Quote Originally Posted by TheOfficialBren View Post
Ugh! My eloquent reply to this thread was deleted when Safari crashed on my iPad.

Here is the Reader's Digest version:


1) IMHO we are seeing a silver age of kilts. These newer, modern styles are still in their infancy.

2) It was only a little over a century ago that an 8-yard, knife pleated kilt was considered wrong. I recently purused the site of a reputable kilt maker n Cape Breton who flatly said that anything less than 8yards was not technically a kilt. Any kiltmaker that doesn't know more than the customer about the real history and valid traditions of the garment is not worth my business. Very stodgy.

3) The historically valid lower yardage kilts are making a big comeback. They are simply rebranded as the "casual" kilt. Ironically, this modern trend is the most historically correct form of the tailored kilt. Must we be reminded that four or five yard BOX pleats were the norm until the middle of the nineteenth century. Knife pleats were viewed by many experts to be incorrect until as late as the 1880s.
Bren, I think we have to be very careful associating the term "casual" with all lower yardage kilts and how various vendors describe them. For instance I don't think any of Matt Newsomes kilt are describled as casual (box or knife pleated) I know John at keltoi does not refer to his lower yardage kilts as casual. Scotweb for instance describes thiers as "This Casual or Sports kilt is expertly sewn to impress, but with a contemporary lower-waisted cut". USAK have a velcro waist on their casuals and thats the only model described as a casual. Not all lower yardage kilts have been or should be branded as casual. I have two of Matts box pleated kilts and a 6 yard knife pleat on the way. I have worn the boxpleated to black tie functions and I consider them as anything but casual in these circumstances.