How Many Years in the Switch from Box to Knife Pleat?

[figheadair]

I wonder if this is true....After the proscription laws ended and the kilt was available again, techniques in fashionable construction had advanced greatly. I wonder if by that time, the idea of sewing a kilt in knife pleats would resemble the "old, simpleton" way of pleating the garment. With French couture at an appex at this time, and the broad need for massive kilt orders and wanting to look to date, I wonder if Box Pleating was just the style of the times moving aside anything resembling the unorganized hand pleat of the belted plaid. Sort of like jeans....In the 80's when acid wash straight leg were in vogue, my friends and I would NEVER think of, or be caught dead wearing bell bottoms or boot cut. Fast forward to the late 90's, early 2000's when this style came back with an updated flair. See my point? I'm hesistant to think it was purely economics, although the updated style of box pleating would have been conveniently cheaper.

You of course make the assumption that the older non-sewn feileadh mor and feileadh beag was knife pleated. There is evidence for the use of a drawstring on th former and it's entirely possible that it was also common practice on the latter in which case the knife pleat, whilst it was probably used pre-c1780, may not have been common. Sewing in the drape/loose box pleat of the drawstring garment would have 'regimented' the pleats allowing them to be set in a uniform way.

Are there any historical examples of this pleat cheating in the military kilts?

Not sure what you mean. Military kilts were always pealted to stripe.