Black Watch to the Stripe - X Marks the Scot

Mark Keeney · #1 09-09-2009, 09:52 AM

I have some Black Watch tartan I want to make into a kilt. I am not sure how I want it pleated. I think I want it pleated to the stripe but I don't know which stripe.

Although I don't subscribe to the "thats the way it has always been" as what I had to do. What is the most common stripe for pleating? I would also like to know what your preferences are. Is there a stripe you wouldn't like.

Do you have pictures?

Thanks

sydnie7 · #2 09-09-2009, 11:14 AM

If you have the tartan in hand, the best way to answer this question for yourself is to roughly pin up a couple of alternative pleating patterns, then stand across the room from them and see which you like best. Here are two examples from my own BW experience:

And the finished product, using the first scheme

There are two threads discussing this project:
here, preliminary

and here, from soup to nuts STS.

Hope this helps! Good luck, and have fun!

English Bloke · #3 09-09-2009, 11:28 AM

I think stripe pleating works beautifully but not in the case of Black Watch. effective stripe pleating needs great contrast in the vertical stripe to overcome the inevitable horizontal banding effect on the the back of the kilt. As you know BW a very dark tartan and doesn't have this contrast so I think to sett would be best.

Have a look at this picture above. It's a 13oz wool, pleated to sett and shows good contrast between the vertical and horizontal when pleated this way. The vertical stripes are wider in width and more widely spaced but show the contrast well. If you were to pleat this to stripe I would think the best option for contrast would be to go for the dark thin vertical in the lighter green. Now look at the picture again and imagine it pleated that way and I think it would emphasise the Green/Black/Blue horizontals too much, effectively removing the vertical stripe from view.

Compare with this picture of a Johnstone 13oz wool where it is pleated to gold stripe. The banding effect, of the darker horizontals, although visable, has been minimised by the contrasting verticals working with the three gold horizontals so emphasising the vertical stripes, which is the whole point.

Just my opinion but I think, with a tartan that does not have much contrast? Go for sett pleating.

sydnie7 · #4 09-09-2009, 12:02 PM

If you have a true Black Watch and want to pleat to sett, be sure to review all of Barb T's comments on the topic. . . there are some important details regarding that tartan in particular.

St. Amish · #5 09-09-2009, 05:05 PM

I personally prefer military pleating with most tartans.

Especially with a tartan as common and widely worn as Blackwatch.

IMHO, pleating options are the only thing that make your kilt stand out in the field. Pleating to the red stripe versus the green makes a huge difference.

I spoke to a couple different kilt makers who told me that it is impossible to pleat my Stewart Hunting to stripe before I found the maker who ended up making my kilt. I am quite pleased with the result. My common tartan has an uncommon look on my custom kilt.

I like the first example you've shown. The vertical stripe breaks up the horizontal quite nicely.