MacGregor of Cardney pleated to stripe?

**MacGrioghair** · 2nd December 14, 07:00 PM

Hello all! I'm looking in to having a MacGregor of Cardney tartan made into an 8, maybe 6 or even 7 yard kilt depending on your input.

I'm a member of a fire department pipe band and I'd like to be able to wear my own tartan to some of our fundraising events, as some do this on occasion. Naturally, our Montgomery Modern Blue is pleated to the stripe in a heavy 8 yard kilt for the band, so I wanted to get my MacGregor pleated to the stripe as well to better match the other band members.

My question is whether this is a good idea or not with this tartan and if so, what yard would be best. The sett is a little under 6 inches I believe and the white is very bold in comparison to the dark green and red. The boldnest of the white concerns me a tad in an 8 yard because I don't want it to be too busy or white in the back, so I was thinking of making it 6 or 7 to space it out a bit. However I think the Cardney tartan could definitely create a stunning view in swing being pleated to stripe.

This is a close up of the tartan
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And here is it is in the makings of a 4 yard box pleat by fluter
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Any input or advice from the experienced kilt makers here would be greatly appreciated! I can't wait to show it off at the next pub fundraiser.

**davidlpope** · 2nd December 14, 07:12 PM

A 6 yd kilt pleated to the white line would look great. They're very comfortable to wear. All the benefits of of 16oz. fabric, but more comfortable to wear.

**MacGrioghair** · 2nd December 14, 08:13 PM

David I think it would look great in a 6 yard also, but my one concern is appearing similar to my fellow pipers/drummers. Our kilts are 8 yards pleated to the stripe on a sett very similar to the size of this one. Do you think it would look bad to do this MacGregor tartan in an 8 yard for the sake of having the pleats "matching" in width with my band members? I'm leaning towards a traditional 8 yard simply for this reason.

**Micah** · 2nd December 14, 08:45 PM

I understand your desire to pleat to the stripe to match the other members , but to my eye that is one tartan I think would look GREAT pleated to the sett. However, I don't think it would look bad in 8 yards pleated to the stripe.
Just my humble opinion.

**Mike S** · 2nd December 14, 09:19 PM

Great looking tartan. As a fellow MacGregor, I might have to add a kilt made in that tartan as well.

P.S., I like the box pleated version.

**MacGumerait** · 2nd December 14, 11:49 PM

MacGrioghair ,

Very handsome Tartan . I would agree with you on going with the 8 yd kilt . I am also a fan of pleating to a stripe or pleating to the block ( also known as pleating to the " no stripe " )

Your MacGregor of Cardney could be pleated several ways , you wouldn't necessarily have to pleat to the white stripe . It is also possible to pleat to one of the other stripes or pleat to the red block .

Something that you might consider , is a pleating option that would allow the white stripe to be hidden just beneath the edge the pleat . This would allow the white stripe to " flash " as the pleats swish / swing when walking and would prevent the back of the kilt from looking " too white " ( per your concern of pleating to the white stripe , which is a valid concern ) .

Given that you are already familiar with the Montgomery Blue Modern , here is an example of having a " flash " in the pleating of that tartan . A pic of my kilt in the Montgomery Blue Modern , pleated to the block .

Hope this helps to give you a visual of some other pleating options . Regardless of the direction you choose , it will be a great looking kilt as it is a fine looking tartan !

Cheers , Mike

**davidlpope** · 3rd December 14, 01:11 AM

Originally Posted by MacGrioghair

David I think it would look great in a 6 yard also, but my one concern is appearing similar to my fellow pipers/drummers. Our kilts are 8 yards pleated to the stripe on a sett very similar to the size of this one. Do you think it would look bad to do this MacGregor tartan in an 8 yard for the sake of having the pleats "matching" in width with my band members? I'm leaning towards a traditional 8 yard simply for this reason.

I think that the fact that your kilt will be a different tartan from all the other band members will trump every other design element of your kilt. If you want to look like the other band members, wear the band kilt.

That being said, I think this tartan would look great in an 8yd kilt pleated to the stripe or the sett. Since this is going to be a big investment, I would get exactly what you want, and not worry about similarity to the band.

Best of luck,

David

**YOJiMBO20** · 3rd December 14, 09:20 AM

Since the sett is mostly red, why not pleat to the red block with a green flash underneath?

I would say to the green block with a red flash, but it would look weird being mostly green on the back and mostly red on the front.

**MacGrioghair** · 3rd December 14, 12:27 PM

Thanks for all the advice! I think I'll go with an 8 yard, but I'll have to do some serious thinking on whether to pleat to the stripe/block or sett. Many good points here. YOJiMBO20, you may be right about two different colors on the front and back. My pipe band's kilt has this issue. It's mainly blue on the front apron, but it's pleated to the double red stripes on the back which gives it a blue vs. red appearance when standing still.

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**Tarheel** · 3rd December 14, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by YOJiMBO20

Since the sett is mostly red, why not pleat to the red block with a green flash underneath?

I like this idea. There will be a reciprocal quality in the Macgregor next to the Montgomery if pleated to the stripe, (exception being the bold white stripe). Consider it an inversion of the mood-tone, as explained by Johann Goethe in his 1810 work, "Theory of Colors".