First kilt fabric choices?

[OC Richard]

...one mill weaving true P/V and that is Marton Mills...

If a kilt maker is advertising that their product is made from P/V ask which mill wove the fabric. If they do not say Marton Mills, pass them by.

Steve is bang on, this is the crux of the matter.

AFAIK Marton Mills is the only acceptable alternative to the traditional wool.

Personally, all my kilts are traditional wool kilting cloth.

I always go for 16 ounce because it looks better, feels better, holds pleats better, everything.

I have one 13 ounce kilt (which I had to order due to the pipe band I was playing in at the time).

After wearing 16 ounce kilts repeatedly over months, when I put on that 13 ounce kilt it feels insubstantial and flimsy.

That's just the feeling! It looks perfectly fine, in truth. But I'd never go with anything lighter than that.

(My 13 ounce kilt.)

[User]

For your first kilt, if you're not sure how much you'll be wearing it and want something less expensive, sharp looking, cool for hot weather, and durable for festivals and work, I recommend getting a casual kilt in PV from USAKilts.

They're not quite traditional, but they're pretty close. I've looked at cheaper kilts, and in my opinion, paying the extra for a USAKilts casual kilt in PV is absolutely worth it.

If you wear it for a few months and decide you like it, then I'd drop the extra money for a traditional wool kilt.

A lot of people will recommend going straight for a traditional wool kilt. That's fine advice too. But personally, I've spent money on the good stuff only to realize it wasn't my thing too many times. So I prefer a more cautious approach to spending. And if you end up really liking kilts, having one PV and one wool is a good thing.

P.S. Some people swear that wool kilts are good for hot weather if you get a low yardage kilt. I cannot comment on that yet.

[geomick]

For your first kilt, if you're not sure how much you'll be wearing it and want something less expensive, sharp looking, cool for hot weather, and durable for festivals and work, I recommend getting a casual kilt in PV from USAKilts.

They're not quite traditional, but they're pretty close. I've looked at cheaper kilts, and in my opinion, paying the extra for a USAKilts casual kilt in PV is absolutely worth it.

If you wear it for a few months and decide you like it, then I'd drop the extra money for a traditional wool kilt.

A lot of people will recommend going straight for a traditional wool kilt. That's fine advice too. But personally, I've spent money on the good stuff only to realize it wasn't my thing too many times. So I prefer a more cautious approach to spending. And if you end up really liking kilts, having one PV and one wool is a good thing.

P.S. Some people swear that wool kilts are good for hot weather if you get a low yardage kilt. I cannot comment on that yet.

I would argue in favor of the next step up from USA Kilt, the semi-tradtional PV kilt. I'm not a big velcro fan, so I would rather have the straps of the semi-trad.

[OC Richard]

I'll add to Steve's litany of how kilts can go wrong with this comparison.

On top is a hand-stitched kilt in wool kilting fabric from a UK mill.

At bottom is a kilt sold by a disreputable firm who claims their kilts are Scottish-made, and their low price is due to them being ex-hire.

They're neither. They're new Pakistani-made kilts, crudely machine-stitched out of nasty acrylic.

It's striking to see the differences side-by-side.



(It's strange how the Pakistani kilt has fabric belt loops AND a leather tab.)