Waistband height utility kilt

[brendanthetraveller]

Most will wear their utility kilts at the "trouser," or "jeans waist," with a drop length which puts the hem about mid-knee.

Most wear their traditional tartan kilts 2" above the navel, with a drop length which puts the hem about mid-knee.

Think about what jackets you might wear with the utility kilt - are they cut like a formal Prince Charlie Coatee? Or more like a jacket one might wear with jeans, or trousers?

Up to you, of course. If the kilt is comfortable at or above your navel, and the belt helps to firm up the gut a bit, more power to you.

In Scotland I have never seen anyone wearing a "Utikilt" so can someone explain to me why do they call it a utikilt? It is not a Kilt it is a tunic similar to a roman soldier.
The popularity of the Scottish kilt has produced several spin offs. Leather kilts, Plain coloured woollen Kilts, Tweed Kilts and Kilts made with patterns such as thistles or the Scottish St Andrews flag. These are all Kilts. The material may be different but the construction of the garment is the same as the traditional kilt. Nothing added and nothing removed.

The line is however drawn when a manufacturer changes the fundamental construction. The Utikilt adds integrated pockets: The pleats are too wide and do not appear to be stitched up to the waist and the amount of material used is far less than would be used in a traditional Kilt. The cross over front apron is also not the same. Because of these changes it stops being a kilt and becomes a tunic. If the manufacturer of this tunic had wanted to keep it as a Kilt they should have added the pockets as a detachable over apron (see British army regular issue 1914 – 1918). They should also have stuck to the traditional way that a proper Kilt is made.

Words are important because they convey a differentiation. A waist coat is not called a jacket because it is different. Breeches are not called trousers or is it pants in America? Shoes and boots are different so a Kilt is not a tunic.