Fabric for #1

[Kilted Taper]

Not sure this is the right place (maybe a second Kiltmakers forum for those brave enough to make their own is in order??)...

But I'm thinking of tackling the attempt to make a traditional kilt with the help of Barb's book. I don't want to spend a few hundred $$$'s on a nice tartan wool only to screw it up. What have other's used for their first?

[Colin]

From what I have read here from Barb and from others, it is probably best to work with wool first and foremeost if, in the end, you will be working towards a traditional wool kilt. From my understanding some of the materials can be quite different. So while working with a Poly/viscose or a poly/wool to start sounds good, would it not be better to work with wool from the start?

I too am setting everything up to start my first home made kilt (just waiting for my friend to send the measurements).

Have a look at Fraser and Kirkbrights remnat section http://www.wooltartans.com/tartans5.htm
and their US site http://www.thescottishweaver.com/
You can find some good deals on remnats to play with. I believe both sites update their lists monthly.

[Alan H]

I got 5 yards of 60-inch wool tartan off of ebay for about $35.

Search ebay for "wool tartan", make sure that the stuff is 60 inches wide, and get 3-4 yards of something that appeals to you. Don't rush it, new stuff comes up all the time. You can also get a wool blend, and that might cost a little bit less.

Alternatively visit Fraser and Kirkbright and buy some of their remnants, or the Scottish Weaver (F&K's USA distributor) and get some of their remnants.

[way2fractious]

...I'm thinking of tackling the attempt to make a traditional kilt with the help of Barb's book. I don't want to spend a few hundred $$$'s on a nice tartan wool only to screw it up. What have other's used for their first?

It's true that the materials other than wool handle completely differently. However, if your main aim is to figure out the geometry (deep pleat, knife pleats, inverted pleat, darts, tapers, flares, etc.), then any fabric will do, and there are lots of plaids to play with. My humble suggestion is to find a piece of plaid cotton or poly and spend a few hours measuring it, sloppily stitching it together as you figure out the pleating and the various directions the fabric is folded. Just make sure the repeat is about 4-6 inches. Even if it's not wearable when you finish, the steep part of the learning curve won't break the bank. (There are a few of us that still have some partials and some complete failures laying around.) Perhaps you could view it as a rough pencil sketch of an eventual masterpiece!

Good luck. Holler with questions. If you need to shed a tear or two... get a Kleenex and tell us about it later.

[starbkjrus]

Not sure this is the right place (maybe a second Kiltmakers forum for those brave enough to make their own is in order??)...

But I'm thinking of tackling the attempt to make a traditional kilt with the help of Barb's book. I don't want to spend a few hundred $$$'s on a nice tartan wool only to screw it up. What have other's used for their first?

Hmmmmm. What I used for my first was..............a good kiltmaker

Sorry, couldn't resist. I'm in awe of anyone who attempts (for better or worse) to make their own kilt. I just can't imagine all that effort spent just for me to screw it up. After all it's only money. :rolleyes:

[The Wizard of BC]

Use Wool. You don't have to spend a great deal but only Wool will be capable of the skewing done in a traditional. In the apron tapers you will mold and force the fabric to take a curved shape and only wool is capable of doing that.

If you need to practice laying out the pleats and folds, buy a roll of butcher paper or brown wrapping paper. Lay out everything with a ball-point pen and fold on the scored lines.