Kilt length

[freddie]

To be honest your kilt looks just a wee bit too short for my taste, my limit would be the top of the knee cap and no higher. If you wear it at the same height as the top of your belt then it should be just right. People talk about wearing The Kilt at the regimental height, but don't forget that army kilts had a much higher rise (the amount of material above the waist straps, which should be buckled up just above the hip bones) than civilian kilts.
BTW that Morrison tartan looks fantastic!

[The Wizard of BC]

I think it may be helpful to this thread to have the input of a kiltmaker.

Everyone talks about the waist height and the hem height. No one has yet mentioned the height of the bottom of the Fell.
For those not familiar with that term, the Fell is the area in the back of the kilt that is tapered and sewn down.
All the shaping of the kilt is done in the Fell and it is the length of the Fell and where the bottom of the Fell fits that determines if the kilt is being worn the way it was designed and made to be worn.

To fit well the bottom of the Fell should be at, or very near the crest of the widest part of the hips and butt. On most men this is just about the same place as the hip joint.

When a kiltmaker takes their measurements they measure from the natural waist. This is right up at the bottom of the ribs. In the back it is up at kidney level. You can find your natural waist by putting a finger just under your ribs at your side and then bending sideways towards your finger. You will feel your finger go into a natural 'hole' or depression. This is the anatomical natural waist. It may be counter-intuitive but the natural waist is anatomically the smallest part of the body. Even on gentlemen of substance. The ribs are bigger above and the "Love Handles" are bigger below. (Love handles are the nickname for the small rolls of fat we all have right under our natural waist at our sides and back right under the natural waist. Don't get upset, we all have them.)

Notice that I did not mention the naval. The position of the naval changes. The heavier a man is, the more belly he has, the lower his naval is.

But the bones don't change. The natural waist is always in the same place. Some people are longer in the torso, some shorter. The distance between the ribs and pelvis may be different. The natural waist is always right under the ribs.

The idea that old military kilts had a long or higher rise is actually a result of the width of the fabric that was issued. The kilt was made so that the hem was at the uniform knee height for that regiment. (yes, some were different than others) The Fell was sewn so the bottom of the Fell was at the crest of the butt. The straps were put on to cinch into the natural waist. And the height was whatever the width of the fabric was. Depending on the height of the soldier it could be anywhere. It did not really matter where the top of the kilt was.
So, the idea of saying that a military kilt is defined by a 4 inch rise is actually misleading. The rise was set by the height of the soldier.

The problem we have today is that no other garment in our wardrobe is designed to be worn at the natural waist. Most guys have never worn anything at the natural waist. When a kiltmaker shows a customer their natural waist they are usually met with disbelief. We can usually see the image of a fat, old, grandpa with his pants up, above his belly and his tie about 6 inches long flash through the customers mind.
But this is where the the top strap of a traditional kilt cinches into. It is one of the only garments left with a male natural waist fit.

So when you look at a kilt and evaluate it for fit you look at not just the top of the kilt or where the hem hits the knee. You must also look at where the bottom of the Fell hits the hips and butt. If the bottom of the Fell is too high the pleats will splay out. If too low they will form the shower curtain folds you so often see.

Another problem we see today are kilts that are made without any reverse flare above the top strap. To fit correctly the kilt must flare out and go up, over the ribs above the top strap. If a kilt does not have the reverse flare the smallest part of the kilt is the top waistbanding. The kilt will naturally slide down until the smallest part settles into the smallest part of the body. The natural waist. This drops the bottom of the Fell down causing shower curtain folds and the hem is dropped below the top of the kneecap.

Now, before the fire storm starts over my comments I know fully well that some do not agree with what I have just said. OK, fine. You can wear your kilt any way you want. If you want to wear a kilt made to traditional standards lower than your natural waist please go ahead. If you buy a kilt that you must wear lower on the body to get the hem to the knee then that is what you need to do.
What I have described is a custom measured Traditional Style Kilt made in accordance with "The Art of Kiltmaking".

If you have a kilt without reverse flare you do not have a traditional style kilt.
If you have a kilt made to fit anywhere other than the natural waist you do not have a traditional style kilt.

That's OK. But you cannot judge these other kilts by the traditional standard. You have to judge them by the standard by which they were made. And I'm sorry but we don't have a name for these types of kilt yet. Perhaps we need to come up with one.

The kilt shown by the OP may or may not be a traditional style kilt. It may or may not be fitting where it was built to fit. I can't tell just by what it looks like from the front. I would need to see a rear shot to see where the top strap is fitting and where the bottom of the Fell is in relation to his hips.

[Roderick Powell]

Steve, Thank you for your clarification of Kilt Making. Does the width of the roll of cloth vary between traditional and military Kilts or Is the Kilt cloth width standard from a Mill width standard ; Say a mill width or half a mill width.

Is this mill width a standard measurement or does Kilt Maker Specify his requested Millwidth Dimension . Thank you.
Roderick Powell. 2.11.2015

[MacPherson85]

I always learned that if you get on your knees, your kilt should just barely touch the ground. In the end, it all comes down to personal preference.

[Pleater]

The proportions look good to me.

Your kilt is longer than your nape to waist or knee to floor measurement which is always a more flattering look.

Anne the Pleater :ootd: