Why don't people wear their kilts more?

[Father Bill]

Then Jock, I must have more Highland blood in me than even I knew. You've seen a couple of pictures of me with my kilts and a jumper. On those days... I felt like it. No occasion, just, I wanted to wear it. Not every day is like that but there are some.

[Taskr]

The element of the kilt being an item worn to "dress up" rather than simply "wear" might have something to do with it. Ni that it is the only time its worn, but wearing mine on casual Friday, for example, was incongruous to folks around here. With a jumper or just a shirt, the kilt was viewed as more formal than what would be worn casual. I'm not asked anymore; though its noticed when its not worn on Friday (one commented they set their weekly calendar by it )

[Karl R]

Then Jock, I must have more Highland blood in me than even I knew. ... On those days... I felt like it. No occasion, just, I wanted to wear it. Not every day is like that but there are some.

I have to agree with this sentiment.

Last Saturday I was dressed up (way up from normal) when I wore my kilt to the dinner theater. The day before, I was dressed down (t-shirt and sneakers) when I wore my other kilt out dancing.

I don't think it's a Highland mentality. I think it's a mentality where one sees the kilt as an item of clothing, rather than as a "special" item of clothing. (Granted, that attitude may be more prevalent in the Highlands. But I think it's fairly well adopted by the "life-stylers" in the U.S.)

I'm not sure that I could wear a kilt to work. (It's a very conservative industry, which restricts the dress code.) But I feel comfortable wearing my kilt to all levels of social occasions.

[jhead7090]

I saw a piper in a kilt here in Edinburgh just the other day so you must have missed him, Jock, on the corner near Waverley Station. Apart from that and myself a few weeks ago I would say that Scotland is a pretty kilt-free zone.
Interesting that Houston, Texas has a few kilt-wearers though. I would imagine that is more than you would find here in Houston, Renfrewshire.

It's not just Houston, I live in Kansas City (Kansas side). I attended Lodge last month wearing a kilt and was approached by a couple of Lodge brothers who stated that if they had known someone was going to wear a kilt they would have worn theirs. We seem to have more than a few of kilted ones, although their rarely seen, helps that we're the home of J Higgins.

[Jock Scot]

But unless I have misconstrued your earlier post, Jock, when you said you had not even seen a kilt in the mirror, that kilt-wearing is as much a rarity for you as anyone else in Scotland. Of course we Highlanders know best how to carry off kilt-wearing unquestioningly!

It’s just one of those things Steve, I suppose. I would normally probably wear the kilt about two or three times a week usually for no particular reason. Not all day perhaps, although that’s not unusual for me to do so. I hadn’t really thought about it until the OP posed his question and I have to confess it came as a bit of a shock when I searched back in my mind as to when I last wore the kilt.

As we both know, sight of a kilt being worn around and about in the Highlands is not a common event anyway, but even the coach drivers who these days, can usually be relied upon to wear the kilt in many and various interesting combinations seem to have foresaken the kilt. However, I am wearing the kilt this morning and for no particular reason and was greeted with a large smile from Mrs Jock and the comment “ I like it when you wear the kilt”, so I had better sharpen up!

[Tobus]

I don't think it's a Highland mentality. I think it's a mentality where one sees the kilt as an item of clothing, rather than as a "special" item of clothing.

I'm on the fence with this sentiment. I don't see the kilt as such a special garment that I would only wear it on rare occasions like weddings, funerals, etc. But on the other hand, I do think it's special enough that for me it's not an everyday "throw it on and go" item of clothing like a pair of blue jeans. Nor would I want it to be. Just speaking for my own approach to wearing the kilt (and not claiming any sort of Highland mentality here, since the OP was more about typical Americans), I want the kilt to be special enough that it's a bit of a treat to wear it. I wear it for specific activities where I think it will be appropriate for the venue, comfortable for the intended activity, and will draw positive responses. I choose not to wear it for mundane things like going to the grocery, or for kilt-inappropriate activities like helping my wife with her antiques business (which often involves a lot of jumping up and down from a pickup truck bed).

In other words, I tend to be middle-of-the-road with my kilt wearing. If I wore it so often that it was just "an item of clothing" to me, I wouldn't find it as enjoyable. I want to wear it with purpose. I would imagine that a lot of other American kilt owners have a similar mindset, which might contribute to answering the question of why we don't wear it more often.

[imbrius]

I think I concur with much of the sentiment here. I wear the kilt when it's appropriate to do so. And there are all kinds of reasons why it might be.

1. Highland dress maybe encouraged at some Masonic functions. It's pretty much always /allowed/ (as Masonry regards no man for their material or external manifestations and all that), but aside from our chaplain, no one routinely wears a kilt to normal business meetings or degrees (and, in fact, the dress code for officers in the degrees is specifically tuxedo by local custom).

2. To work when I feel like it and won't be meeting with a client. I normally wear polo shirts and blue jeans or dockers to work. On days when I do wear a kilt, it's generally with a polo shirt or low-key button-down shirt.

3. To work parties, when the weather is conducive.

4. To parties at friends' houses. Generally with a polo shirt or short-sleeved button-down with a sweater vest.

5. To symphony orchestra concerts. Dress is generally business dress for day and black tie for evenings (and it's even stamped on the tickets and yet a huge portion of people show up in blue jeans and T-shirts anyway despite the price of the tickets! - they only enforce the dress code in the box seats anyway). Highland dress is totally appropriate and I'm not the only one who wears a kilt there.

6. The rare wedding or awards night I attend where I know the people involved and they're totally on-board with me wearing a kilt. If I'm going as someone else's guest or I don't know the people, I generally err on the side of "blending in".

7. When going to a nice dinner with my wife and her family.

That's just a short list of "occasions" I can think of. It really does just boil down to considering the setting and company involved.

[Singlemalt]

I wear mine usually once a week. No particular occasion just when I feel like it. Over the last few years I have gotten into the habit of wearing it on Sundays. Usually I do something outside which can involve getting dirty in the morning so after Sunday lunch I take a shower and put on the kilt for the rest of the day. This includes a long walk with the dogs through the forest and meadow around my home in the afternoon. Sunday dinner has always been a bit of a special occasion in our home and the kilt feels appropriate for what is a family event.

Of course any kind of occasion where others will be kilted I will be as well.

I was actually having this conversation with my son (who also has a kilt) not long ago. I told him that when getting dressed to go out somewhere I very often ponder if the kilt would be appropriate. Probably 70% of the time I elect not to wear it. Yet when I do wear it 100% of the time I am glad I did. My son said his experience is exactly the same.

[Styckbow]

Short answer, my wife won't let me. We live in a small town (900 people) in central Alberta and although we have a thriving Scottish club it is still seen as a bit of a oddity. However I do wear one at least once or twice a month in the winter for occasions and normally at least once a week in the summer more if I am driving a long distance.

[Jock Scot]

I have to agree with this sentiment.

Last Saturday I was dressed up (way up from normal) when I wore my kilt to the dinner theater. The day before, I was dressed down (t-shirt and sneakers) when I wore my other kilt out dancing.

I don't think it's a Highland mentality. I think it's a mentality where one sees the kilt as an item of clothing, rather than as a "special" item of clothing. (Granted, that attitude may be more prevalent in the Highlands. But I think it's fairly well adopted by the "life-stylers" in the U.S.)

I'm not sure that I could wear a kilt to work. (It's a very conservative industry, which restricts the dress code.) But I feel comfortable wearing my kilt to all levels of social occasions.

To be very clear here and it is as well for people to be aware of it, the kilt is a very special piece of clothing to many Highlanders and many are very uneasy about it being hi jacked by the rest of the world......including Lowland Scotland.For sure nothing can be done about it, but please be under no illusion that whilst the kilt is worn by some Highlanders when it suits them as a matter of course and without comment from other Highlanders the kilt is far from being “ just a piece of clothing”.