Argyle jacket with white tie?

[FossilHunter]

So many people I run into feel "Evening Dress = Black Prince Charlie + Black Bow Tie". This 1:1 correspondence never existed... there have always been other jacket styles around, other colours of jackets around, other sorts of neckwear around.

I think there are two factors at play here though. The hire industry has an interest in stocking just one style in one color. It just makes sense financially. Many people in Scotland do not own or regularly wear a kilt and seem to rent an outfit for events like weddings so they see what's in the shop and they imagine that it's always been that way.

The second thing, which I think plays more into non-Scots who wear the kilt, is that the PC looks like a tuxedo and is worn for similar events. Since the only proper colors for a tux are black and midnight blue (which is itself uncommon these days), the assumption is that highland dress should follow the same convention which is affirmed (in the mind of the renter) by the hire shops with their all black jackets.