Which way up for a kilt pin in the form of a safety pin?

[A Hay]

I have a friend who bought his first kilt. He also bought a kilt pin of the type that looks like an enlarged safety pin.
Does the closure go on the top or bottom?

I don't own a kilt pin of this type.

Any help or a picture would be appreciated.

Tom

[Jock Scot]

I don't think there is a right way or wrong way but, the sensible way is to have the catch(closure) at the bottom. Why? If the normally reliable catch fails then the pin will not fall out almost immediately, thus giving the owner, or observant friend a chance to notice that it is undone.

[A Hay]

Thank you for that sensible advice.

[Liam]

Make sure he is aware that it just goes through the outer layer ....

[A Hay]

We got that part of it correct. I have had many a kilt pin over the years, but never worn this type of pin.

I have advised my friend on the recommended method.

Thanks to all for your advice.

Tom

[Jock Scot]

I have just had the need to remove my everyday kilt pin from my kilt, it’s off to the cleaners. A fairly rare event and is fraught with worry if not done properly. I take my kilt to my kilt maker to prepare it for dry cleaning, it’s simpler that way as the kilt maker has a tame dry cleaner on hand who understands kilts. Anyway back to kilt pins! I have two, both are silver, rather old and have personal family history attached to them.

As a wee bit of insurance I place a short length of rubber band, about half an inch or so, on the “prong” bit that goes behind the tartan out of sight. The rubber clings to the metal and acts as a stop. In passing, I also do the same with my badge in my bonnet.
So, at the back I pierce the elastic with the “ prong” twice. So pierce the tartan cloth- then pierce the elastic( “prong” in at one end and then out at the other end of the length of rubber) and then pierce the lower side of the tartan to then clip the kilt pin together on the outside. From personal experience, it works!

[Troglodyte]

Jock's advice is spot-on as usual - and his rubberband trick is one I was taught at an early stage and can confirm it works beautifully well.

One thing to point out with this method (and here my own personal experiance is the basis) is that rubberband has the tendencey to perish over time. They can go brittle, crumble and leave a nasty residue on the metal pin - so regular inspection is useful.

Some men like to wear their kilt-pins at an angle rather than vertical (and you often see this shown in mid-century catalogue illustrations and photos) and it's where personal style or preference comes into play. But all the previous advice and information still applies, with the point downward.

An alternative to the rubberband is a few stitches in dress-makers' invisible thread around the loops at either end of the pin, but this can be more troublesome than the rubberband if your kilt goes off the to the cleaners on a regular basis.

[OC Richard]

I will mention that there are "blanket pins" which are made of fat wire that IMHO aren't suitable for kilts because they punch big holes.

The pins made specifically for kilts are finer wire, which combined with a sharp point means that the kilt isn't damaged.

Interestingly, one sees early 20th century catalogues that offer only this style, or in this case also the grouse-claw pin



This style has long been worn by The Gordon Highlanders, perhaps hearkening back to a time when this style was "the" kilt pin.