Couple of things.... I would not worry about making a kilt that fits within a fraction of an inch. Last time I checked, peoples shapes change. I know that mine has. If all kilts MUST fit within a fraction of an inch, then mine all stink because I've been lifting weights a lot and my my rumpus and thighs are bigger than they used to be.

If I lose weight, my waist will shrink. The truth is that if someone retains water for a couple of days, their measurements can change by half an inch, even an inch in some cases. So absolutely you should strive to make the kilt fit as best you can, but if it's half an inch off...well....that's what the straps are for.

Secondly, this is not Religion. I'm a big fan of a book on boatbuilding, called the Backyard Boatbuilder, by a curmudgeonly guy by the name of George Buehler. Now, in the boatbuilding world, there's a type of boatbuilder who will sand off six layers of varnish, negating 30 or more hours of work if one single flyspeck imperfection is noticed. Every single joint must be utterly perfect. These guys will take fifteen measurements and cut multiple bevels and use a spokeshave to get every single join *Perfect* in a complex piece of wood. George Buehler says it this way..... "It's a BOAT, not a SHRINE". I note that the president of Nexus Marine says that "the boat school guys drive me insane". Why go through all that when you can take a piece of wood, eyeball it, cut a few cuts and get it right on the belt sander?

The exact same philosophy applies here.

It's a KILT, not a SHRINE. Do your best job, don't be sloppy, don't rush it, but stop far, far short of emotional trauma over whether or not it is PERFECT. If it takes you a hundred hours (seriously) then something is *wrong*. My first hand-sewn kilt, which was far from perfect, took me 47 hours of sewing, most of it by hand. My only wish is that a.) I had done the reinforcing in the cut-out pleats differently....but I could re-do it at any time...and b.) that I had not machine-sewn the far right edge of the over-apron by the fringe the way I did. I now know a trick to machine sewing that down so that it doesn't show (stitch in the ditch) but I didn't know that, then. I could go back and rip it out, but I notice that I haven't bothered.

I will also let you know that as you progress, it will get easier. You first kilt will not be as good as your fifth. So don't flip out. BTW I wore my first hand-sewn kilt, complete with flaws, yesterday. It looks fine....or at least the woman at the checkout stand at the grocery store who flirted with me seemed to think.

BTW, I use pins to hold my pleats in place while I sew them and I have yet to have anybody come up to me and comment that my pleats are puckered. If you don't need to use pins, then more power to ya....forge ahead. Who needs pins? However, if you need to use pins to get your pleats aligned, then use 'em and just remember to pull them out when you're done with the pleat.