Belts, a question.

[thescot]

I like the look of the belt (unless vested) with a kilt. Especially in the summer when wearing a shirt only. I generally wear a brown belt with a brass buckle unless I am getting dressed pretty up. For summers, it's a khaki shirt, brown belt and sporran. Besides, it's a good place to hang a flask, cell phone, or six shooter. (Just kidding about the gun!)

At to necessity, even sporrans aren't actually required. (There is the matter of where to put your stuff, but we're talking style here.) If you research old pictures of the regiments, you'll notice that many ORs didn't wear sporrans in WW I or there about.

[Mr. Kilt]

I rarely wear a belt unless I'm dressing up.

[pdcorlis]

Personally, I think a belt helps add to the overall visual balance of the kilt and also keeps it looking masculine - so for me its a kilt and a belt unless I'm wearing a waistcoat or sweater.

[A Hay]

I like the solid feel of a wide belt and I also think it looks good with the kilt and sporran. Always wear both when I'm out and about.
Plus, my wife likes the smell of leather and I do too. (My office/workshop is starting to smell like a leather shop!!)

Tom

[Robinhood]

I think a big manly belt definitely looks better,
though I don't wear one. My waist is bigger
than my hips, so to keep my kilt up it would
need to be pulled uncomfortably tight. I
use suspenders to keep the kilt up, and
cut the front of the kilt lower so it doesn't
look odd without the belt.

[Dirka Skene]

My husband usually wears his regular belt with his kilt. He never wears his pants without it, so why wear his kilt without it?

[macwilkin]

If you look at photos of gents in "day attire" from the mid 20th century, you will see quite a few of them wearing tweed kilt jackets and the like with no belts underneath, and it doesn't look bad, INMHO.

I used to be very paranoid about always wearing a belt with a kilt, but now my kilt belt spends most of the time in my closet in a plastic tub. I prefer the "beltless" look, mostly because everyone else wears them!

A good tailored kilt doesn't need a belt to hold it up. But a waistcoat -- it adds a wee bit o'....wait for it...panache!

Cheers,

Todd

[Nanook]

A good tailored kilt doesn't need a belt to hold it up.

I may add: a properly fitting kilt needs to be VERY snug and firm and not to move, shift or bounce about. Only when you suck in your gut and hold your breath should it be movable.

Belts are a difficult terrain. They are within civilian modes of dress nearly always informal. Belts are generally considered as inappropriate to formal or business attire as training shoes. A well dressed gentleman is probably best advised to avoid wearing belts

If one needs a belt to hold up one's pants then one needs no belt but a better tailor! :-)

Belts with kilts are fine with a tweed day jacket but their buckles should typically be either brass or (to be more modern) brushed steel but not polished white metal. Silver buckles are considered more formal where they are, more often than not, out of place.

But a waistcoat -- it adds a wee bit o'....wait for it...panache!

I agree. I tend, however, to like contrast.

[johnnym]

My USA "American Heritage" was tailored to fit (Thanks, Roger) and does not need a belt. Same for the off-the-rack MacKenzie. However, I have an older, solid dark blue generic no-name that has only velcro, no buckles, to securely fasten. Although the velcro holds well, I do not have the secure feeling that the buckles give. Thus, I wear a wide belt with it - just in case.

[Chef]

Belts are a difficult terrain. They are within civilian modes of dress nearly always informal. Belts are generally considered as inappropriate to formal or business attire as training shoes. A well dressed gentleman is probably best advised to avoid wearing belts

If one needs a belt to hold up one's pants then one needs no belt but a better tailor! :-)

I agree for the most part; I have never owned a kilt that required a belt to stay up. Where I disagree is the idea of being dressed with no belt on the kilt. True if you are wearing a PC then you don't need one; when ever I wear a waistcoat (day or evening) or a pull-over I go without the belt; its not seen anyway and it just makes the waistcoast lie badly. However the most formal kilt jacket is arguably one of the variations of the doublet and it absolutley requires a belt. This is my favoutite formal wear.