how to pleat this tartan?

**Mark Keeney** · 15th June 08, 09:46 AM

I personally wouldn't pleat this one to the stripe. To my taste I need a very prominent stripe to pleat to or it looks too much like a horizontal striped kilt. The double white stripe is the only one that is strong enough to keep it vertical, but it st too busy as you have shown.

This should in no way discourage you in pleating to the stripe.

**Barb T** · 15th June 08, 12:36 PM

Originally Posted by DWFII

To make Alan's post a little simpler: whether this will actually work depends on the size of the element. Pleats in a typical man's kilt are 3/4-7/8" across at the hips. If the red/white/black/white/red element is close to or larger than that, it won't work because you won't be able to get all of the stripes into one pleat. I'd be willing to bet that it's more than an inch across that element.

Originally Posted by DWFII

... it's not really to a double red, it's to a double white and I'm not sure if it can even be done so it will come out looking like it does above.

If the elements are the right size, it _can_ be done. See the post at

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/p...454/index.html

But, and this is a big but, it requires having a kiltmaker who is willing to be absolutely precise about pleating and willing to take the time to make it come out right. A kiltmaker might well charge you extra for this.

**DWFII** · 15th June 08, 01:10 PM

Originally Posted by Barb T.

To make Alan's post a little simpler: whether this will actually work depends on the size of the element. Pleats in a typical man's kilt are 3/4-7/8" across at the hips. If the red/white/black/white/red element is close to or larger than that, it won't work because you won't be able to get all of the stripes into one pleat. I'd be willing to bet that it's more than an inch across that element.

If the elements are the right size, it _can_ be done. See the post at

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/p...454/index.html

But, and this is a big but, it requires having a kiltmaker who is willing to be absolutely precise about pleating and willing to take the time to make it come out right. A kiltmaker might well charge you extra for this.

Barb,

Thanks. What about military box pleats? Same restrictions/problems?

If you wanted to pleat this tartan so that the back was distinctive (not to sett, in other words) and not at all (hopefully) dull, how would you do it?

**Barb T** · 16th June 08, 05:21 AM

The issue isn't really the type of pleats but the size of the pleats. If the pleats aren't wide enough to include all of the element you're interested in, it won't work.

You could try folding it so that only a single red/white pair shows. That might be OK. Again, I don't know the size of the elements.

**DWFII** · 16th June 08, 06:33 AM

Thanks to all...it's a complicated topic--I feared it would be. Thank you for sharing your expertise.

"We're all born ignorant...and innocent. But stupidity and the unwillingness to learn is the original sin."

**Alan H** · 16th June 08, 12:25 PM

It's really not a complicated topic. It really boils down to this.

1. get out a ruler
2. measure the distance between vertical red stripe to vertical red stripe.
3. write down the distance
4. add 2x the thickness of the stripes themselves to this distance. I mean the width of the red stripes themselves, and nothing else. This is so a little bit of green appears alongside the "outside" of each red stripe.
5. write down that number

If the number is significantly bigger than one inch, then you can DO it, but it won't look much like a traditional kilt. The pleats will be too wide, and you won't have lots of them and it won't look like the magical (and mythical) "eight yard kilt" because you won't have enough pleats, and they will be too wide.

you can make a perfectly good kilt with wider pleats, but it won't look like the "eight yard kilt" that you are most likely thinking of.

If the number you get at the end of step #5 is 1/2 to 7/8 of an inch then you CAN get your magical and mythical "8 yard kilt", knife pleated, from this material.

If the number you get is significantly less than 1/2 an inch, then I recommend that you measure the whole sett, because the sett size will be less than 3 inches and that's not going to make a very traditional-looking kilt.

PLEASE please understand that the "eight yard kilt" is a mystical and magical legendary phrase which means a kilt made of anything from 7 to 9 yards of fabric. If a really husky guy gets a kilt made with 30+ pleats and the sett size is 9 inches, that kilt is going to have a LOT more than 8 yards of fabric in it. Conversely, if a really slender guy gets a fantastic kilt made with 26 pleats and the sett is 5 inches, that wonderful kilt he has may have more like 6 - 6.5 yards of material in it.

They both may be fantastic kilts, but they DON'T have eight yards of material in them.

**Alan H** · 16th June 08, 12:28 PM

If, after this thread, you are totally confused and haven't got a clue, then just buy 4 yards of double-width material and take it to your kiltmaker and just ask. If you are a seriously hefty guy, like with a waist measurement over 48-50 inches, then buy 5 yards. You might spend more money than you need to, but then the leftovers might make you a fly plaid or make your lady a nice scarf or sash.