I'm not so great with a needle and thread. Seriously. Not that great is an understatement but perhaps things are looking up?
I won a "vintage" MacKenzie kilt pleated to strip off Ebay a few weeks ago. It came and was a tad too big. I knew it had moth damage but I was able to get it at a great price and I was looking for a "project" - a kilt that might need adjustment that i wasn't afraid of "messing up" with my uneven stitches and pitiful attempts.
Project #1: move buckles
I was going to possible move the straps but that looked daunting and beyond my skill level. The previous owner of this kilt had done some altering of their own and so I found the remnants of the previous location of the buckles. I also found 2 holes for the left-hand strap: the original and "new". Lucky for me the "original" seemed like it would work for me so I didn't need to add another one. It'd be a little snug but I could handle that... plus I am planning on dropping some weight... So I stitched up the old strap hole and kept the original.
I'm sure there are "how tos" here on how to go about doing this but I was too excited and forged ahead. Got a seam-ripper and some matching thread and with some trial and error the buckes were adjusted. They are by no means perfect. I didn't do any real measurements beyond measuring distances btwn the 2 straps to make sure the buckles were aligned correctly... otherwise it was a matter of putting it on, noting where it fit best and going for it.
I should've taken a "before" picture but I didn't think anyone would really want to see that - pleat shots are great but if by the time the timer went off for the picture, the kilt would've been around my ankles! So here are some "after" shots - just threw it on and hoped for the best I know it doesn't look perfectly straight but it is - I think my hands were doing something funny to it:
front
back
side
Cheers!
Noah
PS - I will be posting over in the DIY section - asking for advice on how to stitch up the moth holes without making it pucker.
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