It's VERY different in every aspect.

1). The material just doesn't have the "give" that it takes to work it by hand and produce a seamless bend in the hips. Wool, on the other hand, has the ability to be "molded" into a certain shape while maintaining the pattern's integrity. They merely angle the pleats instead of creating a "slow bend" with sewing.

2). The design utilized the wider pleats to gather-up the differences in hip width. If you look at the inside, they use a simple angle measurement to compensate for the difference from waist to hip. This is one reason why the pleats will wander around. If the pleats were thinner (like a traditional) they would be a mess!

3). Since the UtiliKilts are machine-sewn, they don't really have the flexibility to create the "bend" that handsewing can. The UK philosophy appears to be one that allows the material to drape in order to cover the taper. A traditional will use the sewing and "bend" to create the waterfall-like effect that you want.

4). Their front apron (or lack of one) also allows the pleats to taper the entire circumference of hte garment. With a traditional, you're compensating in a MUCH smaller area.

~Then there's the SportKilts that merely sew the material at the waist and let the pleats fall or taper where they will.