At a celtic festival.. acceptable attire

[Alan H]

*deleted*

...seeing as I have the remote in my hand.

[Babyvett]

The Klingons and the fairy don't bother me so much, maybe after years of going to the Tex Renfest, I'm use to seeing that type of stuff.. Where I do get offended is when people go way too far in what they are NOT wearing - if they know little kiddos are going to be there (AKA a family environment) why one thinks its appropriate to wear a chain mail bra (not lined - which to me just makes me wince to begin with) or leather chaps with only a thong beneath. Seen both of these at the Renfest.. LOL

[BBNC]

You could go for the gusto and dress like these two that I saw at the Maxville Highland Games last summer.
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I was beginning to wonder if anyone was going to wear a tee shirt, lol! They're my favorite summer casual wear.

[TheOfficialBren]

Nothing wrong with self expression, as long as it's in an appropriate context. When it's inappropriate for the event, and especially when it's done en masse by a fringe subculture, it can be frustrating for those who actually prefer the event to be what it was originally supposed to be. Having cultural events hijacked by weirdos and fantasy role players is highly disrespectful. Like Klingons - surely these guys have plenty of sci-fi events and comic-cons to go to in order to get their jollies, without detracting from a celebration of someone's actual heritage? I think it's great if they want to dress up like Klingons and have fun making spectacles of themselves, but what makes them choose a Celtic festival for this? Do they also invade German festivals or Chinese festivals?

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[O'Callaghan]

I agree very much with Zardoz here.

As for those who don't think there should even be such things as celtic festivals, that seems to be coded way of saying that 'their' highland games has been messed up by adding in the Irish and the Welsh. What's wrong with being inclusive? Around here, there is always a booth selling "Welsh cookies". Of course, they are really welshcakes, but that's the translation into American for the benefit of the great unwashed. Actually, he attends the Irish festivals too, but we don't mind atall. Try some, you might like them. I recommend the ones with the currants in. Being of Irish extraction doesn't stop me having haggis at one of these events either. You get to watch caber tossing and Irish dancers on the same day. What's so bad about that?

I have yet to see someone attend a celtic festival dressed in RenFest attire or as kilingons from Star Trek.

And Jock, I reckon a celtic festival would be a bit redundant in the British Isles. Even outwith the 'celtic fringe' you are practically falling over people of celtic extraction. Taking my wife and I as an example, we are both English, but I am part Irish and she is part Scottish, and yet that is hardly even worth noting back home, as it is so common. As someone rightly said, often in the colonies there isn't quite a big enough market for separate Scottish and Irish events, much less Welsh, who would never drum up any kind of cultural event by themselves.

With the exception of St. Patrick's Day, which is becoming more popular in England, an ethnic cultural event there would have to be carribbean or Indian or perhaps Polish (the latest wave of immigrants).

I have been to highland games in Scotland, and although the sports partaken in are uniquely Scottish, it is a very different kind of event than the American idea of a highland games, where the sports are essentially just a sideshow. The one my Scots uncle (technically, I think he was really a cousin) used to attend had nothing else going on but the games themselves, and his only other diversion was the flask of whisky he carried. Mind you, it was one of the few times I saw him in a kilt.

Back to the original question. You can wear anything you like, but I personally attend in kilt and t-shirt, and more importantly a heavy pair of boots , as these events are invariably held in muddy fields. I am not a 'work in progress', IMHO, because I wouldn't wear a kilt jacket to hang around in a muddy field even if I owned one, and can't really see a reason to get one short of being invited to a formal dinner where highland dress was appropriate. The only exception might be if I were in Scotland. Even then, anyone who thinks a Scot would never wear a t-shirt with a kilt is quite mistaken, although they might be attending a football match when they did.

ETA: The kilt has a practical advantage over trousers in muddy fields, as the mud only goes on your socks, and you change those regularly anyway, I hope?

And finally, I'm sorry, but the 'kilt shirt' and leather waistcoat screams out 'RenFest' to me. I bought one of these shirts, but only to wear to RenFest, and haven't actually been to one since, so I've never worn it.

[bdkilted]

I certainly understand all sides of the argument, and do agree that some folks take the 'fantasy' fun way too far in the way they dress for some events; I'm still closer to Zardoz' view. We work hard at our jobs and raising our families, so if you want to indulge in a little bit of dress-up as a way to have some fun, who is hurt? I'm a very conservative guy, but I still like to get a bit crazy once in a while. Just not too crazy.

[Geoff Withnell]

As far as tee shirts, my main puzzlement is the fellow I saw at Celtic Fling in Pennsylvania. I had on a tee from USAKilts, black with the legend in white "Real Men Wear Kilts". I was wearing a USAKilt, I disremember which one. I saw a young man, approaching through the crowd, wearing the same tee shirt. I could not see what kilt he was wearing, so I watched in anticipation. The crowd thinned, and I saw he was wearing on his lower half -- Bermuda shorts! I didn't get a chance to speak to him, and I still wonder what his message was.

I was beginning to wonder if anyone was going to wear a tee shirt, lol! They're my favorite summer casual wear.

[Destin_scot]

Heh, well, yes! I would argue (and have argued on this forum) that wearing a kilt to certain events is inappropriate. Even though we enjoy wearing it, we have to realise that it's not the norm.


Well, I agree with you on the renfaire thing going down the tubes too. And again, I think it comes back to fringe subcultures trying to hijack an event. While it may be 'fun' or humorous to show up at a renfaire wearing a stormtrooper outfit, it detracts from the theme of the event. And over time, as more people start doing it, it completely spoils the intent. The faire stops being about the Renaissance and starts becoming a freak show. The organisers may not care as long as they're making money, but there are a lot of people who get driven out of their particular hobby. Even a lukewarm fan such as myself will stop going. If I wanted to see stormtroopers, I'd have gone to a comic-con. But I go to the renfaire to see Renaissance reenacting. If I feel it's no longer doing that, then I'll stop going.

Free country? Of course. I would never suggest that someone doesn't have the right to do that, unless the property owner or organiser objects. But the real issue here is manners. It's simply bad form to intentionally hijack an event that someone went to a lot of trouble (and spent a lot of money) to make happen. And it creates an atmosphere of competition between subcultures to see who can get out and represent their group the most.

Where does it all lead? Will we be seeing Furries at the next San Antonio Rodeo and Livestock Show? Will we see hordes of blue-painted, half-naked Pandorans at the next Christmas concert in the town square? Does our society really have any expectations of appropriateness any more, or do we as a culture value "anything goes, as long as you're self-expressing" above all else? It's worth pondering, anyway. There's a certain 'mission creep' in this sort of phenomenon.

So far, there have been good points made everywhere, but we've digressed from the OP question about if what he listed as attire would be acceptable at a Celtic Festival, (granted that term can be widely interpreted as anything from a Saint Patrick's Day party, to a formal Burn's Night supper and anything and everything in between, especially here in the States).

I agree with both Tobus and Zardoc, that some of these are going to weird extremes, and I just have to shake my head and say OK. But I also hate that the extremes can detract from the original purpose of the selected "festival".

I go to highland games/events to listen to pipe music, watch the games themselves, watch the dancers, sample foods and drink.
I go to Greek "festivals" for similar reasons: food, music, dances
I go to Italian and German "festivals" for the same kinds of things: food, music, dancing....you get the point.
Shoot we even have a festival around here dedicated to a certain type of fish, (which most people think is a hair style). I certainly wouldn't dress up as that fish to attend, but some people will wear hats shaped like it.

[MNlad]

It seems "Celtic Festivals" are whatever sponsors and participants want to make of them. While Renfests are a free-for-all these days, I've been to a number of Celtic events where the creators are quite clear up front that they are events designed to celebrate cultural heritage, as well as having a bit of fun.

As noted earlier, many smaller communities have to make it an all-encompassing event to make a go of it—Scots, Irish, Welch, and yes—even the English. Klingons need not apply. Ya wear what ya got, whether it be a kilt, patchwork tweed vest, a green top hat, or a T-shirt that says "Kiss me, I'm Welch." There's usually a pipe band or two, and a church group selling "Mulligan" stew.

It's all in good fun, and there is little right or wrong in attire. (And, yes, a good share of the participants are in blue jeans and a T-shirt that doesn't proclaim anything Celtic—more likely, Harley-Davidson.)

It seems the more metropolitan the area, the more the lines blur between "Celtic Festival", Renaissance Festival, Comic-Con, and "What the Hell is That?"

Just do a bit or recon before the event and dress accordingly. Just as a T-shirt and Utilikilt might be out of place at a Burns Night event, a Prince Charlie and bow tie might be pushing it at your local "Celtic Festival."

[O'Callaghan]

As far as tee shirts, my main puzzlement is the fellow I saw at Celtic Fling in Pennsylvania. I had on a tee from USAKilts, black with the legend in white "Real Men Wear Kilts". I was wearing a USAKilt, I disremember which one. I saw a young man, approaching through the crowd, wearing the same tee shirt. I could not see what kilt he was wearing, so I watched in anticipation. The crowd thinned, and I saw he was wearing on his lower half -- Bermuda shorts! I didn't get a chance to speak to him, and I still wonder what his message was.

LOL! I can top that though. At our local celtic festival one year I saw a guy wearing one of those T-shirts that say something like "If I was wearing underwear it would be a skirt", and you guessed it, he was wearing trousers! I was wearing a kilt, with underwear, so I suppose he would have considered me to be wearing a skirt. Hypothetically, if he was wearing underwear, does that make his trousers a skirt?