Russell as Auntie Mame. Came out in the 50s or 60s. She was a character, to say the least. If you can find a copy of it I wholeheartedly recommend watching it. It is a wonderfully funny play. WEveryone should experience Auntie Mame at least once in their life.

[creagdhubh]

I am just settling down after a ceilidh in Glencoe for my friend's birthday that turned into a 24 hour party.
It's certainly a very different point of view being expressed by the OP to life over here. I have been wearing my kilt for 3 days, from Milngavie up through Loch Lomond, The Trossachs, Crianlarich, Tyndrum and in Glencoe village itself. No-one has batted an eye. I have only gotten one comment when I was buying petrol, the attendent said he was an ex-QOH after clocking my tartan, then told me about his upcoming holiday to Bulgaria.
At the ceilidh itself there were more guys in kilts than in breeks, as you'd expect. There's absolutely nothing "in your face" going on here at all. If anyone's "minds were messed up" it was probably due to attempting the Dashing White Sargeant after a large plate of haggis, neeps and tatties at the Clachaig Inn and probably too many drops of the cratur.
I can only guess the Scottish equivalent to the OP might be if a born and bred Scottish Highlander started wearing Bavarian Lederhosen for no obvious reason. That would probably gain some attention, but not the kind I would seek.

***

Oh, and the Dashing White Sargeant, along with the Gay Gordons, are two of my most favourite reels and are very popular at Clan Macpherson ceilidhs in Badenoch!

Cheers,

[Tobus]

After reflecting on this thread for a couple of days, I have to say that the whole "in your face kilting" idea is exactly why I don't wear the kilt very often. It is precisely that sort of thing that I want to avoid. For the folks who intend to wear the kilt for that reason, it's your prerogative, but surely you must understand that wearing it to "mess with peoples' minds" is naturally going to cause a generally negative reaction from the public. That's what happens when one dresses or acts specifically for shock value. From the wording of the original quote, I envision a person wearing a kilt with the purpose of being outrageous and challenging others to say something about it. I assume that's the point, and as Jock said, I find that sad. It reflects poorly on the rest of us who wear the kilt for other reasons. The public will relegate the kilt to the same 'box' as mohawks, punk rockers, Goths, Emos, or others who dress oddly for the purpose of shock value.

Like most others here, I do want to be able to express my own personal style, and I refuse to conform to the sartorial homogeneity of our modern society which has trended towards t-shirts and blue-jeans as the norm. But using the kilt as a vehicle to be aggressively challenging seems like a disservice to the history and cultural significance of the kilt. And because the public has indeed seen people wearing the kilt in an "in your face" manner, they often expect that if you're wearing it, this is your intent. Of course, this will vary by location and context, but it's because of this that I have gravitated towards wearing the kilt in a more traditional manner, and attempting to look well-dressed and respectable when doing so. My part of the world doesn't have much in the way of Scottish influence, and in the few times I've worn the kilt out in the general public, it does get a lot of attention. I can choose whether to be aggressive and "in your face", or be respectable. Do I want others to see the kilt as positive or negative? That's the question I ask myself before choosing to kilt up for going to town and being the representative of the kilt. And I cannot, for the life of me, understand why anyone would choose to represent it in such a way that people who have never seen a kilt in real life might take a negative view of it.

To each his own, of course. But for those of us whose desire is for the kilt to be accepted outwith Scotland as a traditional and acceptable form of men's attire (and with the cultural significance to which it is attached), it seems like we face an uphill battle when our counterparts are out there "messing with peoples' minds" and using the kilt to do so.

Just something to consider...

[David Thorpe]

I need to pull a Kyle here and say a most emphatic ***!

[Riverkilt]

Definately LOTS of geographic differences....what works in the big city doesn't work in the rural areas. What works in one country doesn't work in another. As with many other things.

Same with mindsets, ways we individually choose to look at the world and present ourselves to the World...one of the things I enjoyed about Auntie Mame...

[Spoone]

Be yourself.
Be tolerant with others being themselves.
Life is good, so let it be

[jjbassman]

This has been an excelent thread to read. I love the diffferent views coming from this Kilted Community. Some are 'in your face' attitudes towards the mondain, cookie cut-out society in which we live in. Some are of heritage, some are of everyday life, and some agree with all. I am part of the later. This is my heritage. I don't have the true tarten or complete ensamble as of yet, but i have a utility kilt...on lonely utility kilt.
The first itme i wore it was as a dare to a store Christmas party...note: i work for a local Harley shop here in town.
The base of operations for international company John Deere is here in town too. So we see A LOT of differet people from different parts of the world. I remember walking in and overhearing someone say "He must be here from Scotland with John Deere." So that being heard i walked into the casino with that in mind. It was ok then. I then would talk to people between that point and the otherside of the casino where the ballroom/company party was in an accent which would make them think i was from 'The Mother Country' and that i was here for work.
Then made it to the party and turned heads as my attitude went from that of heritage to that of 'in your face!' Its interesting to see how attitudes change just by walking through a doorway.
In this Kilted Community, we are going to have those who love wearing the kilt as a sort of 'flying #1' to society and those who wear it as an honorable duty. This is what i love about this community! We are all here cause of the kilt and all that encompasses it and will have many different views and thoughts there in.
So whichever your views...have a good one!