Modern Formal

[CDNSushi]

Sorry, I know I was going to stay out of the thread.

What about the sporran, CDNSushi; unless I'm just missing it in your post?

Why? That was an excellent question. Clearly I forgot to mention it. Lol. At first I thought of not havin one at all... But on second thought I would probably commission a custom one. I'd want it a bit different than a standard sporran. I'm thinking: almost square (rather than round), covered with black-silver, short-hair hide (just think of a cow hide) and a flat, silver cantle. Again, I can see it in my mind's eye, but unlikely that such a thing currently exists.

[rondo]

all awesome ideas guys...
Rondo

[Bugbear]

Why? That was an excellent question. Clearly I forgot to mention it. Lol. At first I thought of not havin one at all... But on second thought I would probably commission a custom one. I'd want it a bit different than a standard sporran. I'm thinking: almost square (rather than round), covered with black-silver, short-hair hide (just think of a cow hide) and a flat, silver cantle. Again, I can see it in my mind's eye, but unlikely that such a thing currently exists.

Strangely, I kind of like the smooth, black leather sporrans with silver cantles that are fairly simple. I have one here from Celtic Croft. it's not high quality, but if it were, I don't find anything wrong with the concept.

[CMcG]

The most common contemporary formal look seems to use either a more limited colour palette or, as Chrisupyonder suggested, monochromatic. Sometimes a clan tartan kilt is worn, sometimes low contrast fashion tartans (think grey on black), or sometimes even solid colours. Pared down versions of traditional jackets are offered without fancy cuffs, or with buttons that might be black or antiqued metal. Shirts can be white but are sometimes black, and large wing collars are often found.

The ruche knot (scrunchy knot) on an ascot tie is often seen. Strangely enough, I've also often seen these sorts of outfits worn with ghillie brogues, which seems to go against the general simplification of the look. I don't mind the look, but I'd go with plain, well shined oxfords and a stock tie instead. I'd also think a more modern sporran might work nicely with them, like one with a blacked cantle to go with the buttons.

Here's some pics:

[CMcG]

For Alan H:

I think a Gurkha mess jacket would work nicely as they have the mandarin collar you are talking about but already have a short waist.



Or perhaps something like this that I saw on eBay:


I'm not sure if either of those come in Highland athlete sizes though