Why traditional?

[Domehead]

Jock, Sir
You stole my thunder - particularly about the "Laird" thing. Well said.
Ryan

[macwilkin]

Those of us who live in warmer climes often struggle with this, Jock. If we were going to dress strictly for comfort and practical convenience all the time, we'd end up wearing flip-flops, Bermuda shorts, and loose Hawaiian style shirts like they do in South Florida. That's not really my thing, though, and never has been. Everyone, to some degree, sacrifices comfort for the sake of style or decorum. Casual and comfortable, in certain contexts, equals slovenly. Sadly, that slovenly trend is taking over our society.

90 degrees is blazing hot to someone from the UK. To a native Texan, it's a mildly warm day. Even when it's 100 degrees outdoors, my casual/comfortable dress is often boots, jeans, a denim or duck-cloth shirt, and a felt hat. We often talk about the "THCD" style originating in the early to mid 1900s, but if we take a look at traditional Texas style dress from the same era, it's very similar in many ways. Folks wore clothing that, by today's standards, would be uncomfortable and hot. They wore wool trousers, ties, vests & jackets, etc. Did their common sense fall afoul of wanting to dress the part too? No, it was just how they dressed to meet social expectations. And many still dress that way, at least in my part of Texas where cowboy culture is still very much a part of everyday life.

I guess what I'm saying is that you personally might recoil at the idea of wearing certain clothing on a 90 degree day, but to others it's not as much of an issue. Trust me when I say that an 8-yard kilt and woollen hose are much cooler than wearing boots and jeans in the Texas heat!

I do agree on the tweed waistcoat, jacket, and tie issue. Typically I will wear these to our Highland Games that are held in early April and November, when the temperature is very mild. This year some of us are planning on gathering in August, and it would indeed be foolish to wear such things in the worst part of summer. But I'm sure we will still choose to wear something that pays respect to THCD, rather than showing up in flip-flops and Bermuda shorts.

From this long-time American Civil War/Spanish-American War reenactor, "spot on". We used to hear this all of the time at various and sundry events in the summer: "aren't you hot in those clothes?" And thus began the explanation ad nauseum about historical dress standards, cultural mores and taboos, etc. And to be quite honest, that's why we were there -- to educate folks in the past. Granted, some reenactors can take a bit too far ("Do you always let yer wimmen run around with no bloomers on?").

One note about Bermuda shorts: there are Bermuda Shorts as Americans know them, and then there are bona fide Bermuda Shorts from the Somers Isles, which to me is a very sharp form of dress:

http://www.bermuda-online.org/shorts.htm

This has been a very enjoyable thread and a tip o' the bonnet to Alan, Tobus, Jock and especially Bro. Isaac for their comments here.

T.

[Reiver]

Those of us who live in warmer climes often struggle with this, Jock. If we were going to dress strictly for comfort and practical convenience all the time, we'd end up wearing flip-flops, Bermuda shorts, and loose Hawaiian style shirts like they do in South Florida. That's not really my thing, though, and never has been. Everyone, to some degree, sacrifices comfort for the sake of style or decorum. Casual and comfortable, in certain contexts, equals slovenly. Sadly, that slovenly trend is taking over our society.

90 degrees is blazing hot to someone from the UK. To a native Texan, it's a mildly warm day. Even when it's 100 degrees outdoors, my casual/comfortable dress is often boots, jeans, a denim or duck-cloth shirt, and a felt hat. We often talk about the "THCD" style originating in the early to mid 1900s, but if we take a look at traditional Texas style dress from the same era, it's very similar in many ways. Folks wore clothing that, by today's standards, would be uncomfortable and hot. They wore wool trousers, ties, vests & jackets, etc. Did their common sense fall afoul of wanting to dress the part too? No, it was just how they dressed to meet social expectations. And many still dress that way, at least in my part of Texas where cowboy culture is still very much a part of everyday life.

I guess what I'm saying is that you personally might recoil at the idea of wearing certain clothing on a 90 degree day, but to others it's not as much of an issue. Trust me when I say that an 8-yard kilt and woollen hose are much cooler than wearing boots and jeans in the Texas heat!

I do agree on the tweed waistcoat, jacket, and tie issue. Typically I will wear these to our Highland Games that are held in early April and November, when the temperature is very mild. This year some of us are planning on gathering in August, and it would indeed be foolish to wear such things in the worst part of summer. But I'm sure we will still choose to wear something that pays respect to THCD, rather than showing up in flip-flops and Bermuda shorts.

Yes, an issue in our southern climes.
At the Prescott games last weekend we had a storm front come thru and it snowed/sleeted a bit in Prescott...I got excited as I could wear my argyle jacket...that should be it til next winter and I didn't wear it last winter.
90 is balmy weather and what I've seen of trad day wear would be way too hot. Open neck button down collar will have to do...I do agree about the wool kilt, it is cooler than jeans on a hot day and I'm not a shorts wearer unless it is 110 or so and that about the house.
Had a working cowboy friend tell me once..."I'd feel funny wearin' short pants" so I guess that was his comment on traditional cowboy wear.

[ASinclair]

I wear the kilt to celebrate my Scottish Highland heritage. I'm the one in the blue necktie.

[Nathan]

Great thread Isaac! Thanks for starting it, brother!

Thanks, Jock for the point about the Duke and the Dustman. I'm no Laird. I'm a Cape Bretoner and most of us are North American because of the decisions of lairds. All is forgiven and all hatchets buried but I'm not some aristocracy fanboy. The problem I have with the idea of "dressing like a Laird" is that it relegates the traditional Highland attire to a narrow sub class of elites rather than to the people of all socioeconomic strata. While it's true that the well-heeled have always taken pleasure in fashion and therefore set the trends, as Isaac pointed out, (see also blue blazers, polo shirts, tweed, tuxedos, lounge suits, name brand/designer clothing, haute couture etc...), regular folks have also always been welcome to follow suit and dress smartly without being accused of posing.

Just because someone wants to dress as well as a prince or a laird, doesn't mean they want to dress up like a prince or a laird or a fashion model, rock star or celebrity for that matter. I might take a page from a Royal's suit style but I'm not going to wear a crown and carry a sceptor. Nor am I going to wear three feathers in my bonnet with my chief's crest in a circlet sans buckle.

I agree with Jock about dressing for one's role, the occasion and the weather. I represent Clan Donald as the Deputy High Commissioner and so I usually wear a tweed jacket to games in the Canadian summer. The tweed jacket is great in the chilly mornings but it often comes off at around 11:00 am and goes back on around 5:00 pm. I might slip it back on for the parade if it's not too hot but I typically don't wear it in the heat of the day. One of my tweeds is rather light and I forego the waistcoat on the hotter days.

I also wear a tie every day to work. We have a dress code at my office and a jacket and tie is required. I wear a tie to religious service on the weekend as do my fellow congregants. I'm just comfortable in smart clothing as I've been wearing it most of my life. I was in the military and was a university debater, both of which required a tie, polished shoes and a crisp crease on the trousers. I also worked in a menswear store when I was a student. I, therefore, see no reason why I can't wear the kilt as nicely as I dress every other day.

Why the bonnet? a) It covers my head and protects it from rain, cold, and to some degree, sun. b) It is a place to display my clansman's badge which is a statement of kinship and clan affiliation. c) It's the traditional choice with that outfit and I feel uncomfortable wearing other hats that I don't feel go as well with the kilt. If I feel uncomfortable, I am uncomfortable and that's no fun.

As an aside, I live in Canada so, unlike Jock, I don't wear a tie when I go fishing. That would be bizarre here and I see no reason to put on my tweeds and tell the other folks on the river bank that they're doing it wrong. That said, if Jock moved here and fished in his shooting suit, I'm sure the sky wouldn't fall. I do wear my barbour and tweed flat cap because they are really sensible in the Spring and Fall weather here and I like how they look.

We all have our own sense of style.

I wear a kilt because my ancestors are Gaels, not because I think the elite old boys are just the coolest ever and i have to be just like them even though my grandfather was a coal miner. That same grandfather was no stranger to a shirt and tie either, by the way. I believe the kilt is an expression of who I am and what I stand for - not some costume. I welcome anyone else to wear whatever they like for whatever reasons they choose and have fun doing it. I just think that sometimes we look at others and assume we know their motivations or the reasons behind their choices. We shouldn't assume to know these things from looking at a picture.

[MacKenzie]

And if I'm being honest, I had been up late the night before doing some drinking and playing music, and didn't feel like getting fussy with my attire. Surely there's some Highland tradition involved there!

About as "traditional" as it gets, I'll wager.

[OC Richard]

1.) First, to me traditional is not historic.

2.) This leads to the idea that traditional dress is "too dressy." I think this is a misunderstanding...

3.) I hear that if dressing "traditional" I am trying to emulate a laird.

4.) Finally, to a great degree... my highland apparel is just a kilted reflection of my normal attire.

Hear, hear! Very well articulated.

About #1, as I've said many times "traditional" is quite distinct from "historic", "traditional" implying continuous use to the present day. In other words "traditional" and "contemporary" are not antonymous though this flies in the face of the way these words are used on these boards.

About #2 I myself rarely wear Highland Dress in ordinary daily casual situations, so in the main my dress suits the occasion. Not having owned a suit in decades, I wear Highland Dress at weddings, funerals, or other occasions where most men are in suits.

About #3 that accusation is simply absurd and to me, as such, doesn't warrant any response. I never see any Lairds, never met one, wouldn't know it if I did meet one. I don't think we have any over here anyhow.

About #4 yes I have a Harris Tweed check jacket that I wear with the dreaded flat cap etc when weather and situation warrants.

Now about the warm weather thing and daily attire, I, as a naturalised Southern Californian, wear sandals and khaki cargo shorts and t-shirts and baseball caps as my daily dress.

For Scottish things, at the Games I have to wear band kit which includes a vest/waistcoat which oftentimes is too hot for the day, but wear it we must. I have talked the band into setting the vests aside for very hot Games but the Pipe Band world is all about conforming to the current fashion which nowadays is vests for everybody. Like most other Pipe Band people, if I'm attending a Games that I'm not playing at I tend to wear the sandals/shorts/t-shirt thing, though sometimes I'll wear Highland Dress. If it's hot, certainly no jacket or waistcoat, and a practical hat to keep the sun off my pale Northern European skin.

[Domehead]

Great thread Isaac! Thanks for starting it, brother!

...my grandfather was a coal miner. That same grandfather was no stranger to a shirt and tie either, by the way. I believe the kilt is an expression of who I am and what I stand for - not some costume. I welcome anyone else to wear whatever they like for whatever reasons they choose...

Here, Here and The Aitken Colliery, Fife - near Kelty. My Great Grandfather retired from there, and several of my Uncles were employed there before emigration.
Ryan

[OC Richard]

my grandfather was a coal miner. That same grandfather was no stranger to a shirt and tie...

Mine too! And I don't know that I have a photo of him where he's not in suit and tie, with a fedora no less. I have a photo of him vacationing in California, standing on the beach in the sand, so dressed!

My great-great-Grandfather was a miner too, back in Cornwall, and I have a photo of him in a quite elegant suit.

I too have to wear a tie every day to work, and usually wear a coat and tie to Church. It's just what I've always done, and my father and grandfather before me.

[Micric]

Jock,

Re dressing up to the nines;
You see the same thing at the Game Fair, Hot as hell at times, and some folk dressing the part, sweltering in all tweeds trying to create the "Gamekeeper" look.
When the real gamekeeper will be wearing flannels and have his sleeves rolled up!

A couple of years ago at our local Highland Games, I Did wear the whole 9 yards. (Tweed weskit and jacket, my only and heavy kilt. tie, etc. Plus bonnet.)
The reason?? It was wet & blustery with snow on the tops, & I was Bl--dy well Freezing!