Maple Leaf to Church

[Chase]

I will be home from Iraq in a couple of weeks and I'm really looking forward to trying on my Maple Leaf kilt from Peter at CCK...I only have a PC jacket, which is way too formal.

I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on what to wear? Please bare in mind, I'm living in Houston, so I expect the weather to be warm, humid, muggy...I was thinking about wearing a long sleeve shirt and tie, although most of my shirts are business attire and my ties are quite long.

Should I forgo the tie and stick with a long sleeve or should I try and match a tie, or even add a black vest? The shoes and hose are a no brainer...I have a pair of dark green hose with matching red flashes hand-knitted by String.

Please help...I want to appear dress casual if the term applies.

Respectfully,

[McMurdo]

I would say go for the long sleeve and a tie, you can tuck the back thin end of the tie into the kilt if you need to.

[billmcc]

I think that wearing a tie, and a long- or short-sleeve dress shirt, should depend on just how hot and humid it will be. Though either way should be tolerable if your church has a decent air conditioning system.

A black vest will dress up your appearance, but will increase heat retention. However, you don't have to worry about the length of your tie or wear a belt with a vest.

J. Higgins sells a black wool Argyl vest for $65:
http://www.jhiggins.net/sf_catproduc...Q17UTNL7NBUTSD

Celtic Corner sells a polyester kilt vest, which should be cooler than wool, in several colors for about $37:
http://www.celticcornerstore.com/cat...spx?cat_id=135

[northernsky]

Hmmm...short sleeves and a tie.

[RobertParker]

I often wear a nice black button down shirt on its own with my kilts if I don't want to get too dressy. Works well with the green hose and kilt.

[Chase]

I often wear a nice black button down shirt on its own with my kilts if I don't want to get too dressy. Works well with the green hose and kilt.

That sounds good...I might give that a try...Thanks for the help.

Chase

[Thistle Stop]

Congratulations on the imminent homecoming! May God bring you home safely.

I'd say, plan your kilted outfit to echo what people normally wear to your church. If the men wear suits or sportcoats, wear an Argyll jacket -- they are not as hot as tweed day jackets because they are made with worsted wool (tightly twisted fibres, thus less fuzzy = less warm) in a lighter weight. If men attend church in shirt-sleeves, whether long or short, you can do the same. Because kilts have a long military tradition, a shirt with epaulettes looks good, and with that style, you can wear a dark, plain-coloured tie and stick it into the shirt at the middle, if all your ties are too long to wear with a kilt. If people tend to dress casually at your church, a nice solid-colour polo shirt can look good with a kilt. Avoid patterns like stripes or checks -- stick to plain colours that coordinate with colours in the kilt, or else a white shirt. Oxford-cloth shirts are a good complement to tartan fabric, because they have a little bit of texture but nothing that competes with the kilt. Ditto for lightweight cotton twill, canvas, and denim.

People will be so happy to see you, they won't care what you're wearing, and I'm sure you'll look great in whatever you put together!

Slainte,

Cyndi

[Dirk Skene]

I will be home from Iraq in a couple of weeks ...................

Heck I thought you were back already

[Chase]

My third tour Dirk...This is my End-of-Mission break...I have 6 months to go

[Prester John]

NEVER wear short sleeves. Ever.

How about a casual shirt that matches the hose?

Otherwise, a nice vest. Try Sandy St. James for the vest. Bottom of this page.
http://www.stjamesbagpipes.com/jackets_vests.html