Kilt Newbie, HELP!

[shelia]

I have NEVER purchased a kilt before! I want to buy one for my son and husband for the Gathering at Boone Hall in Sept. Here's my delima. My family is connected to Clans Keith, Craig, Irvine and others. Which tartan do I choose? We have a stronger association with Clan Keith than the others so I'm thinking I should go with that one for my son. My husband on the other hand is of Irish descent. I was thinking I would get him the Firefighter Memorial plaid (being that he's a firefighter lol). Any ideas, suggestions? I want to make sure I do this right! Thank ya'll!

[xman]

Welcome, Shelia.

I'd say that those are all valid options although ... your family may be connected to some Scottish clans, but it might be more proper to clad him in a kilt more to his background. There are plenty of Irish options, Irish National, Irish Diaspora, even some county tartans woven in 13oz medium weight by Marton Mills and House of Edgar if you happen to know from whence his family hails. There's always Saffron and Emerald monochrome for Irish kilts too. Firefighter's would be a great choice. Why not collect a short list and let him decide, then outfit father and son alike. They'll look smashing!

X

[shelia]

Great idea! Thanks!

[Semiomniscient]

Yes, I'll second that you should get a list together and let him choose. He may only ever wear one or two kilts in his life (not everybody on this board has tens of kilts) so it's important that the tartan is one that he likes.

[Maxblade]

You can always do what the "economy" folks do (like me) and check out Stillwater Kilts "thrifty kilt" line, you can get a couple of economy class ones for cheap and to have around, and maybe 1 pricey one (which I am still saving up for). I picked up a great looking MacLaren for cheaper than ones of less quality I had bought elsewhere (Renn Fests).

Just my 2 cents

[ForresterModern]

I would first decide if I was doing this in secret, as a surprise gift, or if I wanted my husband and son to be a part of the process. If the latter, ask them to choose from a selection you and they investigate and think might be appropriate. Makes them a part of the decision and more likely to wear it in the long run.

As mentioned above, scottish tradition is that a man's primary (most say only) clan relationship is to that of the man's last name, which would appear to include your husband and son. If that is not scottish but instead irish, you could go with any of the many irish heritage/etc... or relative irish county tartans, or choose a relevant state tartan, or a generic scottish or scottish regional tartan (Isle of skye, for instance), scottish heritage, scottish-american tartans, or one of the pertinent profession related tartans (firefighter's sounds good). Lots of choices. You could use the clan relationships in your background, especially for your son, but less traditionally for your husband. I would broaden my options until I found one I thought was appropriate but also attractive.

Then the hard part comes---deciding what kind of budget you want to work with, as that is what will determine what level of quality material and build you will end up with. Then shop around for what meets your needs. Remember to leave some extra money for accessories, like a sporran, kilt belt, and a nice set of proper kilt hose (preferably not white).

Good luck with it. Pictures are a must, as the first rule of xmarks is "No pictures, it didn't happen".

jeff

[Colin MacBean]

I'm new like yourself but I had started a similar topic before. Maybe you could check out some of the very useful comments I received

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...-kilt-d-59669/

[shelia]

These are outstanding suggestions and ideas. My thanks to all! I took the advice of making a list and showing my guys all of the tartans. They chose one of Ireland's tartans. I have also decided not to invest an enormous amount of money in my son's kilt as he is only 11 and growing by what seems to be about a foot every week! LOL I think a well made kilt in our clan Keith tartan will make a great personal gift for his high school graduation.

Thank ya'll so much!

Shelia