Belting the Plaid: How'd They Do It??

[Nighthawk]

Great photos Nighthawk, the pleats sure look crisp on your friends great kilt. Thanks for the photos.

Thanks! I've been told I have a good eye. I'm not sure I believe it, but I try. So anyways- Curtis keeps his great kilt pleated even when he's not wearing it. The pleats have picked up natural creases. I figure it works the same way as when I sit on my modern kilts and get new creases pressed into them from the weight of me bum. Similar process I would guess.

[KiltedSwede]

Would sewing in the pleats or attaching belt loops not take away from the versatility of the kilt if this was an item of clothing that could be used as a shelter, bag, etc.? I can see how gathering the pleats in a similar fashion on a daily basis would create natural creases/pleats in the wool (not to mention that I highly doubt they were washed all that often).
I tend to favor the thought that the paintings show more of a "staged" and formal wearing of the kilt than a representation of how the average Scot would have wrapped and worn it. My outdoor gear/garb certainly hangs and fits differently than a suit.

[Nighthawk]

Would sewing in the pleats or attaching belt loops not take away from the versatility of the kilt if this was an item of clothing that could be used as a shelter, bag, etc.? I can see how gathering the pleats in a similar fashion on a daily basis would create natural creases/pleats in the wool (not to mention that I highly doubt they were washed all that often).
I tend to favor the thought that the paintings show more of a "staged" and formal wearing of the kilt than a representation of how the average Scot would have wrapped and worn it. My outdoor gear/garb certainly hangs and fits differently than a suit.

In the case of belt loops, I don't see where it would detract from the functionality at all. All you would have to do is remove the belt from the loops. Sewn in pleats, on the other hand, would change things a lot. I personally have a long plaid that I use to sleep under when at reenactments. That actually works really well, and is more versatile than a great kilt- wee kilt with a long plaid, I mean.

[Woodsheal]

Without any period written descriptions of how the plaid was put on, we can only guess, make deductions from period images, and experiment.

But, in over 35 years of being involved in "living history," many are the examples I've seen of dubious "reenactorisms" assuming the role of historic facts and practices....

[JRB]

Without any period written descriptions of how the plaid was put on, we can only guess, make deductions from period images, and experiment...

That's why I love experimental archaeology. Reenactors may sometimes get things wrong, but a lot of information has been gleened from going out and doing.

[BoldHighlander]

Without any period written descriptions of how the plaid was put on, we can only guess, make deductions from period images, and experiment.

But, in over 35 years of being involved in "living history," many are the examples I've seen of dubious "reenactorisms" assuming the role of historic facts and practices....

That's why I love experimental archaeology. Reenactors may sometimes get things wrong, but a lot of information has been gleened from going out and doing.

I would agree with both of your assessments, which is why (as "living historians") we must be careful in putting out there what little we know as "experimental archaeology" as "historical fact". Having been involved in living history for nearly 17 years, I have seen many of my contemporaries state "facts" as if they knew more than those who actually lived the times.

[BoldHighlander]

This print is part of the Boyd Album, a collection of prints and documents collected together by the Boyd Family and now in the collection of Dean castle.



...note the disheveled appearance of his great kilt.