Quote Originally Posted by kennethrmc View Post
Back to the starting question, I managed to get 8 yards of tartan wool-blend for $15 on an ebay sale. Just arrange the pleats in back and cinch it with a belt and-voila! Correct period great kilt for almost nothing.
Great kilts weren't actually 8 or 9 yards long. That's a misconception. They were more like 4 to 6 yards long. They were 9 yards of fabric. It was cut in half into two 4.5 yard lengths, and then sewn together into one 4.5 yard, double width piece of fabric. This was because looms of the period couldn't make cloth in double width.

Woodsheal- am I correct on this? Also, to be period accurate, you don't have to wear a clan tartan. You can go to a fabric store and pick up some generic tartan-esque cloth. Also, along with great kilts, wee kilts were worn. They weren't tailored, they were simply a single width version of the great kilt, which makes sense really, when you consider how the great kilt was constructed.