Advice on a first kilt?

[AKScott]

I thought I said be honest with yourself, but it's all good.

You might contact this seller to see if the straps can be made to reach around your current 42". It is sold pending funds and borderline to maybe fit you today, but it's a maybe...

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...nt-38-a-65103/

Anyway, keep an eye on the for sale section. You might also place an add of your own in the "wanted" section. One advantage of having an inexpensive kilt in your hand is you can put the fool thing on, see if it is too long, too short or just right, and then have a real length measurement you believe in to give to your custom kiltmaker down the road.

This _might_ be a really good idea. If you intentionally buy one that just barely fits today it will fit you better and better as the rest of your wardrobe gets baggier and baggier. Just an idea. Best of luck to you sir.

[AKScott]

. How long do most kilt queues end up being, from order to shipment?

6-10 weeks should be typical, with the caveat that not everyone has every tartan in stock all the time. If you belong to a wee tiny little clan, and only one wee litle mill way up a glen has the rights to make it, and they are out of yarn, well maybe ten months if they have to wait for the lambs to be shorn again so they can buy some wool....

. I tend naturally towards the investing in fewer, better clothes side of the matter (the issue, I'm well aware, has come up here now and again, and I don't wish to start anything), but a trial kilt before I buy a treasured heirloom doesn't sound entirely malapropos.

If I had a closet full of $300 suits I was wearing everyday, I cold see dropping $600 on a nice suit. I have a collection of kitchen knives at $150 or so each, I could see dropping $600 on really really nice cleaver some day. Dropping $600 on a kilt when I had never ever worn one before didn't seem prudent, so I bought one at $100 on a trial basis. If I hadn't liked it I would be out $100. Since I did like it, I have a spare to wear when shoveling snow or running the BBQ and etc. I'll probably mow the lawn in the inexpensive one a couple times this summer.

I'm glad to hear that the 13 oz. wool is a viable option, even if it does crease more easily ... What thoughts have you all on the tank vs. the four-yard box-pleat for one's very first introduction to the kilt?

This is a kettle of worms of the bottomless type. I have only one comment, and it of tangetial value. At +10°F, when shoveling sixteen inches of snow off the driveway I was quite comfortable in my five yard knife pleat while the order of operations was step, shovel, shovel, shovel, shovel, step. At the far end of the driveway when I returned to the house the order was step, step, step, step, and I was quite cold. If you are too hot in your kilt standing still, walk around some. If you are too hot in your kilt walking around, look for a lighter kilt.

Best of luck to you.

[Séamus Ua Proinsias]

Well, just an idea, perhaps, but it seems indeed a very fine one, sir. I'll train my eyes towards the "for sale" section, provided I don't just break down when I reach the 38" mark and order a Stillwater or a polyviscose number. I'll poke around the old threads and see what everyone thinks of weights and pleatings and all.

(By the way: health, yes, but truth be told, when all my clothes started not fitting, I knew something had to give, and prudence, indeed, will dictate, &c. Anyway, thanks for your commendation. Such comments are beyond value for the effort.)

Once more, thanks for all the patience, information and help for an earnest and perhaps somewhat impetuous tyro.

Y'a bon,

Jake

[Mike M.]

Don't feel alone, Seamus. I'm also trying hard to become a Gentleman of Less Substance. Considerably less, in my case, as I have quite a bit of Substance to dispose of.

My scheme is simple:
a. Lose weight
b. Buy kilt
c. Get attention from attractive and eligible ladies.

Consider it a field trial

[Séamus Ua Proinsias]

Well, quite! Solidarity. Good man, yourself, Mike.

[piperdbh]

You might want to try going to a Games in your area and trying on some of the kilts the vendors will have for sale. That will give you a lot of first-hand experience with different weights, pleatings and other features that Internet pictures just can't quite match.

[robbiethepiper]

Normally, I advise people to mortgage the house and get an 8-yard hand-stitched masterpiece from Kinloch Anderson, because this is an investment that will last and look good for the rest of your life. That's bad advice for someone whose shape is changing. If you really can't wait, just get the cheapest ready-made kilt that you find acceptable and fits, then enjoy!...

[Ryan Ross]

My advice....

If you are actively losing weight, wait a bit for your weight to stabilize before you order a kilt. No sense in ordering a garment that won't fit you from the get-go.

On the other hand, if you are simply concerned that your weight will drop in the future, or "would like to" lose weight down the road, go ahead and order your kilt. It can be taken in if needs be to adjust for a smaller size, should that be necessary.

Worst case scenario, you can sell it and buy a new one in your size. But in the meantime you will have a nice kilt to wear!

This is VERY good advice... I've done pretty much all of the above, at one time or another, and single handedly given Matt more practice at altering/rebuilding kilts than he probably ever wanted.

Also, listen to the folks that tell you to get the best kilt you can afford, straight from the beginning.

Best of luck and happy hunting!

[Dale Seago]

My scheme is simple:
a. Lose weight
b. Buy kilt
c. Get attention from attractive and eligible ladies. :

You really only need to worry about (a) & (b). If you take care of those, then (c) will follow as surely as the night the day. . .

Well, at least if you wear the kilt.

[Ryan Ross]

You really only need to worry about (a) & (b). If you take care of those, then (c) will follow as surely as the night the day. . .

Well, at least if you wear the kilt.

In my experience, this tends to be the case, as well. And if any given lady really dislikes the kilt, she's probably not the sort you want to associate much with anyway; the kilt is an excelent barometer for character. My Abigail, for example, LOVES the kilt and is ALWAYS highly supportive of me wearing it.