New around here with several questions

[lucienrau]

Downix,

Hi to you and your wife. My first time kilted was directly due to being a Christy. I rented one on a trip to Scotland in memory of my cousin who did quite a bit of work on our family genealogy and always interested in the family. He was working to follow up on extensive work that my grandfather did (we were forcibly moved to northern Ireland & my ancestors decided that moving on to Boston was a good idea.) I wanted to do something to honor him since he'd died two years earier so I rented a kilt for a day. Which lead to my wanting to get married in the family tartan, only to discover what those colors are in that tartan. Would make a great safety jacket but not much else. Luckily the clan tartans are quite nice.

Scott,

Congratulations on shrinking as well. It's tough work though and much slower than I expected, but rewarding. A new kilt is helping as a goal though. At the current rate, I should be back to where I should be in about September or so.

Steve,

I'm looking forward to the announcement. I'm a few months away from my weight goals (probably early fall) and I don't want to order anything before then but I'd definitely be interested in what the new model is and maybe an additional kilt as well.

[Downix]

Downix,

Hi to you and your wife. My first time kilted was directly due to being a Christy. I rented one on a trip to Scotland in memory of my cousin who did quite a bit of work on our family genealogy and always interested in the family. He was working to follow up on extensive work that my grandfather did (we were forcibly moved to northern Ireland & my ancestors decided that moving on to Boston was a good idea.) I wanted to do something to honor him since he'd died two years earier so I rented a kilt for a day. Which lead to my wanting to get married in the family tartan, only to discover what those colors are in that tartan. Would make a great safety jacket but not much else. Luckily the clan tartans are quite nice.

My wife had no information on her family beyond immediate. Her mother a Boyette, her father a Smith. Not until his mother died did we find out her maiden name, Christy, and that her parents died in TN.

[Friday]

You might also stop by USAKilts website. There PV kilts are good looking, lighter in weight than a wool traditional and reasonably priced. Off the rack or custom made to your measurements they are top quality products, as are all the products of advertisers.

[Colonel MacNeal]

A casual PV kilt is about as far afield as I'm willing to go. But to each his (or her) own.

[Alaskan Kilted Guy]

A couple other options are Alphakilts, of which I own and wear regularly. I am also ordering a Celtic Warrior Kilt soon, and am really hoping to get myself an Apoco-Kilt one of these days.

[SteveB]

Hello, and a warm Celtic Welcome from Boston, Massachusetts. I am kilted every day, and only a few stops north of you on the commuter train. It must be something about New England as I am also long in the torso and short in the legs. At 6'1", it has always boggled clothiers that my trouser inseam is only a 29. My spouse has referred to me as the human hot water bottle, for all the heat I generate on a cold winter's night.
My experience is that my Utilikilts(UK) tend to be way too warm in the summer months. I have a few Amerikilts that are cool, but have no pockets, so a sporran (matching cloth one comes with the kilt) is required. Of the Wizard's products(FK), I have an older model with snaps in an olive colour. It has decent pockets, and the material is such that it is fairly cool to wear on warm summer days, and it only takes a very slight swish to cool it off even more. I have both a standard and a thrifty from Stillwater Kilts (SWK). The standard holds enough heat that I wear it while out shoveling snow on the coldest day of this year and still am rather toasty. The SWK thrifty is very light weight and a lot cooler, but no pockets.
I have two Sport Kilts(SK) which like the SWK thrifty have velcro closures (great for fluctuating waistlines). The SKs are amde of Polyviscous and are easy care and each comes with a small pocket on the inside apron, Seamus did put a larger one on one side of my apron as a custom order thing. The SKs are very cool and are great for me when competing in the caber toss.
The USA Kilts(USAK) casual line is relatively cool and works well with a pocket sewn on the under apron. Mine holds spare reeds, hemp and assorted spare parts for pipe training. Velcro or straps are options.
Now for the important facts.
FK,and USAK are made to measure high quality kilts.
UK, Amerikilt, SWK are straight off the peg kilts
SK is off the peg, but Seamus is great to work with for customizing.
I do not own an Alpha Kilt or a Union Kilt, so I can not compare them. Both look to have some nice features for your application.
Keep an eye on the board for a Kilt Night in the general area, to meet and greet with others in the kilted world.
Welcome to the addiction.

[lucienrau]

Thanks guys. This helps quite a bit. Alaskan, do you have any thoughts on the Alphakilts? My wife quite likes the look of the Aberdeen model. Is the apron pocket big enough for a small wallet?

Steve,

I'll definitely be on the lookout. I moved down from Boston and still commute to Back Bay every day. I still miss it a bit, but Providence is nice too. Especially when it empties out during the summer.

That's very good info. I agree with you about the UKs being pretty warm for the summer though the Original model does a bit better than the Mocker. The slash pockets add an extra layer on the front. FKs look quite tempting and I'm very interested in the new model. Custom garments always are much more comfortable. At least I have a bit of time before deciding.

[Alaskan Kilted Guy]

The standard pocket would hold a small wallet, I believe. If you call or email Daron, he could give you the exact dimensions, or probably even make the pocket to your request.

I love my Alphakilt, and Daron is very easy to work with.

Thanks guys. This helps quite a bit. Alaskan, do you have any thoughts on the Alphakilts? My wife quite likes the look of the Aberdeen model. Is the apron pocket big enough for a small wallet?

Steve,

I'll definitely be on the lookout. I moved down from Boston and still commute to Back Bay every day. I still miss it a bit, but Providence is nice too. Especially when it empties out during the summer.

That's very good info. I agree with you about the UKs being pretty warm for the summer though the Original model does a bit better than the Mocker. The slash pockets add an extra layer on the front. FKs look quite tempting and I'm very interested in the new model. Custom garments always are much more comfortable. At least I have a bit of time before deciding.

[wildman]

Several makers out there. There are alot of good kilt makers on this forum. There is also Utilikilts, which I am not happy with at the moment, but they make good solid kilts. Just search around and you will find what you are looking for. Good Luck.

Cheers.