Material for utility kilt

[Nick Sweeney]

What is a good material for a utility kilt that resists wrinkling when sitting down for extended periods of time?

[Tarheel]

I wondered if the ergonomic chair would be a possible answer to the other circumstance in sitting while wearing a kilt. I remember that past of the body weight is supported by the knees. The photo is from National Business Furniture (internet) of an office chair. * I am not selling or promoting this product * Material for a utility kilt is one part of the issue. chair.JPG

[The Wizard of BC]

Garment designers chose fabrics based on many factors. The ease at which the fabric wrinkles is but one.

Avoid 100% cotton fabrics if wrinkling is your primary factor. Cotton duck like Carrhardt is perhaps the worse for wrinkling. But of course it is also one of the toughest in terms of abrasion resistance and cotton is perhaps the best for flame resistance.

100% Polyester is perhaps the best at resisting wrinkling but may be less desirable for its lighter weight.

When I make kilts that I want to look and swish like a kilt but are resistant to wrinkling I will usually choose a blend of Polyester and Cotton. Many fabrics are avaialable in a blend of approx. 65% Cotton 35% Polyester. Think "Dockers" brand pants.

These fabrics are usually reasonably priced and available in a wide range of colors and even prints.

The two main things to look for are price and quality.

Poly/Cotton fabrics are one of those things where you are better taking some time to search out the best quality. I try to avoid my local fabric shop due to the quality of Poly/Cotton available. Very few local fabric stores of the Joeannes, Fabricland type carry high quality Poly/Cottons. And because they are usually selling off remnants the quality is not consistent month to month.

Many people will try to find the lowest price when thinking of a fabric for a Utility type kilt. This is usually not the best time to shop the WalMart/Target type of store. The difference between a low quality fabric and a high quality one is only going to be a few dollars. Low quality will usually sell for less than $5.00 per yard while higher quality fabrics will usually be found in the $11.00 12.00 range. The difference in one kilt's worth of fabric is only a $20.00 bill.

[Tenmiles]

My utility kilt is a poly-cotton material (I didn't even realize that at first, I thought it was all cotton), and even this sure does wrinkle and rumple. I either have to iron the kilt every week to keep the pleats sharp, or just let it "go baggy" and have a rumpled, well-worn "cargo pants" kind of look.
But if 100% cotton would wrinkle even more, then I'd be happy sticking with fabric like this.

[Nick Sweeney]

The utility kilt I have is 100% cotton and after sitting in the car for 10 to 15 minutes it looks a total mess. Guess the next utility kilt I get will be a cotton blend to help with the wrinkles.

[The Wizard of BC]

There is a really cool feature of Cotton. The more you iron it the better it looks. Ironing actually improves the fabric.

But Cotton does not hold a crease. Remember having to iron cotton shirts?

This is why Cotton as blended with Polyester in the first place. To make it more wrinkle resistant.

[Nick Sweeney]

There is a really cool feature of Cotton. The more you iron it the better it looks. Ironing actually improves the fabric.

But Cotton does not hold a crease. Remember having to iron cotton shirts?

This is why Cotton as blended with Polyester in the first place. To make it more wrinkle resistant.

One more question for you.

What about cotton twill? Does that hold up well against wrinkling?

Guess that was two questions.

[The Wizard of BC]

Twill refers only to how the fabric is woven, not to the fiber content of the fabric.

But, in very general terms, a fabric woven as Twill will have some properties that will assist in wrinkle resistance. But to ask if a Cotton Twill will be better than a Cotton plain weave, well, they are both Cotton.

Denim is a Cotton Twill. But Blue Jean fabric is a terrible fabric for a kilt. It will need to be ironed every time you put it on and Denim, by its nature, continues to shrink for its entire life. You don't notice it much in Blue Jeans because you have your legs in them stretching the fabric back out. This is why Blue Jeans form fit to your body.

If you rely only on gravity to keep the pleats, a kilt made from Blue Jean Denim will soon look like a tutu. Unless, as I've said, you stretch and iron it each time you put it on.
And look at your jeans. Denim does wrinkle. And after a while those wrinkles become permanent.

[ratspike]

Sellfabric.com is all you need to know. They are, I believe, the retail arm of Carr Textile, which is who I use for wholesale orders. Their poly/cotton twill is bomber and makes a fantastic kilt. 7.99 a yard and much higher quality than the crap sold by Joanne Fabric.

[The Wizard of BC]

I use Carr Textiles for all my solid colored fabrics too and highly recommend them.