Pipe Band ordered to iron kilts

[OC Richard]

Our Pipe Major sent out an email to our entire Pipe Band yesterday ordering everybody to iron their kilts prior to our competition coming up this Saturday.

Kiltmakers, what should I tell everybody?

[kilted redleg]

OC
Search for Robert MacDonald bespoke kiltmaker. His channel is loaded with info on the "care and feeding of your kilt." He has also done a class on the proper way to iron a kilt, with a pressing cloth and water.

[figheadair]

On a standard knife pleat this is not a difficult task.

Lay the kilt out on the floor, inside downwards and aprons out.

Tidy the pleats by hand/eye and press with a medium stream iron.

WARNING!

1. I'm talking about 100% wool material; I've no experience of mixture/artificial yarn cloth.

2. Lay a towel or something similar down first and avoid ironing the floor covering, espeically if it is a non-wool carpet.

[jhockin]

Recommend using a damp cloth, between steam iron and wool cloth.

[Liam]

Use a steamer....

[Steve Ashton]

While it may be nothing more than the pipe major thinks the bands kilts should present a tidy and professional appearance. Perhaps he is trying to encourage the members to take some care in their kilt maintenance. But it is a fact that not everyone has the experience to do a respectable job with an iron.

I would suggest an email or phone call to Barb Tewksbury. Not only is she one of the world's premier kiltmakers, she has been a member of her band for many years and perhaps can give the best advice from the pipe band world.

[OC Richard]

While it may be nothing more than the pipe major thinks the bands kilts should present a tidy and professional appearance. Perhaps he is trying to encourage the members to take some care in their kilt maintenance.

Yes I think it's that exactly. Considering he's been Pipe Major of the band for several years and has been piping for around 20 years he doesn't know much about kilts or Highland Dress.

The kilts in the band look fine, but he thinks it's like "hey everybody polish your shoes" in other words something that you do every time you wear them.

But it is a fact that not everyone has the experience to do a respectable job with an iron.

That's what I'm afraid of: some our people might make a mess of the pleats.

[Iain Ruaidh]

Some floor coverings are none too heat-friendly!
When I was 18 and in Royal Air Force training camp, I pressed a pair of wool trousers on top of a blanket on the floor and totally naffed the floor.

[Steve Ashton]

The thing to remember is that we do not iron a kilt such as you would iron a shirt or pair of trousers.

If the kilt has become wrinkled a quick pass with a steamer will often let the wrinkles fall out without disturbing the pleat creases.

If the pleats have lost their crease we baste them back into the proper position and press. Pressing involves heat and pressure. A moistened pillow case on top of the wool to prevent damage to the wool - Place an iron straight down on the basted pleats and press down, HARD.
Then lift the iron, re-position it to a new spot and repeat.

We do not move the iron back and forth over the wool which can move the pleats out of position or deform the wool.