Morning Suit Equivalent

[OC Richard]

"Scottish Tartans & Highland Dress" by C R MacKinnon wm. collins sons and co. ltd. 1960


"Morning Dress

This corresponds to the lowland morning dress, and should be worn on similar occasions. The dress or clan tartan should be worn, with full tartan hose, dress brogues, silk flashes, black silver-mounted sgian dubh, silver-ornamented sporran of hair, fur or leather, silver sporran chain, Celtic kilt pin, and black jacket and vest with silver buttons, which may either be plain or with highland cuffs and flaps. With this is worn a white shirt and collar, and grey silk tie. This form of dress is already in vogue, but usually with plain buttons, an unnecessary touch of drabness which an old highlander making a formal call would not have exhibited"

Interesting that the above, in effect, advocates Highland Evening Dress (with the addition of a grey necktie) as the equivalent of Saxon Morning Dress. A more detailed discussion occurs in this booklet:

The Scottish National Dress
Wm Anderson & Sons LTD
Edinburgh & Glasgow
By Appointment to His Late Majesty King George V

Highland Dress for Weddings and Courts

There is frequently some doubt as to what constitutes correct Highland Dress for use at Weddings and other Full Dress functions, and the following notes may be of use.

The bridegroom should be in full dress, consisting of a buttoned up coat, kilt, sporran, hose, buckled brogues, belted or short plaid, dirk belt and dirk. A typical outfit of this kind is illustrated. (The illustration, in black & white, shows a man wearing a Montrose Doublet, lace jabot, kilt, belted plaid, fur evening sporran, castellated tartan hose, and ghillies with buckles at the toes.)

An alternative is permissible, especially when the wedding is in the country, is that a jacket of the ordinary day shape should be worn, but that this be made of dark grey or black material. This latter dress is also the correct one for a guest at a wedding.

Except when the bride is in ordinary dress and the male guests in lounge suits, a tweed jacket is not strictly correct, though sometimes worn.