new mannerisms required by kilt?

[Rex_Tremende]

Once, at school, I had to sit down while my hands were full, so I couldn't do "the sweep;" I swung my kilt forward with my hips instead.

Hm. Was at a party once with a drink in one hand and a plate of nosh in the other. I think I stood until I could find a place to set my things down before sitting my kilted butt down. I haven't mastered that technique yet, though I'll have to practice at home a while so I don't slosh cocktails on my friends' wool rugs.

Regards,
Rex "club soda will get that out" in Cincinnati

[Chris Webb]

What you are asking about is what I like to call "Kiltmanship". Somewhere here at Xmarks you'll find an essay called the 4 C's of kilting. You can also find it easily at the Bravehearts' Kilt Forum. The C 'competence' is presented below:

Competence: Put on your kilt and practice kiltmanship. Get a full length mirror and learn everything you can about how to move in your kilt. Know exactly what will show under different circumstances, going up stairs, down stairs, sitting, standing back up, crossing your legs, wind effects, bending over. Know how to wear your kilt, practice it. If you can't go Regimental for fear of being exposed it is because you are not Competent to wear your damned kilt. Competence protects Freedom.

You really do get better and better at wearing your kilt ... the more you wear it the better you get. Practice really does make perfect.

As for specific techiques, well, they often vary greatly amongst us for all kinds of reasons. Glassman does a great job of explaining many of them. A good example of the variety of ways to do the same thing is this: rather than using the 'butt sweep' Glassman described, I will put my hands down to the chair on both sides using my wrists to capture my kilt as I sit down and slide back into the chair. If my hands are full I'll stand a few inches further from the chair, sit down on the edge of it and then slide back, smothing my kilt with my bottom.

Of course, men actually talking about this requires them to mometarily set aside their machisimo. Believe me, though, once you are Competent to wear your kilt you will look anything but feminine when you wear it. Conversations like this are a necessary part of perfecting your Kilt Competence.

One piece of advice from me, others may well disagree: In the wind concern yourself only with the front of your kilt. Nothing looks more rediculously feminine than a blushing man slapping at the back of his kilt. Consider it the Finger of God or the Wind of the Spirit and count those who may have glimpsed your **** Blessed. LOL!

Kilt On.

Chris Webb

[jjoseph]

What you are asking about is what I like to call "Kiltmanship". .....
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Believe me, though, once you are competent to wear your kilt, you will look anything but feminine when you wear it.
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One piece of advice from me, others may well disagree: In the wind, concern yourself only with the front of your kilt. Nothing looks more ridiculously feminine than a blushing man slapping at the back of his kilt. Consider it the Finger of God or the Wind of the Spirit and count those who may have glimpsed your **** Blessed.

AMEN!!!
Just walk on thru that Marilyn moment with your head held high and MOVE ON. Besides, unless you are jumping from a cliff, your sporran is gonna keep the goods covered.

[Southern Breeze]

If you haven't done so already, watch Hamish's video on sweeping the pleats.
http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=18810

[smaughazard]

I'll have to agree on the practice aspect. Once I started going kilted constantly at home, going out in public became much easier because my "kilted reflexes" had developed. But the swirling updrafts when walking a ridgeline in the Blue Ridge can still be interesting…

[pbpersson]

I'll have to agree on the practice aspect. Once I started going kilted constantly at home, going out in public became much easier because my "kilted reflexes" had developed.

Hmm.....if I could just train my cats to let me know when I'm flashing them I would be all set...

[Freelander Sporrano]

If you are new to kilting there are a couple of reflexes you'll have to learn to control too: The Zipper

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=12701

and the Pocket:http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/s...=pocket+reflex

Good luck

[Magnus Sporrano]

Aside from the sweeping and/or squat & scoot approaches to sitting, the big one for me was bending over. In pants I always bended over for things and because I am a man of wide proportions, the geometry involved basically means the back of the kilt goes WAAAY up when I bend over. I was at home picking up kids toys in the kilt, and I bent over and my wife gasped with her eyes bugged out. She saw the whole bait and tackle from the worst possible angle and suggested I squat instead. That works much better.

[davedove]

Aside from the sweeping and/or squat & scoot approaches to sitting, the big one for me was bending over. In pants I always bended over for things and because I am a man of wide proportions, the geometry involved basically means the back of the kilt goes WAAAY up when I bend over. I was at home picking up kids toys in the kilt, and I bent over and my wife gasped with her eyes bugged out. She saw the whole bait and tackle from the worst possible angle and suggested I squat instead. That works much better.

There are a lot of mannerisms we need to borrow from the ladies. Squatting to pick things up is one of them. I know culturally that these mannerisms are considered ladylike, but that's only because ladies were generally the only ones doing them. We have to remember the were not developed because they are females, but for practical considerations.