Looking for cheap kilt jacket

[Taskr]

You might also find a decent double vent jacket at a thrift shop and then a few bucks to have it altered - certainly under $100 total

[Tarheel]

Jason, I do what Taskr has suggested. I recently got a good jacket and vest at Salvation Army for $5.00. I'm so poor, that I rely on my sewing abilities (barely passible attempts) to make the conversion for my kilts. I still wear them with pride, as it is my work.
I'm sorry that your family is less supportive than they could be. I come from a big family and felt like the odd child often. 50 plus years later, they accept my eccentricities, but retain the right to opinions (both good and hurtful) toward me. I abide by my clan motto, Si Je Puis (If I Can!).

[Dileasgubas]

At 16, you'll likely grow out of a jacket fairly soon. While a kilt should last several years, a jacket likely won't, but you might insider a vest. The outfit in the picture, with a vest and possibly a tie, would work for most occasions.

[IsaacW]

What size are you? I would check ebay. If you are in the 38-42 inch range, quality vintage jackets can frequently be found for less than $100. I purchased 5 jackets in the past year, 3 from ebay and none of them were more than $100 and two were with waistcoats. If you are larger than a 42", jackets also are on ebay but less frequently.

IW

[auld argonian]

Keeping an eye on the thrift stores (Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc.) will usually yield a serviceable jacket that could be converted to kilt length. Being "up North" here in Chicago, I come across lots of tweed jackets on the racks and have paid anywhere from $20 to $3. Your being "down South" you might not run into many tweeds…if you've never worn a tweed sport coat, they are pretty warm so I figger that folks in the warmer part of the country don't have much use for them. You might find a few nice wool or wool blends, though, and there's nothing wrong with those. I would hold out for something that's either totally or mostly wool, though….jackets made of synthetics don't seem to hold up well. There are several nice tutorials floating around here that give you step-by-step instructions on how to shorten, do gauntlet cuff treatments and epaulets…if I were you, I'd just try to get one shortened first and worry about doing the cuffs and epaulets further on down the road.

I had a nice lady seamstress open up a couple of blocks over from me and while I was there having some trousers cuffed, I noticed that she had a photo of a gentleman in a kilt jacket there among the photos of her samples. I asked her about it and, long story short, she told me that she ended up charging the fella something like $225 for the work….seemed unrealistic to me in light of the stories that I've read here about friendly tailors doing the whole job for significantly less than $225 so I pretty much dropped the subject.

One thing that I will tell you is that, when you're looking at jackets in the thrift shops, don't take it unless the shoulders fit well…no tailor ever wants to screw around with shoulders. They can cheat a bit of length out of sleeves or take it in on the sides but they will not touch shoulders. (I know of a certainty that saying this will elicit a response from somebody here who will say, "Nonsense! My tailor has taken in the shoulder on many jackets…blah…blah…blah.". But I've spoken to at least a half a dozen around here who just look at you like you've taken leave of your senses if you ask them to shave down the shoulders of a sport coat.)

Just be patient and keep your eyes open and you'll find something.

Best,

AA

[IsaacW]

size 40 black barathea argyll
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beautiful-Vi...item58bd6f003c


As a young man, if you are a bit smaller... this is a size 34" at a great starting bid that includes a waistcoat. It is Harris tweed with REAL staghorn buttons....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Harris-Tweed...item4ae4717a80


No real size listed here but it appears to be about a size 42small(short) in a very nice tweed...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kilt-tweed-j...item3cf233b721

[Benning Boy]

Occasionally I'll scout ebay for potential conversions. I find you have to vary your search terms a lot if you want to discover the full range of options, but I try to find jackets with no vent, or a the very most a double vent, and patch pockets. It takes some doing, but every once in a while there's one listed. The ones I've actually bought have been designer name items, and well made, and I don't think I've paid more than $65 for one. Yeah, I know, patch pockets aren't traditional, but they can be moved and recut and otherwise dealt with in an easy manner. It seems everyone who converts a jacket with set-in pockets has problems with them, Beside, I like a very simple nontraditional look, something that doesn't draw attention away from the kilt. It's probably better to buy long length jackets, as you're going to be cutting the lower part off anyway, it won't be a problem there, and it will give you more range of adjustment if you must do something about sleeve length. I'm kind of border line on sleeve length so most always need a long anyway.

Mostly what's happening here is I'm suggesting you do as I say, and not as I do, as I haven't yet cut into my jackets, I just don't trust my sewing skills enough yet. However I do understand much of the process well. My former wife was a highly skilled seamstress/tailor who cold work wonders, even when it came to making adjustments in the shoulder construction. She worked on suits and sport coats made to order for some very famous men spending really big bucks on their clothing, so you know she had to know what she was doing, and of course me, who never ever could be considered famous at all.

[NYClark]

I just converted a good will jacket, actually from Savers (boys and girls club). It had appliqué pockets which I removed before shortening the jacket. $8.00. Hemming on a curve can be a bit tricky but use lots of pins and cut out some of the hem fabric where it bunces up. Even with sewing by hand won't take too long if you don't have a machine. Or borrow a sewing machine. I also got our several sewing machines from Savers. Because I'm extra thrifty. If you mess up it's only $8 you've lost.

[OC Richard]

I currently wear three different jackets:

1) black Argyll
2) green tweed Argyll
3) black Prince Charlie

all of which were picked up inexpensively, around $100 each, on Ebay.

My size, 50, comes up very rarely. Many hundreds of lovely vintage jackets in 38 and 40 come up for every one that comes up in 50, yet, though diligent watching I was able to outfit myself. (I see size 38 and 40 vintage jackets every day on Ebay, size 50 about once every two years.)

All three of those jackets are of very high quality Scottish-made items, the fabric and tailoring superior to the Scottish-made jackets I typically see for sale at shops and at the Games. (Leaving Indian and Pakistani jackets aside.)

But caveat emptor! I picked up a size 50 Lovat Blue tweed Argyll jacket a few months ago, which fit perfectly, however it had obvious mothing on the collar. The seller was very good about everything, apologetic that she hadn't noticed the mothing, and took care of the problem. A seller with hundreds or thousands of positive feedbacks is somebody who values good customer service.

[MacLowlife]

What kind of jacket do you need? Most teenagers have less need for dressy clothes, until they really need them. If you want a jacket to wear with your kilt to church, you should think about converting a suit or sport coat as mentioned above. If you want a dressy jacket (for a dance), check out the many discussions of Spencer jackets. Try the search feature, using "cheap jacket" or "jacket conversion". You wil find even more good advice.

Meanwhile, try to humor your family members. Clothing options abound, but family is hard to come by.