Thoughts on Philabegs?

**liammaclean** · 29th May 17, 09:14 PM

Looking around different kilts recently I made eye contact with the idea of a Philabeg. At first the idea of pleating a kilt each wear seemed funny, but the more I thought about it, the less silly it seemed. Anyone have any Philabeg experience/advice?

**Steve Ashton** · 29th May 17, 09:20 PM

I guess that would all depend on how you define a philabeg.

**liammaclean** · 29th May 17, 09:32 PM

I was specifically looking at the ones Celtic Croft carries, without cheater pleats.

**Bamamedic** · 29th May 17, 10:05 PM

My own thought is we left them behind for good reason. I've been known to wear a great kilt hillwalking, but the little kilt still strikes me as a terrible idea in a world where modern kilts exist.

To all the little kilt wearers, enjoy them. Not my bag.

**figheadair** · 29th May 17, 10:40 PM

If one accepts the difference between a feileadh beag (correct spelling) and a kilt is that the pleats are/were gathered in the former and sewn in in the latter then the first thing to realise is that there is no known surviving example of a feileadh beag. For reference we must therefore turn to a number of portraits and drawings etc., of which there are quite a number. What these don't show is the fastening arrangement but it's logical to assume that at least some had some form of drawstring like the feileadh mor did.

**Michael A** · 1st June 17, 04:48 PM

Calling stitched pleats "cheater pleats", when they have been stitched since at least 1782, is quite fatuous.

**liammaclean** · 1st June 17, 06:46 PM

Cheater Pleats are the trademarked name Celtic Croft gives them.

**Michael A** · 1st June 17, 06:59 PM

My mistake. I take back my comment then, in that case.

**OC Richard** · 2nd June 17, 08:28 AM

Originally Posted by liammaclean

Cheater Pleats are the trademarked name Celtic Croft gives them.

Odd how you can trademark a thing that's been around for over 200 years.

Well I guess they've trademarked the name, not the thing.

**Taskr** · 2nd June 17, 10:15 AM

I've seen one FB attempt at an event about a year ago. It looked very odd, bordering on girl's skirt-ish, compounded by the choices of t-shirt, socks and ad-hoc accessories with the appearance as if the fellow had purchased the cloth but hadn't yet had the time to sew a kilt together. He didn't look very confident, maybe because it looked like that at any time the whole thing might let go and fall to the floor.