Kare of the Kilt

[Will]

How do you guys dry your kilts after washing? An outdoor clothes line is not an option for me.
What I was thinking about doing is 30 minutes on low heat in a dryer and then putting the kilt on a wooden hanger or laying it out on a table to finish drying (if needed).

What do you suggest

[Gary]

Depends on the kilt. Bearkilts can be washed and dried and turn out great. Some Utilikilts shrink significantly in the dryer, others handle it fine. Some do best just hung up and then ironed, others don't have to be ironed just hung. Some lay out nicely others get lumps when dried flat. What kind of kilt are you talking about?

[Will]

At this point, 3 are Stillwater, One is USA Kilt.

[Mike n NC]

Will, since I don't know the fabric in your kilts I'm just guessing. I use 2 clip hangers. Fasten the kilt as you would to wear it then put one hanger on the front waistband and another on the rear. Hang the kilt so that it is open on a shower rod.

Mike

[RockyR]

Will... look at the care tags... are they "washable"? We have a few tartans that are wool and are therefore NOT washable.

For tartans that are machine washable (PV and Cotton/poly etc), get a "collapseable cloths rack". You can get them at Target or Walmart or Kmart for like $15. It's a bunch of wooden dowels that can expand like an acordian and lock to form a "structure" to drape cloths on INSIDE your home. When it's up, the thing measures about 2 feet deep by 3 feet wide by 4 feet tall. I hang my kilts on it fresh out of the washer. I let them dry overnight and they're FINE. If you're in a hurry, stick them in front of an air vent or fan.

[RockyR]

Found 2 on kmart.com for like $22 and $26... take a look to give you an idea of what the hell I'm talking about...

http://www.kmart.com/catalog/search....tial&N=0&Nty=1

[Will]

Will... look at the care tags... are they "washable"? We have a few tartans that are wool and are therefore NOT washable....

Rocky,
That's for the suggestion. Looking at the picture, I was wondering how many kilts it will hold at a time. Are you able to get two kilts on it or just one?

(The kilts I am talking about are washable. However, I do have a Highland Grey Philabeg from you that is dry clean only (65% Rayon / 35% Wool).)

[RockyR]

I hang one kilt on the left side (with the ends of the kilt hanging down) and one on the right side.

[Jimmy Carbomb]

How do you guys dry your kilts after washing? An outdoor clothes line is not an option for me.

From your other posts, you noted that you have one USAK and three StillWaters.

When you lay the kilts flat, you will "train" the pleats to go where they're supposed to go. There are a number of "sweater mesh-racks" that will do the trick. Remember that wood will hold the water, and can actually stain the fabric, so using a mesh and poly constructed rack will preserve the integrity. Here's a link to a site with a number of racks:

http://www.organizes-it.com/dryrack.php

You will need a couple racks to lay the entire kilt out, but it's WELL worth it. This is all I use.

[Riverkilt]

Don't know if this would work for your tartans, but it works great for my non-traditionals, its on another thread but can't find it...

I dry my kilt from three WalMart plastic hangers with triple clips on each hanger. Put it on the shower curtain rod.

Then bought about 50 extra hanger clips (by the hangers at WalMart). Went over to the fishing dept and bought 50 fishing weights - 1/2 ounce lead with an eye at the top.

Just tied the weights to the clips.

After hanging the kilt I clip a weighted clip to the bottom of each sewn seam, inside and outside pleats.

The weight of the clip pulls the pleats straight while they dry. No need to iron.

A bit of up front work tieing the fishing weights to the clips but a breeze after, no ironing, and a lot cheaper than using fancy/cute tablecloth weights.

Ron