Full mask sporrans revisited...

[BCAC]

There's no need to take my comments personally, BCAC. I took some pains to indicate that they represent my views and that I support whomever wants to wear full mask sporrans. I'm not condemning them, but rather suggesting that KA has a valid point in some contexts. Hopefully you will report back to us once you get yours and have some experience wearing one...

As for defining all kilt-wearers as people who categorically don't care what other people say, you are painting a diverse community with too broad a brush. You're right that some people don't give a fig, but that is not a requirement for wearing the kilt. I personally care very much about how others perceive my clothing because of the way it signifies a variety of meanings. This is especially true when I am wearing the traditional attire of my ancestors and would prefer to avoid looking archaic. Just because people used to wear something does not make it eternally the ideal choice. Examples of the gradual changes in Highland attire abound: flintlocks, basket-hilt swords, great kilts, etc.

Finally, sure a cantled fur sporran is just as dead as a full mask, but they are not the same in appearance. One of them can still stare at you

Colin, Nathan posted earlier that he really believes in animal conservation and has no ethical qualms about the source of the pelt on his sporran but it gives him pause to consider the unspoken message that he may be sending.

If I have understood your stance on this subject, then it probably is not far off the same as Nathan's?

What I'm trying to say (awkwardly) is that by wearing a full mask sporran, I'm not trying to send any message at all (other than the fact that I like full mask sporrans).

[Tobus]

With that said, I can see K-A's point: better to err on the side of caution than risk appearing like a wannabe or a relic. Neither of those two things serves THCD very well. The last thing, I believe, that any of us want is to make a mockery of it.

If K-A had wanted to inject a bit of caution, they could have worded their statement along the lines of, "full mask sporrans may not be acceptable in certain social contexts, due to changing public opinion on animal rights", or some sort of similar statement. But that's not what they did. They went and flat-out categorically stated that it was no longer acceptable. As if they are somehow the final arbiter of what's acceptable and what's not.

But then again, they're not the first to pretend to be the ultimate authority on all matters kilt-related. What really bothers me, though, is that someone will pick up this book in a few years and think that what they said is the plain truth. Heck, in 50 years we may see XMTS members claiming this book as the authority on kilt-wearing, and thus killing off the very idea of traditional full-mask sporrans. All because of one author's opinion.

[JSFMACLJR]

I have two full mask sporrans: one is an otter, the other a badger ( currently on "loan" to my brother who alas, seldom wears the kilt these days! I wear the otter sporran frequently, both for day dress and evening dress.4445968148_64004e57d7_b.jpgDad wearing badger sporran.jpgOtter in action.jpg

[CMcG]

Colin, Nathan posted earlier that he really believes in animal conservation and has no ethical qualms about the source of the pelt on his sporran but it gives him pause to consider the unspoken message that he may be sending.

If I have understood your stance on this subject, then it probably is not far off the same as Nathan's?

What I'm trying to say (awkwardly) is that by wearing a full mask sporran, I'm not trying to send any message at all (other than the fact that I like full mask sporrans).

Nathan and I do see eye to eye on many things, though we also differ in some of the details. He has a full mask sporran and my girlfriend has forbidden me from getting one

I'm a raging omnivore and have family who are both hunters and ranchers; I'm all good with meat, leather, and fur, though I'm also all for the ethical treatment of animals. In a perfect world, that wouldn't be an oxymoron

To be honest, I think the "fur is murder" angle is only part of the issue KA has raised with full mask sporrans. A bigger part of the issue may be that having a lifelike critter's face wrapped around one's waist is just an extreme look! I've heard non-kilt folk refer to them as "creepy" or "weird" or "unsettling" or "shocking" because it is quite unlike most any modern accessory and has a visceral impact. Similarly, women today are much less likely to wear a mink/ermine stole than they used to be. If a person is not familiar with the conventions of THCD, it is hard to say what message someone might perceive in a full mask sporran... hence why I suggested that one might consider where they wear it and with whom.

At the end of the day, if you like it then you should wear it! I appreciate that you're not trying to send any other message than that you like full mask sporrans. Time will tell how the people you interact with while kilted will receive it and I certainly hope they are either educated or open-minded

[unixken]

I can only say that I *love* my L&M Full Mask Muskrat. I've had it for a year now, and have always been happy to wear it. It always gets compliments, and kids especially, like to ask about it.

Mid Summers Eve.jpg

[mookien]

Ken: It looks good on you, ... along with that handsome kilt.

John

[Downunder Kilt]

I can only say that I *love* my L&M Full Mask Muskrat. I've had it for a year now, and have always been happy to wear it. It always gets compliments, and kids especially, like to ask about it.

Mid Summers Eve.jpg

Have the same sporran Ken and my sentiments about wearing it, echo yours. Cheers

[OC Richard]

Very interesting, the make of pipes the piper is playing...

[Nathan]

Very interesting, the make of pipes the piper is playing...

Please explain if it's not too much of a thread jack...

[Orionson]

Interesting thread. I have not voted because, like others, neither option quite fits what I feel about full mask sporrans.

When I was a boy in the 50's and 60's, I seriously craved a full mask Otter sporran. Back then, to me it was the pinnacle of Highland attire. However, for a range of reasons, I never managed to actually get one. As the years wore on, thanks in part to Gavin Maxwell's Ring of Bright Water, I came to adopt the Otter as my Spirit Animal to the point that I wished to return as an Otter in my next life, if such things are possible. I became "Otter Mad" which inevitably led me to my love of Sea Kayaking; the deepest, closest, most spiritually Zen experience I can have as a non-otter. (Scuba Diving involves too much technology, equipment and noise for my tastes.) Once the Otter had achieved such an elevated position in my personal totem pole, I could never bring myself to honour it by wearing one as a sporran, regardless of however ethically that may have been achieved.

In principle, I am not ethically against full mask sporrans, as long as they are humanely and responsibly sourced. It is also important to me that they are well made, tasteful, proportionate and aesthetically pleasing. I do not think that they are fashionably passe here in Scotland. I might wear one, if the right one came along, but never an Otter, and never a Scottish Wildcat. With the greatest respect to the MacPherson's, the Wildcat is seriously teetering on the edge of extinction and I simply could not wear one. Elusive as the living Scottish Wildcat is, I was fortunate to have been able to actually see one in the wild back in the 90's and it was a deeply moving experience. I would hate to see them disappear.

On a side note, my daughter lives a few blocks away from Kinloch Anderson's HQ/Showrooms in Leith. I will make a point of dropping in when I am next in town in July to pick up the book. It will also be interesting to see if they have any full mask sporrans for sale. (My guess is they will.) I will also ask about their position in the book on the issue. I'll provide a full report of the visit, with photos.

Thank you, Nathan - for an interesting and thought provoking thread. Well done.