You do the best you can with what you've got..

**Alan H** · 29th January 13, 09:04 PM

Once upon a time, that sort of train of thought was quite common, here. You do the best you can with what you've got..

For example, if you happened to have a very nice kilt and managed to acquire some nice hose and had a pair of decent dress shoes, nobody would worry over much if you so-happened to wear a less-formal leather sporran to a more formal occasion. Why? Because everybody understood that sometimes it takes a while to accumulate all this stuff, not to mention a fair bit of money, if in fact you're going to to far enough to accumulate it.

I see a plethora of posts about whether or not some item or sets of items is acceptable or even offensive at XYZ occasion. As informational exchanges, these posts are good things. I mean, we all have to learn, somehow, right? However, I'm a bit concerned that, say....if our Good Lad gets informed that if he wears a five button vest with his PC, then he's a stinking piker, that he'll just can it, and go buy or rent a tuxedo or not attend the event he's inquiring about, at all.

The Nor Cal Rabble's Burns Night Dinner has always been "you wear what you've got". You do the best you can with what you've got. While there are certainly occasions where that might not be appropriate, I can't think of a whole lot of them. The Saint Andrews Society Annual Tartan Ball doesn't even apply, in my opinion.

I'm put in mind of something we all probably are hearing nowadays... From some Scottish guy named Robert.

What though on hamely fare we dine,
Wear hoddin grey, an' a that;
Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine;
A Man's a Man for a' that:
For a' that, and a' that,
Their tinsel show, an' a' that;
The honest man, tho' e'er sae poor,
Is king o' men for a' that.

In my humble opinion, if you have the resources to purchase clothing appropriate for an occasion, then certainly you should do so. There's no excuse for being a slob. However, if your resources...and that includes time, not just money.... mean that you don't have every little thing just perfect, then DO YOUR BEST and show up anyway. --> Because in the end, it's not the clothes that make the man. The MAN makes the man, and honest decency putting out some effort to do the best he can, looks a lot better than any properly, fancy laid-out kit, and a' that...

....In my humble opinion.

**llyd** · 29th January 13, 09:39 PM

Yep. We as a culture temd to focis too much on what is correct for any given situation...sez who. I wore my green forest print kilt to town today, short sleeved khaki shirt, black hose...and received quite a few compliments...do I sweat the it is not plaid wool twill? Well...maybe a little, but for my purposes, my home made contemporary kilts are fine...I probably would not wear one to Burns' night...but that is not really the point.

**TheOfficialBren** · 29th January 13, 09:42 PM

Aye!
***

**Tony** · 29th January 13, 10:22 PM

I may well wear a bow tie with my new Argyll and 5 button vest.
If anyone asks I'll just tell them I'm numerically dyslexic.

**TheOfficialBren** · 29th January 13, 11:33 PM

Don't get me wrong...I put my best foot forward and sometimes decline attending if I am WAY too far feom the mark, i.e. White tie, but most of the time in Southern California a nice shirt, tie, and jacket will get you by.

I understand that that sort of casual approach is NOT the global standard.

However, if I had a wedding (completely hypothetical as there is no Mrs Bren on the horizon at the moment) and a good mate was without the proper tie I would feel awful if they declined solely because they felt awkwardly underdressed. I would rather that they celebrate the occasion with me than stay home over a tie...or a jacket...or the wrong slacks.

There is a place to put one's foot down with dressing up and there is a place to relax.

Now, if it's a State Dinner, for example, do it the right way or don't do it at all.

These are just my opinions, though.

BTW, Allen I love that Burns poem.

**Dale Seago** · 30th January 13, 12:04 AM

***, Alan.

**BCAC** · 30th January 13, 01:08 AM

I would agree with you up to a point, Alan. That's OK if there is no dress code on the invitation. If there's a dress code you should buy, rent, beg, borrow or steal the correct items to be dressed as per the dress code, or stay home. Well, perhaps not steal, but you know what I mean!

**Downunder Kilt** · 30th January 13, 01:20 AM

Originally Posted by BCAC

I would agree with you up to a point, Alan. That's OK if there is no dress code on the invitation. If there's a dress code you should buy, rent, beg, borrow or steal the correct items to be dressed as per the dress code, or stay home. Well, perhaps not steal, but you know what I mean!

Totally agree with you BCAC. If you are invited somewhere or pay to go somewhere and the organisers put a dress code on the function, not dressing to that code is an insult to the organisers. I don't own a tuxedo, if I was invited to a black tie do where the organisers stated black tie and no highland dress, then I would hire or borrow the required clothing.

**TheOfficialBren** · 30th January 13, 02:02 AM

Originally Posted by BCAC

I would agree with you up to a point, Alan. That's OK if there is no dress code on the invitation. If there's a dress code you should buy, rent, beg, borrow or steal the correct items to be dressed as per the dress code, or stay home. Well, perhaps not steal, but you know what I mean!

***
You said it MUCH better than my long-winded post.

**frank_a** · 30th January 13, 03:06 AM

Thank you Alan for a bit of Scottish sense! For me, dress codes are fine (though few and far between for a man of my means) - if it's for stuff I don't have, I just won't go, no biggie. It's hard enough around Albany NY to even find anything to go to with other kilted folks, let alone anything with a dress code.

Frank