N.A.\US makers of kilt jackets

[Mr. MacDougall]

You might also try talking to some of the shops in the US which carry UK made jackets. If they ship directly from the supplier to you, then I see your concern, but if they ship from the supplier to the store, and then to you, I think you'd be looking at the same shipping costs as anything else the store carried.

[Mark Keeney]

I have a J. Higgins Argyle jacket. It works for me. I'll try to post a picture later.

[Nanook]

Any good competent bespoke tailor in the U.S. can make a kilt jacket. Made to a good standard with properly hand-stitched canvas, however, it would cost around $3000 USD or so. Most of the "cheap" sports coats (including many of the "designer labels") you see on the North American market are not made in the United States but offshore in places like China or sweatshops in the 3rd world. Should the jacket be made to a good standard its material would probably come from the U.K. or, perhaps, Italy or Belgium (Scabal). Looking at the offers of kilt jackets from U.S. vendors (as well as many U.K. based online sellers) many seem to be made in Glasgow by Mactag Ltd. (various brands including Clann Crois). They are not bad and priced quite competitively to Asian imports. They are, however, not hand-stiched, not even machined, but glued (as are probably every sports coat you can purchase for under $1000 including some "designer" jackets costing as much as $1500 USD) .

[Mark Keeney]

Ok this is me in my Jacket.

Ok that was too little to see.
Here is a link to the big one.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/4...0AauWjVw5ZM2Ig

[Nanook]

I have a J. Higgins Argyle jacket. It works for me. I'll try to post a picture later.

Looking at their Web, prices and wording I have some doubts that their jackets are "Made in the USA". I don't read "Made in USA" but a company "that actually tailors your clothing". Tailoring in the U.S. does not typically mean "make" but alter or finish. I read this that they are made elsewhere and finished in the U.S.--- as many imports are. Despite the text which says "All of our tartans and woolens are imported from Scotland" I'm also not even completely certain that the jackets are even "made in Scotland". The Scottish Tartans Museum, for example, clearly says "Made in Scotland" about their jackets (and unless I'm mistaken are sourced from Glasgow). J. Higgins says "tailored here in Kansas" (not made) and "All of our tartans and woolen are imported from Scotland". Imported from Scotland CAN mean "made in" but can also mean just that "imported from" (and made elsewhere)--- thinking about all the imported American sports shoes and clothing in European shops (which have been globally .manufactured everywhere from China to Viet Nam but not the US) or the Puma and Addidas shoes sold in North America (many made in the same factories as Nike).
Are the J. Higgins jackets any good? I don't know. I've never seen one. They are surely (and absolutely without any doubt) glued and machine sewn. Are they to the same quality and level of the Tartans Museum (priced $100 USD more)? I don't know. The jackets that I think the Museum are selling (unless, again, I'm mistaken of their source), I think, look fine at an affordable price. At 1/10 to 1/5 the price of a handmade, fully canvased jacket they maybe don't hang as nice nor are "heirloom" grade but still look fine and are good enough to last several seasons of wear.

[Cawdorian]

I have one of the Argyle jackets purchased from Matt at the museum, I am very happy with it, it looks as good as most of the other jackets I have seen being worn with the exception of a couple of tailor made jackets.

A friend of mine has a jacket from J. Higgins, It doesn't look as good as the one I have. The weave of the material on his jacket seems to be a little on the coarse side and appears to snag easily.

[Mark Keeney]

Looking at their Web, prices and wording I have some doubts that their jackets are "Made in the USA". I don't read "Made in USA" but a company "that actually tailors your clothing".

The label in the jacket says "Made in the U.S.A." And No it is not a hand tailored $2,000 jacket but it is worth the $200 I paid.

[Mark Keeney]

deleted

[gilmore]

The label in the jacket says "Made in the U.S.A." And No it is not a hand tailored $2,000 jacket but it is worth the $200 I paid.

Would you mind telling us who made your jacket?

[Mark Keeney]

Would you mind telling us who made your jacket?

J. Higgins