How to wear the kilt -- Literally!

[Panache]

Originally posted by XMTS member Matt Newsome on his Blog here http://blog.albanach.org/2006/07/how...literally.html 7/15/20006



Matt Newsome is a kilt maker, member of the International Guild of Tartan Scholars, curator of the Scottish Tartans Museum, and Honored Member of X Marks the scot.com. His blog www.albanach.org is a wonderful resource for those interested in kilts and tartan. This very helpful article is reprinted here with his kind permission

:blimp:


How to wear the kilt -- Literally!



You'll have to forgive us long-time kilt wearers. Sometimes we take certain things for granted, and just assume that everyone automatically knows how a kilt should be worn. We forget for the first time kilt wearer just how different this is from the usual mode of dress.

Then we see a picture on the internet of some poor misguided, but well intentioned soul, and we are quickly reminded that some people need a bit of help!

Seriously, though, I do occasionally get phone calls or emails from people who have just received delivery of their first kilt that go something like this: "Hi, I just got my kilt that I ordered. It looks great! It's a real work of art; excellent craftsmanship; a thing of beauty! ...so, er... how do you put the thing on?"

So I thought it might be useful to go over How to Wear the Kilt (ta-dah!). No, I don't mean the proper way to match accessories and the "correct" time of day or night to wear this jacket or that sporran. Much has been written on those topics already (too much!). I mean the physical nuts and bolts of how the kilt is worn.

This is how I get dressed in the morning.


* Put on your shirt. Whatever shirt you are wearing, be it a button down, polo shirt, t-shirt, whatever.

*Put on your kilt. It may seem obvious, but the pleats go in the back! (Some people do need reminding of this). The two flat aprons overlap in the front. On most kilts, there will be a leather strap at the end of the right-hand apron. This will cross over in the front and pass through a hole in the left side of the kilt and fasten to a buckle at the outer left waist. (I make my kilts a bit different as you can see here: http://kilts.albanach.org/details.html ). The top of your kilt should come up well above the belly button. Make this as snug fitting as is comfortable. It needs to be snug enough to keep your kilt in position -- you'll stand straighter, as well!

*Now cross the apron to your left over to the right and fasten with one or two leather straps there. (Interested in why some kilts have two straps while others have three take a look here: http://blog.albanach.org/2005/08/why...lt-straps.html ) It is important to keep things even. You want this outer apron to lie smooth across your belly. In a well made kilt, where the straps and buckles are placed evenly, this means that you should position the straps on both the left and right equally. In other words, if your left-side strap is on the second hole, then you need to wear your right-side strap at the second hole, as well. This applies for the straps at the waist. If your kilt has a third strap down on your right hip, take care to fasten this only as tightly as necessary to allow the apron to lie flat and smooth. People have a tendency to wear this strap too tightly and this creates a pull across the front apron. (Or you could just follow my suggestion and have this superfluous third strap removed and not worry about it!).


*The kilt is designed to sit up high on the waist. Most civilian kilts are made with a 2" rise. This means that (on most men) the bottom of the leather straps (the upper straps, if your kilt has a lower one on the hip) will be at your natural waist line, at the top of your hip bone. The top of the kilt itself should come to just under your rib cage. On thinner men, this will be the natural place where the kilt feels comfortable. Larger men, with a waist (belly) larger than their hips tend to want to wear their kilt at the hips, below their belly. Avoid this temptation! Nothing looks worse than a man with his beer-belly protruding out over the top of his kilt. Wear your kilt high, above your belly button. Believe me, it looks a lot better and more fitted.

*Most well-made kilts will have one of the pivot points of the tartan (the point at which the pattern mirrors itself, often a dominant stripe) at the center point of the front apron. See that that line is centered, and line up the buttons on your shirt to that line.

*Reach down underneath the kilt and give your shirt a little tug to get it in place, and smooth the shirt out. If you need to during the day, you can repeat this little maneuver to neaten up your appearance.


Continued