Kilts with fringe around the apron?

[GlassMan]

Boy are my personality traits showing. I didn't even realize that there was a girl in the background until you guys mentioned it!

I'd say that the young man holding the frisbee is wearing a table cloth. It's looks horrible. And from the picture I can't tell if there's a fringe or not.

Now what did catch my eye was the posterior of the young man in the foreground. At least his garment has proper pleating for true kilt. But as it's a rear view, we can't tell anything about the apron.

Now, as for my kilts I can almost compare prices based on the apron fringe. The most expensive kilt in my closet has 3 fringes on the right side. The mid level kilts have 2 fringes. The affordable kilts have one fringe.

And final the cheapo things that I've received as presents or the SportKilts that I have in case the temperature get's too awful have no fringe at all.

[MacWage]

Fringes are extremely common on the side of the modern traditional kilt (traditional kilts made today). Making them is not hard, just a pain in the BUTT! It is supposed to "simulate" the frayed, unfinished/unhemmed edges on the old belted plaid.

Many associate this fringe with the quality of the kilt it is on. The assumption is: The more fringe, the better the kilt.

BUT, this is not true! A really good kilt can have one layer of fringe (or none!) and a crap kilt could have three or four. Many kiltmakers (especially manufacturers-NOT ARTISTS) use fringe to hide/distract from shotty construction. First and foremost, look at the construction itself, especially the shaping, stitching, and how the striping lines up horizontally.

Many VERY GOOD kiltmakers use one layer of fringe (the layer that IS the apron). The other layers are other scraps sown onto the real kilt apron.
Some of the VERY BEST kiltamkers use NO FRINGE AT ALL!!!!! Indeed, one of the best kiltmakers on this forum, the ever wise and helpful Matt Newsome, in decribing the features of his kilts, even says on HIS WEBSITE: "I put no fringe on the apron edge, as the earliest tailored kilts did not have a fringe, and it serves no real purpose."

I, personally, am not a fan of fringe of ANY kind. I was one of those who cut fringe and tassels OFF of stuff. While others are asking how to make them, I am removing them. Therefore, the kilts I make are fringeless, just because of my tastes (or lack thereof). I even attempted to make one, finished it, didn't like it, and cut it off.

All of this is saying:
Judge not a kilt by the amount of its fringe, but by the quality of its construction.

(My appologies to my severe slaughtering of a great historic quote )

[David Dalglish]

He must have worn that for a bet?--its a skirt

[RockyR]

One point of clarification and one little "factoid":

99% of our PV kilts are "fringed" at the bottom. We ACTUALLY use the selvedge edge of the cloth, but it's not a "kilting selvedge", it's a frayed sevedge. Will it unravel? NO. Is it "traditional"? No. We CAN hem a kilt to give it a clean bottom, but that'll add cost to the kilt (about $15) and it'll make the bottoms of the pleats "kick out" a bit. I't not the same thing as hemming wool kilts... PV is a different beast.

Hamish is right. His Ireland's National DOES have a kilting selvedge. Since I was having it specially woven for me, I could ask for it to be woven on their tuck in selvedge loom.

FACTOID: Fringed edges were taxed at one point. Any garment with a "decorative edge" was able to be taxed coming into the US. When US buyers started complaining that the kilts were being taxed, the Scottish makers would put the "extra material" on the edge of the front apron, but NOT pull out the threads fringing it. They left that final step up to the buyer. This saved the garment from being taxed by customs for having a decorative edge. "Now you know. And Knowing is half the battle."

[GlassMan]

Many associate this fringe with the quality of the kilt it is on. The assumption is: The more fringe, the better the kilt.

BUT, this is not true! A really good kilt can have one layer of fringe (or none!) and a crap kilt could have three or four. Many kiltmakers (especially manufacturers-NOT ARTISTS) use fringe to hide/distract from shotty construction. First and foremost, look at the construction itself, especially the shaping, stitching, and how the striping lines up horizontally.

Quite true, the amount of fringe does not always match the quality of the construction. That's why I said "almost compare prices based on the apron fringe" instead of a direct correlation.

As most who've known me for a while on here can attest, I don't buy from the cr** kilt makers. The only so-called kilts in my closet that fit you description are ones that I have received as gifts. And yes, there is one Pakistani knock-off in there that has an absurd five layers of fringe. But it is so poorly constructed that it has never been worn and I don't even include it in my kilt count. But I accepted it with the same gratitude as if I had been presented with a hand-sewn tank from Scotland. Why? Because the person giving it to me as a gift did not know the difference between the real thing and the junk that gets pawned off on unwitting consumers. The thought was the most important part and the fact that the older relative in question was supporting my kilt wearing was such a wonderful gift all by itself that made the gift so special. I'll probably always have the kilt, unworn, in my closet just because it has sentimental value even if it is the most heinous example of kiltmaking I've ever seen.

[Kizmet]

Glassman, is the fabric redeemable? Since the giver is unfamiliar with kilts, if you had it remade, it's unlikely that they would notice any changes, and you would be able to wear their gift besides remembering the graciousness with which it was given.

[GlassMan]

Glassman, is the fabric redeemable? Since the giver is unfamiliar with kilts, if you had it remade, it's unlikely that they would notice any changes, and you would be able to wear their gift besides remembering the graciousness with which it was given.

I wish it were but it's the really low quality acrylic from which some of the knock-off jobs are made. (By that I mean that it is nowhere near the quality of cloth you will find in an SWK)