How bad is my Pakistani kilt

[Dollander]

Why did they make it this way?

I'd guess it's precisely because they're mass-produced. It seems like it'd be far more efficient to just taper the entire pleat and stitch the fell, than to sew the fell first and then baste and press the pleats the way a traditional kilt is made.

I meant to say this a while back but never got around to it, but I second Steve's comments. The problem I have with UT is not the products themselves, but that they misrepresent them. Their Scottish-style kilts are perfectly fine for everyday wear or maybe even for the Highland games. But they make it seem like they're something you could get married in, which is only the case if you're the type who could just as easily get married in a sport coat and jeans.

On the other hand, while they're honest about the composition of the wool and acrylic kilts, the same can't be said for their utility kilts. Their solid-color kilts are listed as cotton-poly when they're actually pure cotton, which wrinkles far too easily to be truly suitable for a kilt...unless you don't mind not sitting down the entire time you're wearing it. And the tartan utility kilts are likewise viscose-acetate even though the site claims they're polyviscose. I mean, yes, polyester and acetate are both petroleum-derived fibers, but it's nonetheless misleading, particularly to those somewhat familiar with tartan fabric. At least Tartanista is up front about the composition of their billie kilts, so I knew to expect something more akin to my UTs than to the kilts I made with fabric from Marton Mills.

[OC Richard]

One of my favourite tartans!

I do want to mention that with tartan fabric there's an art to deciding where the pattern comes to an end at the selvedge.

Different weavers might have different edge-points with a given tartan, but they nearly always look "right", based on a sense of aesthetics and an "eye" for what looks good. (Another aspect is that the kiltmaker, in deciding the centre-point of the front apron, will be guided by what edge-point had been chosen by the weaver.)

I do think where whoever wove that tartan decided to make the end-point looks contrary to what is usually done with tartans in general.

[CollinMacD]

Being new to the world of kilts, I hope my opinion is worthy. Not everybody can afford a Bentley, some can only afford a Chevrolet, and some only a VW, but I truly believe the point is to experience and appreciate what you can afford and are happy with. Sometimes we put a lot of pressure on people making them feel inferior, and we lose the meaning, of just wearing a kilt with a tartan is what its all about. That is one view I have, the second is using an inexpensive kilt for pubbing, or participating in the games, or some where that an expensive kilt could get damaged, well that is a good reason too. Just stands to reason the more expensive kilts most of all the time will look much nicer than the cheaper Polyester-Kilts. But all back to common sense. Wear what you wish and enjoy the experience...never expect that when you purchase an inexpensive kilt it will be anything close to an expensive one....just enjoy.

[Dollander]

Being new to the world of kilts, I hope my opinion is worthy. Not everybody can afford a Bentley, some can only afford a Chevrolet, and some only a VW, but I truly believe the point is to experience and appreciate what you can afford and are happy with. Sometimes we put a lot of pressure on people making them feel inferior, and we lose the meaning, of just wearing a kilt with a tartan is what its all about. That is one view I have, the second is using an inexpensive kilt for pubbing, or participating in the games, or some where that an expensive kilt could get damaged, well that is a good reason too. Just stands to reason the more expensive kilts most of all the time will look much nicer than the cheaper Polyester-Kilts. But all back to common sense. Wear what you wish and enjoy the experience...never expect that when you purchase an inexpensive kilt it will be anything close to an expensive one....just enjoy.

I certainly don't mean to disparage those who buy inexpensive kilts. Just don't claim you're selling me a sports car for the price of a sedan, only to deliver a sedan. Kilt Society describes their $65 rayon-blend kilt as "ideal for casual wear or an alternative to hire", whereas UT says their $60 acrylic kilt "can easily be dressed up for a formal occasion or dressed down for your local Scottish fair. This kilt will look PERFECT no matter where you wear it." And based on the reviews of both companies I've seen on this site, the former is far more honest.

[Me cousin Jack]

I certainly don't mean to disparage those who buy inexpensive kilts. Just don't claim you're selling me a sports car for the price of a sedan, only to deliver a sedan. Kilt Society describes their $65 rayon-blend kilt as "ideal for casual wear or an alternative to hire", whereas UT says their $60 acrylic kilt "can easily be dressed up for a formal occasion or dressed down for your local Scottish fair. This kilt will look PERFECT no matter where you wear it." And based on the reviews of both companies I've seen on this site, the former is far more honest.

Typical marketing BS
“We’ll pee on thier shoes, and tell em it’s raining”

But me personally, wear whatever you like, but call it what it is.

[Dagothir]

Everyday production kilts and tailor-made ones.
Each has its place!

[Dollander]

But me personally, wear whatever you like, but call it what it is.

When strangers ask me questions about my kilt as opposed to simply complimenting it, I won't hesitate to tell them it's an "American-style" kilt rather than something a traditional kiltmaker might produce. But they still dress up reasonably well, in part because I keep the pleats straight, and make them specifically to my measurements. USA Kilts had a semi-trad on the rack in my exact waist, seat, and length, so I tried it on during a visit to their shop. Now, the semi-trad is by all accounts a finely-tailored garment that just happens to be PV instead of wool. But since I'm long-waisted for my height, the fell was an inch or so too short, which made the pleats stick out slightly and hang a bit funny. Had I not known better, I may well have dismissed it as a glorified pub kilt, rather than realizing I'd have to request a specific fell length if I had one made versus doing it myself.

[tokareva]

Dollander,I may end up ordering one of the semi- trad kilts. It's 61° today and I'm close to roasting wearing a 16 oz. five yard with a t shirt. How much nicer are they than the casual kilt?
I have the casual, but to me it just doesn't feel like a kilt ,although it is extremely comfortable.

[Dollander]

I've never tried on a USAK Casual so I can't comment on the comparative "kiltiness" of the feel. The Semi-Trad was very lightweight, but not as light as, say, my Sport Kilt. As for being nicer, it's made from the same fabric, but constructed pretty much the same as a 5-yard wool kilt as far as I could tell. And I assume it uses more fabric than the casual, but you know what the say about the capacity of assumption to induce a simultaneous posterior transformation...

One of my favourite tartans!

I do want to mention that with tartan fabric there's an art to deciding where the pattern comes to an end at the selvedge.

Different weavers might have different edge-points with a given tartan, but they nearly always look "right", based on a sense of aesthetics and an "eye" for what looks good. (Another aspect is that the kiltmaker, in deciding the centre-point of the front apron, will be guided by what edge-point had been chosen by the weaver.)

I do think where whoever wove that tartan decided to make the end-point looks contrary to what is usually done with tartans in general.

Or it could also be hemmed. If one orders a custom kilt shorter than the standard 24" length, they may just take one they already have in the appropriate waist size and shorten it.

I meant to comment on this earlier, but as is often the case didn't get around to taking pictures. But after reading your post, I decided to compare the kilts I have in the same tartan from different mills. Batley and Marton Mills chose different points for the selvage of Murray of Atholl, though that could be as much because one is 16oz wool and the other is PV:

Hmm, I wonder if someone has any Murray of Atholl in MM's Jura to compare to either the PV or the Batley version? And I didn't even think to take the selvage into consideration when chosing the center of the apron; rather, I went with the guarded red stripe for both because it just seemed to me like it's meant to be the middle of the pattern.

On the other hand, both Lochcarron and House of Edgar chose the same point for Murray of Tullibardine, even though one is 16oz and the other is 13. And as far as I know they're the only mills that produce it*:

I'd used the green portion for the center with the Lochcarron, but for the Edgar one I'm presently working on (that's an offcut in the pic), I'm going with the cluster of blue stripes instead. That's partially because the green is my favorite part of the pattern, so I'd rather have more of it on the apron than just one full section that'll be mostly covered by my sporran with hints of it peeking in from the apron edges. And the other reason is that, because of how I pleated it, having the green portion for the center would've resulted in an apron pleat that's either absurdly deep or not nearly deep enough.


*except for Dalgliesh, but they'll weave anything non-restricted if you don't mind paying...and waiting...for it.

[thecompaqguy]

Being new to the world of kilts, I hope my opinion is worthy. Not everybody can afford a Bentley, some can only afford a Chevrolet, and some only a VW, but I truly believe the point is to experience and appreciate what you can afford and are happy with. Sometimes we put a lot of pressure on people making them feel inferior, and we lose the meaning, of just wearing a kilt with a tartan is what its all about. That is one view I have, the second is using an inexpensive kilt for pubbing, or participating in the games, or some where that an expensive kilt could get damaged, well that is a good reason too. Just stands to reason the more expensive kilts most of all the time will look much nicer than the cheaper Polyester-Kilts. But all back to common sense. Wear what you wish and enjoy the experience...never expect that when you purchase an inexpensive kilt it will be anything close to an expensive one....just enjoy.

Although Gold Brothers "The Kilt" is the Chevy of the kilt world, there's bargains in the "used car market" which is eBay to grab something decent at a knockdown price