Buying new kilt

[craigclan]

I am planning on having a kilt made and was looking at the burnetts and struth website at the 4 yard kilt. Has anyone purchased one of these. Is it worth it ? Any other recommendations ? I want a kilt in my tartan but want a good knock about kilt

[derosa]

From what I have heard the cheaper made wool kilts can lack some of the internal support they need for long term durability but you can always add that if you want it to hold its overall look better. But a well constructed wool kilt will last, I wear my one fairly regularly and although it has a small spot fraying on one corner of the apron it is now on 7 years old and gets decent use; I wear it hiking in the woods and have gone snow shoeing with it several times. I also use the hand wash cycle on the washing machine rather then actually hand washing it. If kilts weren't reasonably durable I doubt they'd have lasted as long as they do.

[McMurdo]

I have one of their 5 yard casual kilts, it was worth the money I paid.

[ShaunMaxwell]

I bought one of their 5-yard kilts several years ago, and it's worth what I paid, though it's my least favorite kilt (I'm not a big fan of the top stitching - where the seams on the fell are visible). Not sure if their site is the same way it used to be, but make sure you take into account the rise (I think the default was 2") when ordering yours. I know of a couple of folks who missed that and ended up with a kilt 2" too long!

[craigclan]

Maybe i'll swing up next week and order one . Gives me a reason for a road trip

[javankrona]

I have one of their 5 yard casual kilts, it was worth the money I paid.

May I inquire as to where you obtained your belt? Particularly the buckle. I have been search for a round buckled belt of that style, but have only been able to find the 3" variety which is really too big. I'd rather one that fits a traditional kilt belt width of 2.25" or 1.5" ... thus far, not an easy find.

Thanks and slàinte.

[McMurdo]

I made the belt with a belt blank from Tandy Leather the buckle was from there as well.

[Benning Boy]

I bought three B&S casual kilts of the kind asked about. That was back in the spring of 2014. I like them very much, although I've out grown them a bit. They cost much less then, but maybe the current exchange rate might have something to do with it. I havent checked. At the price I paid for them, I don't remember the exact amount, but think it was around $150 Real Dollars. That was a very fair price. What they are asking now is high in my opinion. They become even more expensive if you go with a five-yard variation, which is the best version, again in my opinion.

The B&S casual kilts are linded with a thin fabric, but not constructed like more expensive kilts, such as you might get from the Wizard or Barb Tewksbury. That may not be a big deal as up until fairly modern times all kilts would have been less tailored. I recall Figheadair mentioning one of his favorite kilts is an older unstructured four-yarder. I'm looking forward to getting my weight back down to where I can wear my B&S casuals again. Soon I think.

When I was in a hurry for a kilt in Dalryple tartan I bought one of these. (I have 13 yards of bespoke 16oz woolDalrymple on the shelf, but I wanted the kilt pronto.)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dalrymple-5-...-/400944696576

More yardage than a B&S, but similarly constructed, and at a lesser price. Good deal.

I ordered mine through here.

https://www.kilts4less.com/

Clan Alba on eBay is just another name the do business through. Generally they've gotten decent reviews here. I certainly got my money's worth. Shipping from Scotland was faster than a B&S from Canada, almost like Jimmy John's.

Another place to consider is this.

https://www.jhiggins.net/

They have a good reputation also, and I think you can get a kilt comparable to B&S casual for less money in Real Dollars.

There's no better first kilt for the money than a USAKilts casual. You can probably buy two or three for what you might spend on the other kilts mentioned. After a couple of false starts (SportKilts and other phoney baloney skirts) I made one of the best choices in my kilted life I went ahaed and bought a USA casual as my second or third first choice. Wish I had done it sooner.

Don't overlook Stillwater Kilts. Essentially the same kilts can be had from here.

http://www.midwestkilts.com/KILTS-economy.html

I think they have tartans Stillwater doesn't have. I have kilts from both and they are made exactly the same, I bought from both because I liked a particular tartan, but didn't want to spend a lot of money to get them. I'd say 99% of people checking out a kiltoid have no idea about quality, fabrics or cost of a kilt, and going with what you can afford is a pretty good option. I've never run into another kilter but once, at a scenic overlook along an interstate highway in Eastern Oregon, and he was wearing a black Utilikilt, I was wearing an El Kommando at the time. Given time we would have bonded like brothers as we each thought the other was wearing a cool kilt. Nary a tartan came between us.

[OC Richard]

I made the belt with a belt blank from Tandy Leather the buckle was from there as well.

Very cool! I didn't know there were Tandy Leather shops in Canada. (Well there's the online shop.)

Is it one of these?

https://www.tandyleather.com/en/prod...er-bar-buckles

Offtopic, but I made this belt from a belt blank, using an 18th century style brass buckle (stamped "England" on the back) which I bought in the deep Highlands of West Virginia in the 1970s.

[McMurdo]

We do have Tandy stores here in Canada, the one that was near my sister's house where I bought the blank and buckle has since become something else but it was great when it was there. That was not the buckle I used a round buckle.