DIY with a fashion tartan

**meinfs** · 15th September 08, 11:42 AM

Hello. Here's my latest kilt-making effort, commissioned by and created for one of my square dance friends (who's our club's caller). It represents experiences gained from both "Art of Kiltmaking" and "X-kilt manual" and my own touches.

Front:

Pleats:

Strap/buckles:

The leather is slightly larger than the buckle (even though they're supposed to be a 1+1/4" fit. Hence, the roughness. I'll need to polish them off.

Double-fringed. The stitching is almost half machine, half by hand... I have to admit that the pleats were machine top-stitched (check the 3rd pic). I worked on the kilt off and on for a few weeks and I felt like hand-sewing the waistband towards the latter phase.

Ooh, and I've installed an INSIDE buckle on the left waist, as I've seen them in pictures from here

The fabric is a fashion tartan (it's not symmetrical weft and warp-wise). The "sett" or at least what I can call the repeating unit along the warp (horizontal) direction is 7+3/4". Lightweight PV fabric from Joanns. (I posted a picture of the pattern months ago, along with the Stewart Gray).

Oh, and I didn't try the kilt on because it's about 8 inches wider than my size.

(All the little details that could be improved....)

But I'm pretty happy with it. I do hope that my friend will like it!