Kilts at DragonCon

[Smitty]

I just returned from Dragon Con in Atlanta, GA. Four days of science fiction/fantasy/ other geekiness at a convention that atracted about 30,000 people.

For those who are unfamiliar with this, here's a link: http://www.dragoncon.org/

Anyway, on to my point: There were a lot of kilts to be seen there. Some were part of costumes, some just everyday wear. It was good to see so many people sporting kilts, but a few observations...
First, most kilts were worn incorrectly, and noticeably so. Either they were simply not kilts at all, or worn so askew as to look ridiculous. The overall impression was that the wearer had watched Braveheart a few too many times, and believed that enough yardage of any tartan fabric = kilt. This covers most of the "kilts" worn as costumes, and displayed a general lack of respect for the kilt as a legitimate garment.
There were others that clearly knew how to wear a kilt, but the context was definitely not serious. Examples: Stormtrooper armor and a kilt, Star Trek Starfleet shirt and a kilt...strange, but I suspect that was the point.

The majority of kilts there, perhaps not surprisingly, were Utilikilts (or similar). Most wore these with t-shirts and either sneakers or sandals. (There was also a Utilikilts booth in one of the vendor areas that seemed to be doing a brisk business)
Some guys carried this off well, but many just looked uncomfortable or unsure in their kilt. It's difficult to pin down, but it just didn't look 'right'.

There were no complete daywear outfits or anything of the sort- even full 8-yard traditional kilts were being worn as part of a very casual outfit. This was to be expected, as the entire event is casual, and t-shirts and shorts were the norm.

Regardless, it was the largest population of men in kilts I've encountered outside of Highland games or similar Scottish-themed events. I probably saw at least 300 or more in some form of kilt or other. Also, I attended DragonCon 11 years ago, and there were no kilts to be seen then- this is a more recent development, although I can't say exactly when it started, or how quickly it has caught on.