Tailors! Kilt makers! Help!

[biblemonkey]

I have two wool 13 oz hand sewn 8 yarders that I love. Problem is they only have two straps and I have no rear. Even fitting at their best they slide a little. Would anyone be willing to do a little work on them to add some hip straps? Is this possible?

Please help,
Hugh

[RockyR]

If you have no hips, adding a hip strap will not really cause the kilt to sit any better. The only thing you can realistically do (IMHO) is:

1. Make sure the waist straps are SNUG and wear a shirt that is not 'slick' (like silk or rayon). Sometimes wearing a shirt where the material kind of 'grips' the lining in a kilt may help it stay up a little bit.

2. Get yourself a pair of braces (suspenders).

3. If you're not wearing a kilt belt (again, SNUG), wearing one may help.

4. Wear lighter weight kilts (ordering a 6 yarder). Less weight makes it a little less likely to fall down.

[biblemonkey]

If you have no hips, adding a hip strap will not really cause the kilt to sit any better. The only thing you can realistically do (IMHO) is:

1. Make sure the waist straps are SNUG and wear a shirt that is not 'slick' (like silk or rayon). Sometimes wearing a shirt where the material kind of 'grips' the lining in a kilt may help it stay up a little bit.

2. Get yourself a pair of braces (suspenders).

3. If you're not wearing a kilt belt (again, SNUG), wearing one may help.

4. Wear lighter weight kilts (ordering a 6 yarder). Less weight makes it a little less likely to fall down.

I have another kilt that is heavier and it never moves. The only difference in make that I can see is no hip strap. I wear no kilt belt with the three strap, works fine. I wear a belt with the two strap, still a little slide. The waist on the one two strapper is tight as it could be and still allow breathing.

[Galician]

BM, can we trade bodies?

[biblemonkey]

BM, can we trade bodies?

Nope. I've worked to hard on this one.

Hugh

[Father Bill]

I added suspenders, and rather like them at "slidy" times. A vest over the suspenders keeps them less obvious. I don't actually have the same problem you describe (my butt is plenty big!) but there are times to use this technique well.

[madmacs]

I can just see it now a new fashion... Steeped in history... Ressurected for the future...

[The Wizard of BC]

One reason a kilt may slip is that the smallest part of the kilt may not be at the level of the straps.
This means that no matter how tight you cinch the straps the kilt will always try to move so the smallest part of the kilt is at the smallest part of your body.

Here is a shot of a well made kilt folded in half.



You can see that the smallest part of the kilt is at the level of the top straps. The Fell tapers in, up to the height of the strap and then flares back out above the strap.

If your kilt does not flare back out above the straps it will always slip. Adding additional straps will not correct this problem.