Evolution of a Kiltie - Changing Tastes

[Riverkilt]

No one asked. And I don't know if this means anything to anyone but me - but I found myself looking back over how my tastes in kilts have changed.

I started out with no interest in kilts until I was 59. Despite being of strong Scottish heritage, owning a lot of books about Scotland, subscribing to magazines about Scotland, and going to Highland Games. I still had no interest in kilts. I was one of those guys wearing pants to the Highland Games.

In the early Spring of 2004 I spotted my first Utilikilt Workman's at the Arizona Ren Faire and was hooked. I was 59 and still pretty active hiking the canyonlands. I bought a LOT of solid color and camo kilts. Utilikilts, Freedom Kilts and Pittsburgh Kilts. The only tartan kilts I had were a couple of SportKilts.

But somewhere along there I ordered up my first hand sewn wool kilt in a clan tartan. Then I finally decided that all the hype about USA Kilts might be valid and I ordered my first tartan USA Kilt.

For sure I was on one Hell of an addictive run. Love the comfort and freedom of kilting. After aging and fattening up I've been selling off the kilts that no longer fit me and reinvesting the proceeds in kilts that do fit me.

But today, my choice seems to be for tartan kilts where the tartan has a meaning for me such as one of my clan tartans, a district tartan (including X Marks), and military tartans.

I still have a solid color saffron USA Kilts semi-trad - which is a district "tartan" in a way, and a dress model maroon Freedom Kilts which is a color I like, wear to work, and is cut in a traditional kilt look.

And then there are the solid color leather kilts. While leather kilts are expensive they are also bulletproof and great in foul weather or for a jaunty look. Have the UK brown leather and the RKilts saffron leather with an eggplant RKilt at the top of my wish list. But I buy the leather more for the use and look of the leather than the color of the leather. Both the brown and saffron "look" like leather.

I have not had the urge to replace any of my outgrown Utilikilts. That seems to me to have more to do with my age than anything else. Also, after working out the freedom to wear kilts at work I don't want to appear too casual at work.

And, for those of you with wives and girlfriends concerned about the cost of kilts you can tell them with assurance that the value of kilts endures. Thanks to this board I've been able to get my outgrown kilts and changed my mind about the tartan kilts out of the closet and back into circulation while giving another kiltie my size a bargain with limited jonesing. A real win-win situation. No way that's gonna happen with pants.

Guess the point of this post is to reassure/remind guys catching the kilt fever and slipping into gutter kilt addiction that its okay...as you learn more, change sizes, change tastes, its possible to make the changes you want to without much hassle, get fair value for the kilts you pass on, and reinvest in the kilts you want now.

Hope that all makes some kinda sense.

Ron