Full wrap utility kilt

[HighPlainsFergus]

I love my Stumptown kilt. The under apron does wrap around to the opposite hip. The outer apron has a large, deep and useful pocket; it's double layer of cloth adds extra weight to the apron. It has box pleats. Quality build, rivet enforced in the right places. A great utility type kilt.

[jthk]

I have found that all of my pre-Switchback Utilikilts have the same issue: the left edge of the inner apron brushes against my inner left leg when walking. Terribly annoying. I have the new Switchback Survival Utilikilt and it's different but I wouldn't say any less annoying. That said, I love the Utilikilts that I have and have a variety of uses for them all.

The cotton duck of the Workman does wrinkle easily and I find it often keeps the wrinkles unless I give specific attention to them. The cotton twill of the other Utilikilts doesn't wrinkle as easily and what wrinkles do appear are often easily flattened out.

If you're looking for a kilt with more of a complete under-apron, deeper pleats, and resistance against wind blowing the pleats, I would probably not recommend a Utilikilt. The narrow inner apron is one of my biggest complaints about my Utilikilt (Workman model in my case; it may be different with others). The inner apron is only long enough to reach where the V-pattern of snaps connects it to the outer apron, which lies on the front of my left leg. When I walk or sit, the edge of the inner apron drifts to the inside of my leg. It's a bit annoying. The pleats are not deep at all by kilt standards, and the duck-cloth material just doesn't have any swish or movement to it. They stitch all the folds in the pleats, and that makes it even stiffer against swishing. But it is very durable, and the stitching keeps the pleats well-defined without ever having to worry about needing to press the pleats back into shape. I haven't found wrinkling to be a major issue, either.

[jthk]

Today the primary characteristic of the Utility style garments is not the pleats or the apron width or the pockets. It is how they are made. These garments are made like blue jeans. The overall strength of the garment comes from the strength of the fabric and the stitching. We call this construction "jeans made" vs the construction of an iconic kilt which is "kilt made".

So if "jeans made" in this context implies that the garment's strength is derived from the strength of the fabric and the stitching, how would you describe a traditional wool kilt? What would be the appropriate term, instead of "jeans made"? (Obviously, hand-made would be one description but I'm focused on the above description.)

Thanks!
Jonathan

[The Wizard of BC]

The descriptive terms I use are -

Jeans made - where the overall strength of the garment comes from the strength of the fabric and the strength of the stitching.

Kilt made - Where the overall strength of the garment comes from the internal elements built inside the kilt and hidden by the liner.

For example -

The Twill fabrics that Iconic kilts are made from are quite supple. If you pull on them you can see them stretch.



The Iconic kilts are also hand stitched to have no visible stitching on the outside of the garment. Hand stitches are usually slightly weaker than machine stitches which will almost always leave visible lines of stitching on the outside of the garment.

An Iconic kilt will also have the inside portions of the fabric in the upper back (Fell) cut-away to reduce any bulk preventing the notorious "pillow-butt".

All of this weakens the kilt so some internal strengthening elements are built inside the kilt is much the same way that a high quality man's suit coat is made.
There are two parts to the internal strengthening elements.
1) is the floating interfacing which give vertical stiffness and body to the garment. This is what allows the garment to develop the famous swish.
2) is the stabilizer. This is a horizontal strip of very strong fabric that does not stretch. The straps and buckles of the iconic kilt are not sewn to the outer Tartan fabric but all the way through the outer fabric and anchored to the stabilizer. This is the horizontal strength to the garment.

Here is the floating interfacing which is made from a material called 'hair canvas'. It is stiffer vertically than it is horizontally.



And here you can see a bit of whimsy used for the stabilizer strip. Underneath you can see the area where the bulk has been cut away.



All of this internal construction is then hidden behind a light weight liner to keep everything neat and presentable.



But - and this is a big one - Because the liner covers all of the internal strengthening elements, many people do not even know that they are there. They see the liner and assume that any kilt that has a liner would be an Iconic style kilt.
Many of the kilts made in Pakistan have a liner but only because the Iconic kilts have a liner. If you lift the liner on these you see that there is nothing underneath.



When you strap an Iconic style kilt on you are actually wearing the stabilizer and interfacing. This allows the outer, Tartan fabric to drape naturally and is what gives the famous swish to the garment. It is also what is responsible for the famous lifespan of these garments.

Here is an Iconic style kilt being worn inside out without the liner to show the internal elements.

[jthk]

Thank you for that illustrated and clear explanation. I hadn't thought of where the strength in clothing is present before.

Based on a bit of what you wrote, if I were to either move a buckle or have to sew it back on after some of the original threads weakened, I'd have to sew it all the way through the garment but stopping short of piercing the body-side material. Does that sound accurate?

Thanks!
Jonathan

The descriptive terms I use are -

Jeans made - where the overall strength of the garment comes from the strength of the fabric and the strength of the stitching.

Kilt made - Where the overall strength of the garment comes from the internal elements built inside the kilt and hidden by the liner.

For example -

The Twill fabrics that Iconic kilts are made from are quite supple. If you pull on them you can see them stretch.



The Iconic kilts are also hand stitched to have no visible stitching on the outside of the garment. Hand stitches are usually slightly weaker than machine stitches which will almost always leave visible lines of stitching on the outside of the garment.

An Iconic kilt will also have the inside portions of the fabric in the upper back (Fell) cut-away to reduce any bulk preventing the notorious "pillow-butt".

All of this weakens the kilt so some internal strengthening elements are built inside the kilt is much the same way that a high quality man's suit coat is made.
There are two parts to the internal strengthening elements.
1) is the floating interfacing which give vertical stiffness and body to the garment. This is what allows the garment to develop the famous swish.
2) is the stabilizer. This is a horizontal strip of very strong fabric that does not stretch. The straps and buckles of the iconic kilt are not sewn to the outer Tartan fabric but all the way through the outer fabric and anchored to the stabilizer. This is the horizontal strength to the garment.

Here is the floating interfacing which is made from a material called 'hair canvas'. It is stiffer vertically than it is horizontally.



And here you can see a bit of whimsy used for the stabilizer strip. Underneath you can see the area where the bulk has been cut away.



All of this internal construction is then hidden behind a light weight liner to keep everything neat and presentable.



But - and this is a big one - Because the liner covers all of the internal strengthening elements, many people do not even know that they are there. They see the liner and assume that any kilt that has a liner would be an Iconic style kilt.
Many of the kilts made in Pakistan have a liner but only because the Iconic kilts have a liner. If you lift the liner on these you see that there is nothing underneath.



When you strap an Iconic style kilt on you are actually wearing the stabilizer and interfacing. This allows the outer, Tartan fabric to drape naturally and is what gives the famous swish to the garment. It is also what is responsible for the famous lifespan of these garments.

Here is an Iconic style kilt being worn inside out without the liner to show the internal elements.

[The Wizard of BC]

Thank you for that illustrated and clear explanation. I hadn't thought of where the strength in clothing is present before.

Based on a bit of what you wrote, if I were to either move a buckle or have to sew it back on after some of the original threads weakened, I'd have to sew it all the way through the garment but stopping short of piercing the body-side material. Does that sound accurate?

Thanks!
Jonathan

This assumes that the garment is "Kilt made" with the internal strengthening elements. The idea is that you do not fasten the straps and buckles to the outer fabric but anchor them to the stabilizer strip inside.
If, as you say, "after some of the original threads weakened" then it is possible that the kilt is not "kilt made" in the first place.

If the garment is "Jeans made" there are no internal elements, so nothing to anchor to, but the outer fabric.

Just because a kilt has a liner does not indicate that the internal elements are present. As is the case of most of the imported kilts and quite a few of the Scottish made kilts today.
And the elements may be there but not acting as a single unit. This is quite common today. The interfacing and perhaps even the stabilizer may be present but not adequately stitched together. I have seen many kilts come into my shop where the elements are in separate pieces or simply floating inside the garment. It makes me wonder why they were included at all if they are not doing the job that they are designed to do.

If the kilt is indeed "Kilt made" there is no reason the stitching cannot go all the way through and be seen on the inside of the kilt. The only purpose of the liner is to hid the internal elements. No one sees the inside of the kilt.
I will often machine stitch the straps and buckles on. This stitching is seen on the inside of the kilt and is done to give a 'head's up' to anyone altering the kilt in the future that the intent is not to stitch to just the outer fabric.
If one were to be making a kilt from scratch, then they would attach the straps and buckles before installing the liner to insure they are sewn to the stabilizer correctly. Then the liner is sewn in hiding the stitching.

[jthk]

Steve,

Thanks! The kilts in question are some of Rocky's 5-yard wool kilts and his PV semi-traditional kilts.

Best,
Jonathan

This assumes that the garment is "Kilt made" with the internal strengthening elements. The idea is that you do not fasten the straps and buckles to the outer fabric but anchor them to the stabilizer strip inside.
If, as you say, "after some of the original threads weakened" then it is possible that the kilt is not "kilt made" in the first place.

If the garment is "Jeans made" there are no internal elements, so nothing to anchor to, but the outer fabric.

Just because a kilt has a liner does not indicate that the internal elements are present. As is the case of most of the imported kilts and quite a few of the Scottish made kilts today.
And the elements may be there but not acting as a single unit. This is quite common today. The interfacing and perhaps even the stabilizer may be present but not adequately stitched together. I have seen many kilts come into my shop where the elements are in separate pieces or simply floating inside the garment. It makes me wonder why they were included at all if they are not doing the job that they are designed to do.

If the kilt is indeed "Kilt made" there is no reason the stitching cannot go all the way through and be seen on the inside of the kilt. The only purpose of the liner is to hid the internal elements. No one sees the inside of the kilt.
I will often machine stitch the straps and buckles on. This stitching is seen on the inside of the kilt and is done to give a 'head's up' to anyone altering the kilt in the future that the intent is not to stitch to just the outer fabric.
If one were to be making a kilt from scratch, then they would attach the straps and buckles before installing the liner to insure they are sewn to the stabilizer correctly. Then the liner is sewn in hiding the stitching.

[The Wizard of BC]

I have not seen one of Rocky's kilts in quite some time. I cannot speak to how they are made today.

But I had two of the Semi-trads a few years ago and they were 'Casual Style Kilts' without any internal elements. In fact Rocky's Semi-Trad model is the example used to define the Casual Style Kilt. One that looks from the outside, will hang and swish, like an Iconic kilt, yet does not have the hallmark internal elements. The lack of the internal elements, along with the use of less expensive Poly-Rayon fabric, allows them to be less expensive to make and buy, and are designed for casual or occasional use.

They are not an Iconic kilt. They are exactly, and perfectly, what they are designed to be.

[jthk]

As our discussion has progressed, I starting connecting the dots and arrived at the same conclusion. Interestingly enough, on the three kilts in question, it is only the lower hip buckle that has started becoming loose, but the other two buckles are fine. I'll simply stitch them back in myself but I thought it was curious.

I do love the 5-yard style kilt and semi-traditional for their appropriate uses: warm weather. The semi-traditional (PV) is also fabulous because it's machine-washable.

Thanks again,
Jonathan

I have not seen one of Rocky's kilts in quite some time. I cannot speak to how they are made today.

But I had two of the Semi-trads a few years ago and they were 'Casual Style Kilts' without any internal elements. In fact Rocky's Semi-Trad model is the example used to define the Casual Style Kilt. One that looks from the outside, will hang and swish, like an Iconic kilt, yet does not have the hallmark internal elements. The lack of the internal elements, along with the use of less expensive Poly-Rayon fabric, allows them to be less expensive to make and buy, and are designed for casual or occasional use.

They are not an Iconic kilt. They are exactly, and perfectly, what they are designed to be.

[The Wizard of BC]

The lower hip strap is a hold-over from kilts that were fastened well above the natural waist. The lower strap was originally at the waist.

Today the lower strap is at the hip and is purely decorative. It is not designed to cinch the kilt on and should be fastened quite loose. Otherwise you will more than likely pull and pucker the apron.

On my kilts the lower strap is mounted forward of the upper straps so that even if fastened on the same hole it is not tight.

But yes, if the lower strap is coming un-stitched, it can just be sewn back on. There is not normally anything inside the kilt to anchor it to.