PV is a blend of polyester and viscose. Now, we have to be careful about calling it a synthetic, because viscose is actually reprocessed cellulose, which is pretty darned natural. Then again, it's not wool, either, so I dunno..

Whatever the case, Kilt Wilter is spot on about Acrylic NOT being the material to wear when it's hot. I have two Stillwater kilts and I love them, but they're sweat city in hot weather. When it's hot I opt for my PV philabeg kilt from USA Kilts.

Marton Mills is one of the several big weaving companies in Scotland along with Locharron, House of Edgar, Glen Affric, Strathmore and so on. Marton Mills produces a lot of the wool tartans that you'll find on any of the tartan finders, or by looking though the Kilt Store link at the top of the X Marks page. However, they also produce a line of tartans, about 60 of them, in 10.5 ounce polyester-viscose.

Because of the reduced expense, relative durability of the cloth, and machine-washability, the Marton Mills polyester-viscose is quite popular with casual kilt makers. Other companies also make polyester-viscose tartans. For example. N. Batley, Ltd. makes a line of polyester-viscose.

However, not all PV is made the same. Marton Mills PV is somewhat heavier-weight than N. Batley's PV. That's good for kilts, but might not be good for other things. It all depend on what you want.

There's someone else that makes PV tartan material, because I just bought 3.8 meters of it off of ebay in Gray Stewart, and neither Marton Mills nor N. Batley make a Gray Stewart PV. Who it is, though, I have no idea.

For a truly traditional kilt, most serious kiltmakers won't use PV. However, for a casual kilt, one you can wash and one that's really good in hot weather, or for someone who can't wear wool, poly-viscose is a very good alternative. Look at it this way.... for a kilt you can just throw on and wear around, for one that costs between $100-$150, a kilt that you can stip off and throw in the washing machine and then iron yourself in ten minutes, polyester-viscose is a great choice. Would I wear a polyster-viscose kilt to a very formal occasion that will be packed with knowledgeable kilt-wearers? No. Do I wear mine to work, around town, to Highland Games and so on? You bet.

There are also polyester-wool blends out there, so if you're looking for alternatives, PV is not the only one.