Tartan tat kings go Scottish

[Hamish]

I still wouldnt buy one, i want to support traditional Scots craftsmen and women, the Singhs will continue to sell Tartan tat and Turn Scots/ Highland culture as a shoddy way of lineing their pockets.

a lot of the stuff these guys sell is cheap rubbish, I find some of it offensive in the extreme.

I am with you on that 100%, Darren.

Take care,
Ham.

[highlander_Daz]

The Gold bros/Singh are not SCOTS they are British Asians to be precise, which isnt and should not be a factor in this discussion,

the factors being

the quality of the materials used.
the quality of craftsmanship.
if any child labour/ exploited workers were invloved in the manufacture.

by using "ambiguous" and "confusing" labelling ,passing it off as something it isnt. the labelling could "catch out" tourists to whom English isnt a first language.

There is a market for "economy" kilts, Im assured Stillwater and sport kilts are excelent kilts for the money, are transparent about the place of manufacture and dont pretend to be something they are not. Unlike our friends on the royal mile.

at the end of the day the golds are simply using tartan tat as a way of making cash, if the bottom fell out of it they would go onto something else.

there is no commitment to further or preserve the art of Kiltmaking and looking at the rubbish they sell, no respect or understanding of symbols of Highland culture.

Id be interested to know if there are similar "chancers" in the US or Australia cashing in on native american or aboriginal cultures producing similar "tat"

[Nanook]

All of what you say above could be argued but the impression the label seeks to create isn't how Scottish the Golds are but how Scottish their product is.

I assure you more Scottish than the VW New Beatle is German.

The Golds aren't even the only concern to sell these kilts with this label -

The "Designed in" label is quite common. It always means NOT made in...

The composition of the cloth is not given and as we have seen from other posts they are a potential fire hazard

I actually own a Sialkot kilt (for 10 Quid I figured...). I call it mystery fibre but its clearly wool in some composition (smells like a sheep farm when steamed). The kilt is also 100% sewn by hand (just not very well). The tartan colours are all wrong (very bright), the weave loose and a bit too soft, selvedge a bit primitive... Sure its not to the quality or workmanship of my other kilts.. but nowhere as tatty as much of the leisure wear I've seen people wear on the streets of Edinburgh, Glasgow, ....

so information regarding composition could be vital.

Only, I think, if you plan on wearing it to a motivational training seminar--- where people scream funny words and walk on coals. Don't see the same concern over all the acrylic clothing filling the bins at the discount shops.

Most other clothing carries this information, wherever it's made in the global market.

And its time and again wrong (especially with small makers that don't seem to have labels to handle one-off production). I had some nice Austrian "polycotton" breeches (purchased at a very good shop) that were eaten by moths (I, of course, knew it was wool) and my wife has a nice silk jacket whose label claims its 100% cotton....

I was one of those who criticised Howie's definition that a Scottish kilt had to be hand sewn.

The Royal Regiment now, I guess, have taken to wear skirts (they are machine sewn). My Sialkot kilt being by that standard "more of a kilt" given that its entirely hand-sewn (just not by someone living in Scotland).

No cotton is grown in Scotland so a cotton garment saying "Made in Scotland" would of course refer only to the country of manufacture.

Since there is a difference amongst the different grades of cotton some of the better garments will go out of their way to point out the source (such as Egyptian or Sea Island Prima sorts) and the means of their production (Organic etc.). Cotton is a raw fibre material and needs to be dyed, spun and woven. That's what the British textile industry was about.

I know nothing of WPG in terms of seeing and handling and I also do not know what is shown on the label.

I don't think the country of manufacture is listed. It claims to be an accurate reproduction (in my opinion not that accurate for reasons I've already given).

But I do know they are not located in the Scottish capital with many shops in the tourist areas purporting to be what they are not. It's virtually a unique situation.

Everywhere is unique. Where do you think the Lederhosen sold in the Munich shops to not just tourists are made? A proper pair of regionally made Lederhosen can't be found for under 1000 EURO yet the shops are filled, especially around the Octoberfest with Bavarian styled leather pants for a fraction of that amount... How 'bout lace in Malta or Brussels? Hawaiian shirts in any of the tourist shops on Maui (including some of the very high priced "vintage" items intended for Japanese tourists)...

[Colin]

I love how they imply that other firms are ripping people off and that they buy their product from the same sources that local kiltmakers send their kilts out to.

These guys are incredible. I am sure many people that have studied kiltmaking and put hours of perfectionism and attention to detail into their kilts loved this comment from someone that imports their kilts

The maximum someone should be paying for a kilt is £200. Kiltmakers have had it too easy for too long.

[davedove]

by using "ambiguous" and "confusing" labelling ,passing it off as something it isnt. the labelling could "catch out" tourists to whom English isnt a first language.

It doesn't even have to be English as a second language tourists. Most tourists don't even look at the labels; they check price tags (if that).

I can't tell you how many times I've gone into shops in the Caribbean and seen items that appear to be local crafts, only to pick it up and see "Made in China." Yet tourists are buying these things by the basketful.

[Bob C]

I have both a $600 tank and an eBay cheapie. Both have their place. Removing the cheap kilts from Scotland's tourist areas is not going to flood the remaining kilt shops with tourists, looking to spend hundreds of dollars on kilt they have to wait weeks to get.

I'm GLAD there are cheap kilts available. As someone pointed out regarding the Tartan Army, budget kilts make the garment much more widely worn and accepted.

There's an awful lot of snobbery in the kilt community.

[Panache]

There's an awful lot of snobbery in the kilt community.

Bob,

I think you are right about that. There also a bit of distain for "the good stuff" from people that have never had the opportunity to try it. You and I appear to have a similar viewpoint that having a wide range of kilts available is a good thing.

I have one of the infamous Gold Brothers kilts and have to admit that the "Heritage of Scotland" tartan gets a lot more compliments than any of my traditional quality wool ones.

I wore my SWK Standard to hike in the foothills this morning and for running around but will change to my handsewn Scottish Kilt for SCD class tonight.

Use the right kilt for the right occassion.

I do have a bit of a problem with misleading advertising but feel that the buyer has a bit of a responsibility to READ THE LABEL!

Cheers

Jamie

[McClef]

I haven't seen anyone arguing about the usefulness of cheap kilts but a lot about honesty of description and origin.

It's basically that simple and that principle applies to whatever the product is whether it's kilts or lederhosen.

Yes, it's impossible to police the world but it is possible to police shops in an individual country. At least something with "Made in China" on it is a lot more honest than something that screams "Scotland" in as many ways that the vendor can get away with when you know damned well the origin is from elsewhere but they conveniently (for themselves) omit to provide that information.

And the kilts that I referred to in John O'Groats had exactly the same label, not a variation on it.

Those of us in the know are aware that "The "Designed in" label is quite common. It always means NOT made in..." but we also know too well that there are others out there who don't quite read it that way.

[Bob C]

There also a bit of distain for "the good stuff" from people that have never had the opportunity to try it. You and I appear to have a similar viewpoint that having a wide range of kilts available is a good thing.

Agreed, Jamie. I harbor neither snobbery toward budget kilts nor disdain for higher-quality ones. I think every man should be able to spend what he likes (and comfortably CAN) and wear what he likes without undue judgment from others.

Now, somebody help me down off this damned soapbox.

[Woodsheal]

These are the discounted, Scottish-made kilts mentioned:

http://www.scotlandshopdirect.com/pi...SD,product.php

They state 16 oz., 100% wool fabric. Hell, for $83.00 I'd buy one (if it was 2 inches shorter!)....