kilt made from 11 OZ wool ?

[NorCalPiper]

Just a question-Has anyone ever owned a kilt made from this weight wool? Times I've handled this weight made me think unsuitable, yet I see it offered here and there. Does a proper 8 yard fitting make this material usable? Any experience with this, anyone?

[BEEDEE]

I have two 11oz kilts, both from remnants from Fraser & Kirkbright. Made both myself and are machine sewn. The knife pleat is OK and drapes well. The box pleat is great in warm weather, but watch out for errant wind gusts!

Brian

[Woodsheal]

I have an 8-yard, Scottish-made kilt in 11 oz. "Forde" tartan from HoE (the only weight it's readily available in).

The fabric does feel lightish, but in the 8-yd version it's not overly lightweight feeling, if that makes sense. That weight would be too light for a reduced-yardage kilt, though, IMHO.

It's a great warm-weather kilt for summertime Games, or for indoor dress-up affairs (like the dinner dance I went to last night!) where you don't want to sweat to death....

[RockyR]

I've owned one and didn't like it so I sold it a few years back.

There are some tartans that are ONLY available in 11 oz (not withstanding a custom weave). If that's the case, we explain the situation to the customer and make sure they are willing to accept an 11 oz 8 yarder before proceeding. I explain that it's lighter than the 13 oz kilts and it doesn't swing / drape quite as nicely as a 13 or 16 oz 8 yarder. If they're willing to "sign off" on it, we'll make it, but we don't like to when at all possible.

In most instances, I'd prefer to guide the customer to a custom weave of 16 oz (and make less marjins on it than an 11 oz 8 Yarder) if their budget allows. The cost (both customer's retail and mine on the cloth) is a bit higher, but it will make a nicer kilt.

My $.02... your milage may vary.

[piperdbh]

My Lockhart is 11 oz. (right, Matt?) and it hangs alright, but the heavier-weight fabric of my box-pleats feels better, and the creases on the pleats seem crisper.

[MacMillans son]

Not to hijack Josh, but I have had a similar question in the past. I see 11oz wool on sale on Ebay periodically and have wondered how different in behavior is it to PV ? Can someone provide a comparison for us?

[Tobus]

I was kinda wondering the same thing. 11oz is about the weight of MM PV material, right? People wear kilts from that material all the time. And the guys who make kilts of MM materials say that it's pretty darn close to feeling and draping like wool. Right? And while I personally don't like that light of a material*, it seems to work.

*My experience was with a 4-yard PV casual kilt... maybe an 8-yard in this weight would seem heavier due to more overlap.

[seanachie]

Like Rocky said some tartans, unfortunately, are only available in 11 oz. The Connmera tartan is one, and unfortunately a tartan I really like. It has been some time ago that I was looking at this but I know one of the more reputable kilt makers here would not use it for making a kilt because he was sure that it would not meet expectations and have some of the issues others have addressed here.

[Alan H]

I own several 11 ounce wool and wool/polyester blend kilts. I've made several more.

Upshot...it's not the same thing as 13 ounce, which is not the same as 16 ounce. Well, duh. However, I practically live in my 11 ounce wool/poly Linday 6-yard knife pleated kilt all summer long, I love it. My Hall clan box pleat is 11 ounce, and it's fine, though awfully light, since it's only 4 yards.. My gray stewart 6-yard knife pleat is wonderful, but I hemmed the material with a very large hem...2-3 inches and that adds weight to the bottoms.

I wouldn't recommend a 4-yard 11 ounce for anything but a hiking kilt or very casual knockaround or for throwing. It will have the feel of a Sportkilt, which BTW is made out of 8 ounce material I believe. I note that people wear Sportkilts all the time and enjoy them. A kilt made more traditionally, with lots of pleats and a normal waistband and so on, will look rather better...or rather more traditional at least, than a Sportkilt.

A 6 yard or more kilt can be very nice, made out of 11 ounce stuff. I would not use this weight material for a 4-5 yard kilt unless I didn't have any options, like the tartan wasn't available any other way. That was the case with my Hall clan kilt, which BTW has a very large seam, like 4+ inches, to add weight.

Yes, the weight of 11 ounce wool or a wool/poly blend is about the same as the polyester-viscose from Marton Mills. An upside to that is when I make 6 yard knife pleat kilts out of 11 ounce material, I don't cut out the pleats in the fell because the lighter material + the less yardage doesn't add up to an uncomfortable amount of material sitting in your lower back.

BTW, Summer Piersons 6 yard kilt mini skirt was made out of Marton Mills PV.

Conclusion, you can have a very nice kilt made from 11 ounce cloth, just don't expect it to be the same as a heavier weight material.

[Alan H]

As an aside....a 13 or 16 ounce kilt will last longer...meaning it will look "sharp" longer than an 11 ounce. If you will be wearing this lighter--weight kilt once every couple of months then you will get many, many years out of it and I wouldn't worry about it. If you are wearing it once a week, then you will notice that your 13 and 16 ounce kilts retain their structure, and therefore their good looks, longer.