Evening Attire?

[Jock Scot]

Salient points as always, Jock. As long as one meets the minimum threshold for evening attire, all is well. Anything more is just personal preference or personal flair. It is important for people to recognise what's essential and what's just fluff.
(My answers in brackets between your paragraphs)
( Exactly so.)

I wouldn't necessarily call it one-upmanship, though, or think of it as something that's specific to this website. Highland attire has always had a "peacock" quality to it, most especially when it comes to the higher levels of dress. It seems to me that as Highland culture has been diluted and blended into a more pan-British culture, especially over the past century, the expectations of dress have trended more towards a Saxon-like uniformity. A typical English black tie event, for example, would find men all dressed exactly the same by design. And it is considered poor taste to show any individualism. What a pity to see Highland dress headed this direction! The days of men wearing unique bespoke doublets and ornate hair sporrans have been reduced to them mostly wearing the same generic designs that they all purchased from the same handful of outfitters (or worse, hire-shops!).
( I think on the right occasion you will see Scottish Highland attire worn at its most individual of styles whilst keeping on a theme. Those occasions are not so common these days, nor are they generally publicised to the world at large. Indeed, kilt hire attire does not help individuals to dress individually either.)

I don't know what kind of presence you have elsewhere on the internet for discussing Highland attire, but I can assure you that what we see here on this forum is pretty tame by comparison. I actually credit you for this. Your well-reasoned input over the years has guided a lot of members to refrain from "over-egging the cake" with their outfits (and yes, I borrowed that phrase from you). Or, at least, when they do go for the fancier accoutrements of Highland dress, they have a better idea that they have stepped out beyond a certain line. Some of the other internet discussion areas don't have that kind of gentle moderating voice to guide them, and one-upmanship definitely takes hold.
( Thankyou, I would like to think that some of my advice is helping in keeping you chaps on the straight and narrow!
Actually there were others who assisted in keeping you chaps in line, but I think that I am the last one still contributing here.
I have looked at other kilt websites from time to time, but for various reasons the” climate” on those websites did not appeal.
I very nearly used the term of” over-egging the cake” but I seemed to have upset one member here on this website mightily over using that term, so I have refrained from using it recently. I thought the term described the situation rather well! Perhaps I might start using the term again? )

But beyond that, I think the last few years (perhaps the last decade or so) has seen a renewed interest in making Highland dress interesting again. Personally, I welcome it. Historical jacket styles and sporran styles are becoming popular again. And while there will always be those folks who wear costumish articles to emulate television shows or feel the need to design "fashion-forward" new styles, I see a lot more people these days dressed more traditionally with thought and research put into their choices. I'll take this any day over seeing the masses wearing the same articles from the same catalogs.

(Thank goodness there are more than enough people in Scotland who do know how to wear the kilt properly that the situation that you describe is not likely to happen here on a large scale. If we put aside the hire company situation, then without wanting to cause upset, perhaps it’s the trouble of wearing the kilt outwith it’s natural surroundings where there are so few to gently guide those wanting to wear the kilt? )

[OC Richard]

This was my outfit for the aforementioned Tartan Ball. I largely follow Jock’s advice, though I wear a fur, formal sporran as my day sporran is brown and not appropriate for evening dress.

Attachment 42117

That sporran is an excellent example of the post-WWI smaller rounded seal-fur Evening sporran with silver top, which has been the generally expected sporran in Evening Dress since that time. The main exception being that the Victorian long hair sporran with silver top (usually in white hair) hasn't been completely supplanted, even now.

There's a reciprocal time thing about any sort of "traditional" dress, that a person wearing that dress could move backwards to any point in time, or a person at any point in the past could move forward to today, neither looking out of place.

The thing about your outfit that would probably be noticed in the c1900-c1970 period would be the solid/plain Day hose worn with an otherwise Evening outfit. Beginning around 1970 solid/plain white hose were introduced for Evening Dress by the Kilt Hire industry.

Nowadays solid/plain Day hose in any colour other than white are often seen in Evening Dress, the hose generally chosen to "tone with" the kilt, just as you have done.

[YOJiMBO20]

I suppose I will have to throw my hat into the ring. ;)

This was my outfit for the aforementioned Tartan Ball. I largely follow Jock’s advice, though I wear a fur, formal sporran as my day sporran is brown and not appropriate for evening dress.

I remember seeing both of you at the Ball. Had I known who you were, I would have come up and said hi, though I think I said hi to you in passing at one point.

[FossilHunter]

I remember seeing both of you at the Ball. Had I known who you were, I would have come up and said hi, though I think I said hi to you in passing at one point.

Small world. Any pics of yourself?

[FossilHunter]

That sporran is an excellent example of the post-WWI smaller rounded seal-fur Evening sporran with silver top, which has been the generally expected sporran in Evening Dress since that time. The main exception being that the Victorian long hair sporran with silver top (usually in white hair) hasn't been completely supplanted, even now.

There's a reciprocal time thing about any sort of "traditional" dress, that a person wearing that dress could move backwards to any point in time, or a person at any point in the past could move forward to today, neither looking out of place.

The thing about your outfit that would probably be noticed in the c1900-c1970 period would be the solid/plain Day hose worn with an otherwise Evening outfit. Beginning around 1970 solid/plain white hose were introduced for Evening Dress by the Kilt Hire industry.

Nowadays solid/plain Day hose in any colour other than white are often seen in Evening Dress, the hose generally chosen to "tone with" the kilt, just as you have done.

I do love diced hose. I just can’t justify the cost for the little use I get out of a black tie rig. The Lewis hose also had the advantage of being available on short notice and I can use them for day wear or informal evening wear if I want, which is the majority of my kilt wearing.

If budget were not an issue I would like a true formal argyle with shawl lapels, a goat hair sporran, and argyle hose. Though that would almost certainly be too extravagant for the mixed formality of the local events.

It would be nice to have more formal events to go to locally.

[TNScotsman]

I'm enjoying the conversation here. I have to agree that there is a definite line between must-have and nice-to-have, and done tastefully both fall well within the respectful range for an outfit. I like to add a little something to make things nice, for my PC usually high-quality studs for my shirt and/or vintage cufflinks, maybe a ring, but nothing outlandish. I'm also a fan of diced hose but am too cheap to buy a pair!

I do quite deliberately stop between interests and tradition, to the extent that my knowledge allows. I really like to wear a nice watch, but as the more conservative tradition dictates don't wear a watch with black tie (I do usually have a pocket watch tucked into my waistcoat, but not with the chain on display). I've always been a knife guy, and while I enjoy a nice sgian dubh, don't go the Victorian route of wearing a dirk with a PC. I also don't judge people who do the opposite of those things, so long as the kilt is treated respectfully.

I have to admit that the red velvet PC jackets that can be found do have a certain temptation for Christmas, but I quite simply don't have the personality to pull off that loud of an outfit. Attire to a certain extent does need to match the wearer.

[Jock Scot]

................

I have to admit that the red velvet PC jackets that can be found do have a certain temptation for Christmas, ......

Oh goodness gracious me, surely you can’t be serious!

[Liam]

My version for an evening wedding reception several years ago.

[OC Richard]

I do love diced hose. I just can’t justify the cost for the little use I get out of a black tie rig.

It would be nice to have more formal events to go to locally.

Agreed 100%.

I did splurge on those hose that match my Drummond of Perth kilt, and just like you're saying I've not had many opportunities to wear them. There's a local Pipe Band who wear that tartan and the Pipe Major has expressed interest in buying those hose. He'll get more use from them than I would.

The diced hose I'm wearing with my Isle of Skye kilt are another matter, as I picked them up used from a member here. I'll keep those for any random formal event that might happen here.

[OC Richard]

Oh goodness gracious me, surely you can’t be serious!

Jock here's an image to have dance in your head as Christmas approaches.

What's seen cannot be unseen.