Dressing for the dreaded 'semi-formal' event... advice appreciated

[McMurdo]

I am glad you were able to glean something from my photos, I wanted first off to touch on something Jock said above. That is with time comes confidence. Let me tell you the first time I left the house in my dad's kilt and sporran which like Jock he recycled, I was terrified. What would people say? The event went off well enough and I wore it again sporadically in the coming months. Once the bug bit as it were I started wearing the kilt daily and did so for 5 years. This gave me both the academic and practical knowledge to meet most any situation and to choose the right outfit for any event while still maintaining some modicum of personal style.

For your event I agree with most of what everyone is saying above, however I will add you do need to work with what you have for example my dad had one sporran his entire life, a brown day sporran that he wore to every event he ever wore the kilt at save my twin brothers wedding. Having said that, you have a black argyll with silver buttons and suitable shirt, as I always warn against mixing formalities I would personally wear a bow tie here keeping in mind what you were saying about the fraternity colours I did not say a black bow tie. As for the rest of it have fun with the colours you choose and enjoy the night, try not to think to hard on all of this as that tends to ruin the evening in my experience. Oh one last thought it matters not what tartan you wear as it is your tartan, so matching to it is not high on the list of priorities. Again have a great night and post photos if you can. Glad to have you on the forum.