Are Sashes for Men or Not???

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Doc,

CAN a man wear a tartan sash? Well, yes. But a man can also wear a tu-tu and fish net stockings.

MAY a man wear a tartan sash? Well, yes again. No one needs my permission, or anyone elses' permission, to wear anything they want. I would never deign to tell a man what he may or may not wear.

But neither of these are the question being asked. What Ron is getting at is, in the context of Scottish attire, is the tartan sash meant for men or women. And the answer is women. The tartan sash is considered a part of lady's wear in the context of modern day Highland Dress, and to argue otherwise is pointless.

I've seen men wear a lady's tartan sash with their kilts, in an attempt to achieve the look of a fly plaid or even a drummer's plaid without investing the money in the real item. And to be honest, it just doesn't work. They simply look like they are wearing a lady's sash with their kilt.

I've also seen men at the Games wearing just a tartan sash with their Saxon clothing. (By which I mean normal pants and shirt). Usually these are people who are newly aware of their Scottish heritage, are enamoured of the atmosphere of the Games, and want something in their tartan to display. They don't want to drop $500 for a kilt that they have to wait 2 months on, so they spend $50 and get a sash that they can wear right then and there. Now, if any of these men were to actually get into wearing Highland Dress, I'd advise them to give the sash to their wives, or use it in their home as a table runner. But for a one-time fix there at the Games, I'm not going to call them on it.

Aye,
Matt

[Raphael]

Has anyone written to SportKilts and informed them that sash is for women and not for men?

[Planopiper]

The tartan sash has never been a part of highland dress. It's a poor man's attempt at the look of a great kilt, or possibly a piper's plaid. People who don't have a lot of experience with highland dress have a vague memory of something tartan accross the chest. I remember thinking the same thing. You see a lot of these at ren faires. Usually w/ kilts made out of plaid curtain material. I'm not even sure I've seen women wear them very often. I'm used to seeing the sash that starts as a rosette on the front of the shoulder then goes over the shoulder and down the back. My wife makes those for women. Sport Kilt seems to be in the business of selling stuff that looks kind of like real highland dress. And whatever else will sell. Most of the kilts in the pictures on their "Wall of Fame" look like pretty poor fitting garments. Too long, worn too low on the waist, pleats not falling very neatly, apron edges in the wrong places. I understand that they are a cheaper version of a traditional kilt, but they look cheap and sloppy to me.

[Burnout]

Has anyone written to SportKilts and informed them that sash is for women and not for men?

Sportkilts advice seems as questionable as their kilts. Bottom line - I don't think they particularly care what advice they dispense... as long as they move product.

[Riverkilt]

Wow!!...Okay...Uhmmmmm....gee...

Not sure what just happened here...

Back before I knew what I was doing I'd go to the Ren Faire with a Macdonald tartan scarf (jeez, think it was that girlie girl dress tartan too) fashioned into a sort of sash with old pants and an old shirt...just wanted to be a Scot in some way.

While I was jonesing that 12 weeks for my first UK I medicated the jones by buying more kilts...which is how I came to by a Macdonald tartan SportKilt. The sash seemed a good idea to me at the time.

Only they shipped a 60 some inch sash, in the same Macdonald tartan,which barely went around me - That, I did wear as a scarf last Winter.

SportKilt did send me a replacement sash the full size 14" by 90" which I have yet to wear and now, at the risk of my masculinity may try to convert to a short sarong or something.

Not sure where the leather kilt emerged on this kilt, had mentioned it on another post. Just wanted to clarify about the tartan sash with this post.

Now I'm wondering what a "plaid" is in the sense its used here. Are those the pieces of tartan cloth that seem to be pinned to the shoulder?

Glad we have all that settled....I think....

Appreciate all the input.

Ron

[James]

The sash as such has never been a part of Highland wear-apart that is from when one is worn around the waist under the sword belt.

Rather it was and is worn by women-possibly to show their own clan affiliation, or that of their partner: for it was the way they could display the appropriate tartan. Too depending upon which shoulder it is worn over-it can also indicate their clan rank.

The wearing of sashes with uniform - or as with some organisations to show 'being on duty', display emblems etc is something entirely different.

James

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Ron,

Keep in mind that the word plaid comes from the Gaelic for "blanket." The original plaid was simply that -- a large woolen blanket worn wrapped around the shoulders in a cloak-like fashion to keep warm and dry.

At the very end of the sixteenth century, the plaid began to be worn belted by the men. At this time, they were made from two lengths of cloth, some 4 or 5 yards long and 25" to 30" wide, seamed together to make one peice that was 50" to 60" wide. The length was gathered into folds and belted around the waist. The part that hung from the waist to the knee would later develop into the kilt. The upper portion was worn draped in various ways about the shoulders. This garment was called the feileadh-mhor (large wrap) or "belted plaid."

At some point in the late seventeenth century, or early eighteenth century, the two peices of the belted plaid began to be worn seperately. That is, the lower part was a 4 yard (on average) length of tartan some 25" wide, still worn gathered up and belted at the waist -- the feileadh-beag. The upper length of cloth was still worn around the shoulders in a plaid-like fashion, though it could now be easily removed indoors with the wearer remaining dressed from the waist down.

In the era of the modern, tailored kilt, we have come up with various styles of plaids that are meant to emulate the upper portion of the old belted plaid. The simplest, and most appropriate for general day wear, is not often seen today any longer. And this is just a pure and simply plaid -- that is, blanket -- sometimes called a shoulder plaid. Get a length of tartan cloth -- the exact deminsions don't really matter, but keep in mind that plaid means "blanket" so you will want a couple of yards at least. If you like the ends can be finished with a fringe of some sort. This is just worn folded up and draped across one shoulder, like you would carry a blanket to a picnic. If you want, to keep warm in cold weather, it can be unfolded and worn as a cloak, like the original plaids were.

What is more commonly seen is the "fly plaid." This is usually reserved for formal wear. There are a few different styles of this, but it is basically a peice of tartan cloth some 54" square (or something around that size). The edges are usually fringed. Often one corner is tailored into pleats, and it is this corner that you wear pinned to one shoulder with a large brooch. The remainder is left to hang free in back. One style of this has a tie at the lower end of the plaid that attaches it to your waist, making the garment, when worn, look more like the upper part of the old belted plaid.

And then we have the pipers and drummers plaids. These garments are essentially the same except one has more cloth than the other. Basically this is a length of tartan cloth some 3 to 5 yards long, with the width of the cloth pleated up and tailored down to something like 12 to 16". The two ends are fringed. This is worn over the doublet and all, across the chest and down the back, usually only by those in bands, sometimes just the pipe major and drum major.

Like Planopiper said, sometimes those unfamiliar with Highland Dress will have this vague notion that something tartan should be seen on the man's shoulder and they buy a woman's sash for the purpose. But as women's sashes are only some 10" to 12" wide and usually 90" long, and most always made from a lighter weight cloth than a kilt would be, you can see how they would not compare to any of the garments described above.

Now, to confuse the issue even more, some retailers have of late introduced items, for men, called things like "mini-fly plaids" or "fun plaids" that are touted as fly plaids for men, but for more casual wear. These that I have seen have roughtly the same deminsions as a woman's sash, and in my opinion fall in the same category and should be avoided.

As a final note abbout the lady's sash -- the old adage about what shoulder she wears it on denoting rank in the clan is a myth. If you are right handed, it should be worn on the left shoulder, and vice versa. Why? Because it's more practical that way!

Aye,
Matt

[Doc Hudson]

Doc,

CAN a man wear a tartan sash? Well, yes. But a man can also wear a tu-tu and fish net stockings.

Since they made tutu's big enough for those flaming hippos in Fantasia, they can probably make them big enough to fit me.

I'd probably get arrested if I went regimental with it though.

[Verlyn]

Now there's a mental picture that'll be hard to recover from.

[beerbecue]

Hmmmm,

Would that be a 'pas de deux' or a 'pas de trois'??? Just don't 'ronde de jambe' your 'pointe' 'en arrieire', or 'en avant' for that matter......