Fashion Kilts - NY Fashion Week

[Nighthawk]

I am sure you are right there Ali, many will think like you, but to my way of thinking it would have the opposite effect of " if that's kilts--- then to the devil with them!" .

All this modern fashion is all very well and good and some super new ideas do break through, but yet again, in my humble opinion, no one has yet come up with a Kilt look to beat the one that is still basically the same as it was 100 years ago. Now that must be some fashion record!

I took my wife to see a movie called The Roommate last night. One thing that was said was "Fashion dies; style is eternal." I like that.

So with that being said... why do these fashion designers go out of their way to make ugly clothes? If I didn't know better, I would also say "Screw wearing kilts!!" after seeing those monstrosities! Going with Ali's analogy, it's like seeing a Warhol, and then going home to throw up on your wall, calling it art!

[tpa]

I'm sure you're right about no one expecting people to actually wear the stuff that appears on catwalks, but surely the main intention of the designer is to attract customers. Sometimes it seems the basic plot has got lost somewhere.
I also agree with Jock Scot, it is hard to beat the original, however it is also not a good idea to wear a traditional kilt in a dirty working environment, unless you have enough kilts and money to keep the dry cleaners fully employed, so I can see the attraction in trying to devise practical working kilts and also ones suitable for warmer climes than Scotland.

[Java]

Every once in a while, a designer gets the idea that kilts are different and pretty cool, so we get pictures like these. The pleats are supposed to swish, not the apron!They always seem to have one thing in common. It always seems that "job one" for the designer is to do everything he or she can to make the kilt less manly.

Have Fun,
Java

[Irish Jack O'Brian]

Since everyone liked these so much, I thought I'd post another one from the same show.

[llyd]

Oh, bloody hell...looks like it is high time to draw and quarter another designer upon the commons green...

[SlackerDrummer]

...no one has yet come up with a Kilt look to beat the one that is still basically the same as it was 100 years ago. Now that must be some fashion record!

Except that there have been changes since the kilt "as we know it" came into existence in the Victorian era. We have seen a change in both the pleating and the yardage used to make the kilt and kilt jackets have changed just as much as the jacket of a man's suit. The changes may be considerably more subtle than the differences between what we know and recognize as highland attire and what we see in these fashion shows, but it's a bit disingenuous to suggest there have been no changes. On the other hand, if by "basically" you mean consisting of the same components (kilt, jacket, shirt, tie, hose, brogues, bonnet), then I suppose you're right.

[TheNaughtyScot]

Perhaps it's just me, but I believe modifying kilts into high fashion ensembles only emphasizes their femininity, especially without the sporran. I have found that when worn traditionally with the Scottish accoutrements, most people don't bat an eye because they just say the guy is wearing a kilt. But when you wear it in other ways like the high fashion ideas without the sporran or other Scottish identifiers, it quickly becomes a guy in a skirt. This is especially so when you were stocking whose tops end under your skirt.

-Ian

[Jock Scot]

Except that there have been changes since the kilt "as we know it" came into existence in the Victorian era. We have seen a change in both the pleating and the yardage used to make the kilt and kilt jackets have changed just as much as the jacket of a man's suit. The changes may be considerably more subtle than the differences between what we know and recognize as highland attire and what we see in these fashion shows, but it's a bit disingenuous to suggest there have been no changes. On the other hand, if by "basically" you mean consisting of the same components (kilt, jacket, shirt, tie, hose, brogues, bonnet), then I suppose you're right.

Without wishing to split too many hairs, if we go back a 100 years that would take us back to 1911 and the Victorian era had been over for 10 years. Knife pleats were in fashion as was pleating to the sett, Tartan yardage was increasing to the nominal 8 yards, Day jackets in their varying styles were very much as they are today,Evening jackets the same, brogues are similar to todays, ties are very much the same, bonnets are the same and any traditional kilt wearing Scot of today(and vice versa) would not feel out of place should he transported back a 100 years. So Yes indeed, the traditional kilt and its attire is basically the same.

[Detroitpete]

Ok, what do I know about fashion?? I'm obviously VERY bored (finished the Wine Closet!) so I checked out the link provided and although I'm not taken by some of the oddities I saw, I actually appreciate the use of tweeds, tartans and jackets for the younger generation.

[ali8780]

I'm sure you're right about no one expecting people to actually wear the stuff that appears on catwalks, but surely the main intention of the designer is to attract customers. Sometimes it seems the basic plot has got lost somewhere.
I also agree with Jock Scot, it is hard to beat the original, however it is also not a good idea to wear a traditional kilt in a dirty working environment, unless you have enough kilts and money to keep the dry cleaners fully employed, so I can see the attraction in trying to devise practical working kilts and also ones suitable for warmer climes than Scotland.

This is, I fear, where many people get lost on the idea of a fashion show, and end up throwing their hands in the air in frustration.

Yes, the goal of any smart business person is to attract customers and to make money, and actually, that is exactly what they are doing. The problem is, you are making the mistake in thinking that you are the customer. Those fashion shows are meant to attract other designers and high fashion magazine editors and other people in the haute couture world. I hope I don't let the wind out of anyone's sails when I say that the haute couture world has absolutely nothing to do with the real world, and only influences our clothing options in a very small way.

Anyone who tries to find reason or practicality in a fashion show is going to be greatly disappointed. They are purposefully avant-guarde and showy. These designers will also produce many other ready-to-wear lines that will be completely toned down versions of their haute couture lines (and even those lines won't make it to the middle classes because they are pretty expensive).