Wearing Irish Sweaters wtih Kilts, Belt or no belt?

**EagleJCS** · 6th December 18, 07:03 PM

Allan, I have no doubt that the man in question was definitely not a clan chief and was simply dressing in a manner he thought to be correct/stylish. I was trying to be a bit tongue-in-cheek. Difficult to do in a written format.

**kingandrew** · 7th December 18, 08:09 AM

I agree with the others that the Aran sweater is best worn over the unbelted kilt.

The only times I have worn a sweater with a kilt belt was when I had lost quite a bit of weight and actually needed the belt to hold up my kilt (as I waited for a new one in my size to be made). This was in Beijing, so the Shetland sweater was definitely important for beating the cold. In that situation, I pulled the bottom of the sweater up above the kilt and let the rest "roll over" the outside. It looked OK, but I would have preferred to skip the belt.

The only time that I can imagine tucking in a sweater would be if the sweater was very trim and tight (or long), and would thus look odd with the kilt straps and buckles poking from inside. In which case I would probably just choose a different sweater.

And I think the Aran Irish fisherman's sweater is a very good look with a kilt. I don't currently have such a sweater with me in China, or I would sport it pretty regularly with my kilt, when the weather called for it.

Andrew

**MNlad** · 7th December 18, 08:32 AM

I have two Aran sweaters that I regularly wear when kilted and always over the kilt. The two seem like they were born to go with each other. It's a sharp informal look and great this time of year.

**Tobus** · 7th December 18, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by kingandrew

The only time that I can imagine tucking in a sweater would be if the sweater was very trim and tight (or long), and would thus look odd with the kilt straps and buckles poking from inside. In which case I would probably just choose a different sweater.

I have a couple of "wooly pully" style military sweaters and one thicker Aran sweater, and this issue is usually why I end up not wearing them. For starters, sweaters are typically very long on me. They would go down below my buttocks if pulled straight down, which of course would be silly with a kilt. So the only options are to tuck them in or roll them over, neither of which appeal very much to me. Tucking in, of course, doesn't seem to be done. And rolling over just doesn't make me happy with the final aesthetic proportions, and makes me look flabbier than I already am. Perhaps it's my vanity coming out, but I do everything I can to avoid the dreaded "muffin top", and sweaters always seem to work against me there!

Here's a past thread with some good examples of sweaters being worn by members here, both the thicker knit sweaters and thinner military-types. It does seem to be a common approach to pull the bottom of the sweater up and roll the sides over it. This makes the length work as well as perhaps hiding any kilt straps/buckles from printing through. Maybe I should reevaluate my wearing of sweaters with the kilt and try it again. This does seem to be the season for digging out my sweaters from the cedar chest...

**huntgathergrow** · 7th December 18, 09:36 AM

It's not a cable knit, but it's a sweater. I do have a standard 1.5 inch belt on under the sweater to cover the velcro, as it is a casual kilt.
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**Allan Thomson** · 8th December 18, 05:27 AM

I think tighter fit jumpers, rather than loose fitting jumpers. Or at least with a snug cuffgo better with the kilt asthey preserve the line better. I note a lot of the wearers have their sweaters folded up to give a better length for the kilt - two pleats at the back and a belt over the top would definitely make for a better join if the jumper is longer snd baggier. Of course a snugger fit is better..m

**jhead7090** · 8th December 18, 01:59 PM

I was out and about this past Thursday, decided it was too warm for a jacket so wore an Irish knit sweater with my kilt. Wore a belt under the sweater only because I needed somewhere to hang my cell phone.

**Father Bill** · 8th December 18, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by jhead7090

I was out and about this past Thursday, decided it was too warm for a jacket so wore an Irish knit sweater with my kilt. Wore a belt under the sweater only because I needed somewhere to hang my cell phone.

Considering the philosophical and psychological parallels between a cell phone and a dirk, that's what it was originally for, wasn't it?

**Tobus** · 8th December 18, 02:33 PM

Had some nice Scottish style weather today. Cold, dreary, damp, and breezy. It was a perfect day for wearing one of my woolly pully sweaters to an antiques auction. Everyone was complaining how cold it was, but I was quite comfortable.

It is, of course, not the same as a thicker Aran knit sweater. But I just folded the bottom under once to adjust it to length. No belt, of course, as none was needed. But you can see how the "print through" of the top hem of my military kilt is fairly obvious. That still annoys me, even though it's par for the course with the more fitted-shape sweaters.

**Riverkilt** · 8th December 18, 09:24 PM

I never wear a belt with a kilt....use the kilt straps or velcro on the casuals and the sporran strap acts as a small belt.

Not an Irish sweater, but a bulky sweater from REI with kilt and no belt tonight for the agency holiday party...

For sweaters like this I have to roll the sweater hem where it passes over my sporran.