Exposed here for the first time . . .

[Benning Boy]

When I got my first dressy clothes as a teen, I think Jack Parr wss still doing the Tonight Show, the sleeves were made to reach the joint a the base of the thumb. My Army uniforms were made the same.

The Kilt Kut suit coat I bought from you, Steve, has short sleeves needing the shirt cuffs to show.

[Terry Searl]

I know it's just me but I really don't understand why people are so affected by what other people think of their apparel on this site.
I lived and worked in the bush for almost 40 years and my everyday clothes were mostly blue jeans, a tartan type flannel shirt, usually covered with a STANSFIELD wool pull over, non work boots were still steel toed and often referred to as Romeos, always clean and usually tidy,. I wore this type of clothing, not because it was fashionable or was what every other fella wore but because it was comfortable and you just never knew when you were going to have to work on something
Now that I'm retired and have been for over ten years, I enjoy getting "dressed up" so to speak....still wear blue jeans but almost as often I wear more "dressy" types of pants. Since I started wearing my kilted attire, donning a jacket and waist coat, kilt and hose, with either Sporran gives me a huge pleasure. and I wear my "gear" as I want and where I want, never thinking about what someone else thinks of my attire. What I have noticed is that most people I encounter give me a nod, a smile, both, or some other pleasant acknowledgement....either that or just pass by without any acknowledgement at all....... On this site there seems to be a lot of people worrying about so many issues about what they wear ...should they......or shouldn't they......I think you should wear what gives you pleasure.......isn't that what you would do if you weren't wearing kilted attire....... I keep hearing there are no Kilt Police......... sounds like there just might be though

[Profane James]

Agreed, both the kilt and jacket were made to measure in Scotland, by remote control from Australia and were not fitted. The jacket looks better with some shirt cuff showing but the shirt I grabbed here is also lacking in sleeve length. The jacket sleeves can be lengthened and, if i was to do this again, I would not have the epaulettes.

Ah yes, I can see that optical illusion now.
I have to agree with you about epaulettes. I only have one jacket with them, and I've noticed that they fold, move, and protrude in odd ways when I move my arms. Possibly because the jacket wasn't bespoke for me, but, nonetheless, I'm too self-conscious to allow it; so, in the closet until I can have them removed!

[Profane James]

Did anyone learn, like I did, that a vest with a satin back and the adjuster belt were not intended as outer wear? If wearing a vest that was not finished in back, if you removed your jacket, you also removed the vest?

I did, but it was from this forum! The sleeve length criteria as well - although, I don't believe I have heard that Johnny Carson story before...interesting!

Both concepts make practical sense to me. I admit to wearing satin backed vests, but without the adjuster. They were purchased without, or I have them removed - YUCK!

[kingandrew]

Steve,

The Johnnie Carson story, as you note, is apocryphal. I've spent a good amount of time looking at photos of well-dressed gents from the 1930s and 1940s, such as the Duke of Windsor and Fred Astaire. What I see is that their jacket sleeves all come to about the wrist bone, allowing a noticeable bit of shirt cuff to show even when their arms are hanging at their sides. So this style clearly had its proponents well before TV and the Tonight Show. It is certainly possible that Mr. Carson's high visibility and undeniable sense of style helped to promote the look more widely among his viewers.

To me, most American men wear their sleeves too long and it looks like they are waiting to grow into them. On the other hand, there is the unfortunate vogue for the "slim-fit" suit. Now I see nothing wrong with a skinny man wearing a suit that flatters his figure. Unfortunately, the look has been taken to an extreme, especially here in China, so that the "fashionable" young men are often dressed in suits that look like they shrunk in the wash after they were bought, or were stolen from a bellhop.

Needless to say, this look is hardly attractive on men with bodies any bulkier than a late adolescent athlete. And these sleeves (not to mention pant legs) are universally too short, often being rolled up to the elbow in an effort to look cute and casual. Watching any current K-pop boy band video will show you the look I'm talking about.

I have seen some (such as Jock Scot) argue that kilt jacket sleeves should be longer than Saxon ones. So far, I have had mine tailored the same as my other jackets, but I think a case could be made, especially for the Argyll "turn-up" style cuffs. The more the sleeves look like Saxon suit sleeves, the more I would be inclined to have them taken up to the wrist bone.

I would follow your guideline about the thumb bone for the sleeves of my overcoat, since I'm hoping those sleeves will not only protect my jacket and shirt sleeves, but also overlap my gloves to protect me from cold winds.

On the satin-backed vests I am 100% with you. I have my tailor make all my vests using the same material front and back, so that I can wear them without the jacket when the circumstances call for it.

Andrew