The expense of it all

[Highlander31]

When I was in the corporate rat race I had no option when it came to my clothes. Tailored wool suits were the required uniform. I would pay between $400.00 and $600.00 per suit (depending on whether I could find them on sale on not.) I had seven suits hanging in my closet. (That many suits lessens the wear on the material allowing them to last between eight to ten years before the material wears out.) Contrast that with an 8yd 16oz kilt that I purchased in 2003 for $595.00. It gets worn two to three times a week and has been cleaned some eight to ten times. That kilt looks like it did the first day I put it on.

More important than the cost of the kilt, or that it will last for decades if taken care of, is what it feels like to wear an 8yd 16oz handmade kilt.

My wife tells me that in her opinion, the most important thing about a kilt is how it looks when it swishes (swing of the pleats.) Who am I to argue with my wife.

[Phogfan86]

For reasonably-priced kilts, see stillwaterkilts.com and sportkilts.com. You can even get a stock Black Watch from Celtic Croft for $99. That'd be a good first kilt.

The other advertisers on XMTS, like Rocky at USA Kilts and Steve and all the good folks at Celtic Croft in Minnesota (ya uff da you betcha), can sell you a quality kilt for a little more. Thanks to some dumb luck with the producers in Scotland and fortunate timing on my part, Rocky is getting me set up with a 5-yard kilt in a rare tartan for under $400. I'm pretty pleased with that. Yes, it's a lot of money. It's also a garment my grandkids I may hand down to my grandkids.

[O'Callaghan]

At the cheap end, you can get tartan kilts from Stillwater Kilts from $30 or from Kiltmart from $38. Those aren't wool, and neither are the $61 kilts from The Frugal Corner, or the kilts from Sportkilt. The latter start from $50 but bigger sizes are extra, and everything else is extra, so it's not likely you'll actually pay that price. There is a tradeoff between price and how many different tartans they make available. None of the above carry truly obscure tartans, and Stillwater probably carries the least number.

Of the above, people are more willing to recommend Stillwater Kilts and Sportkilt because they both have good names for customer service. Also, Stillwater seem to have both the cheapest kilts and also the the cheapest wool kilts (this latter point having been mentioned by others), whereas OTOH, Sportkilt are probably the cheapest lightweight kilts, which is important if it gets hot where you live. I own both these brands and can recommend them myself.

There is something to be said for kilts that cost hundreds, but probably not for frequent use.

[Carolina Kiltman]

I'll throw my tuppence in here too.

I got my first kilt in 1949, and it was a hand-made wool "tank" as the entire family (seven children, inlaws and Grandchildren, were descending upon Tobermory, Mull for my Maternal Grandparents 50th wedding anniversary.

If it hadn't "shrunk" about 10" around the waist, I would still be wearing it. A Kilt, will last for generations. The making of one is a highly skilled craft, taking about 20 hours of labour for a skilled kilt maker to complete one. The fit will be perfect, as they are made to the measurements of each individual.

If cost is truly a big problem, then do go either Stillwater, Sport Kilt, or one step up and get one made to measure by Rocky at USA Kilts but of a less expensive fabric. If you can wear the "off the peg" items, consider yourself fortunate. I was not able to do so until after I gained some poundage after age 50! Still nearly everything is skimpy and a bit too short.

I like the advice about making your own. If you do, it will do two things. The first is you will by the second or third try, get a garment that will fit you perfectly something none of the off the peg things are likely to do.

The second will be an appreciation of the Kiltmaker's art and craft, and then the custom made "tank" will look more reasonable.

[bowser]

At the end of the day you get what you pay for. A decent leather jacket or waterproof jacket for riding a motorcycle is upwards of £150 ($300) for a reasonable one and a BMW gortex riding suit is nearly £900 ($1800). Now I have two leather jackets, two waterproof jackets (1 heavy, 1 light) 4 waterproof trousers of varying weight, couple of pairs of boots and sundry gloves etc etc, so I am not sure its really all that expensive.
Managed to find a nice lady who hand made in 16oz strome wool, for £200 all in, which I don't think was bad, quality is second to none, in my choice of tartan, right length rather than standard 24, all in all very impressed its really worth the extra.

[kiltedmapleleaf]

a good well made kilt should be looked upon as a family heirloom, it stored properly and looked after correctly you will have an item of clothing that your grandkids will be able to wear.

[Howard Clark]

Well I started with a kiltmart 2fer sale at the end of summer three years ago. They are ok for the money, and it was enough to get me comfortable wearing a kilt out in public. I had been wearing one as work clothes for some time, but it was/is not the sort of thing one would wear to be out and about in.

So then the cost of buying a "real" kilt really bothered me. And since I think I can make/do anything that requires hand/eye skills, I decided to have a go at making myself a kilt. One led to a dozen. By the time I got to the sixth one, they fit decent, but they are not "right". I would have saved myself immeasurable trouble and money had I bought a copy of "The Art of Kilt Making" first. I did not. I have yet to make a really nice kilt that I feel happy with, and have made fourteen of them now, in various pleating arrangements and materials.

I bought a four yard box pleat kilt from Matt Newsome. Fabulous thing it is. I now have three of them. I also have purchased from Barb Tewksbury, and Wally Cattanach (Chattancat here). It is money well spent to buy hand made goods from people who care about making a great kilt, whether it is made here or elsewhere. Good materials, skilled labor, and a caring attitude about quality. I believe that you will find those things with all the sponsors of xmts, regardless of the price range.

I should have just bought a "real" kilt in the first place, in terms of the money and time, I would be many hundreds of dollars ahead of the game, vs. what I did. However, the evolution of it has given me a real appreciation for a well made kilt, in real wool.

If I was giving advice, I'd say go ahead and spend the money if you know you are going to wear a kilt any amount at all. It will last a long time (more than your lifetime), and if made according to the traditional methods, there are adjustment materials built into the design so that it can be altered to fit throughout your life, without undue trouble. (this assumes a competent kilt maker made it, and does the alterations).

Good stuff made by hand costs real money. We have been living in an artificially inexpensive paradigm for many things, for a long time. This is changing, right now, as we speak of it. The foundation of the disposable consumer society the way he have had it is cheap oil, and easy credit. Frugality the way it is truest (buying the very best, once, and using it forever) may come back into style, like it or not.

We all have different circumstances and requirements. The common bond is the love of wearing a kilt. Be happy, wear a kilt today !

[Finn]

Some of us go with less expensive non-wool kilts for a variety of reasons. I have three Utilikilts and will buy more. Before I do, however, I will buy at least one in a traditional style. A wool hand-sewn kilt is a planned purchase for many of us. It is such an expense for me that I want to be completely sure of the tartan and fully decided on the maker before I commit.
My first wool kilt will be an off the peg WPG Gordon.
Until I can afford a tank (or bunker...) I will content myself with quality products from other makers.

[Pleater]

I make my own kilts, so I can't comment on the bought tank, but I have bought two pieces of tartan cloth from a now defunct mill, and in a way I can see why they might have had problems keeping in business.

The quality is way above anything I have ever seen for sale in an ordinary shop. I have looked over both pieces minutely and cannot find a single thing that could ever be regarded as a flaw, the weave is perfect, the quality superb, it is difficult to imagine how it could be improved upon.

I have had this cloth for some little while now, and I take it out of its box open it out and just look at it from time to time.

One day I will sew it into kilts, but just at the moment I am using lesser cloths just to be certain that when I do start to use it I will be worthy of the task of shaping it into a kilt.

It this cloth is typical of tanks in general then obtaining one should be aspired to no matter what the cost.

Anne the Pleater

[Southern Breeze]

Keep a watch on E Bay and consignment stores. You may get lucky and find a high quality, used kilt in your size, for a lot less than you would pay for a new one. Estate sales are another place.
Two thirds of the kilts I have were used ones.
You never know what you may find out there.