12 oz Merino Wool Tartan?

[Hawk]

I have a kilt made from Fraser and Kirkbright "Clan Claus" tartan. As Bonnie suggests, my kilt maker used a bottom hem to add some weight. It is a very comfortable kilt. It is 8 yds+ but does feel much lighter. It holds its pleats well and is one of my most comfortable kilts. I wore it today to an Xmas brunch.
Slainte

Liam, do you have any photos from today at the brunch? It would be great to see that in use.....

Bonnie, what tartan is the dark blue one, it looks so very comfortable?

Hawk

[Liam]

Hawk... here it is:

[bonnie heather]

The blue tartan, which is darker than the photo, is the Department of Homeland Security. I think it's very handsome, but I'm assuming it's a restricted tartan.

[Mike_Oettle]

My second kilt, in 14oz Botswana tartan, was woven in South Africa using Merino wool.
It is very comfortable, but since my only other current kilt is in polyviscose, I cannot compare it with other woollen kilts.
My army kilt was heavyweight wool, but I last wore it about three decades back before handing it back.

The Merino sheep breed originated in Spain. Carlos IV, King of Spain, made a gift of a Merino flock to Willem V, Prince of Orange.
At the time a personal friend of Willem’s, Colonel Robert Jacob Gordon, was commander at the Cape of the army of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (Dutch East India Company), and Willem decided to pass the sheep on to him.
Gordon was of Scottish descent and his father, Major-General Jacob Gordon, had commanded the Scots Brigade of the Dutch Republic. Although he was technically Dutch, rather than Scottish, he was commissioned in the Scots Brigade, members of which were normally required to be of Scottish birth and pure Scottish parentage.
When Carlos came to hear of this, he demanded the return of the sheep, but it was too late.
British forces, bearing a letter from Prince Willem, had landed at the Cape, and on the strength of the letter Gordon surrendered the colony to Great Britain in August 1795.
While Gordon himself and a number of Dutch officials at the Cape were loyal to the House of Orange, most of the population was republican (they called themselves Patriots) and supported the French revolutionary takeover of the Netherlands. They were bitter against Gordon, and several of them made personal threats to him.
He found it too much, and late in October he committed suicide.
His estate, including the flock of sheep, was put up for auction. Most of the purchasers of sheep were ships’ captains bound for Australia. Fortunately enough were left at the Cape to provide a nucleus for what was to become a major industry.
Both Australia and South Africa produce Merino wool of high quality.
South Africa also produces a large quantity of mohair (most of South Africa’s Angora goat herds are in the Eastern Cape).
Regards,
Mike

[DyerStraits]

A well-tailored kilt from Merino wool sounds like a wonderful idea. Although my favorite "woolen" fiber is cashmere, Merino wool has an excellent "hand" and is a close second in terms of softness and has more tensile strength, arguably superior in both regards to lambswool. One of the first cycling jersies I ever owned (by ProTogs) was in Merino wool, and it was a truly excellent performance garment. Like cashmere, it does have more "loft" and like other high loft fibers, e.g. Angora, has a lightweight feel, which is not necessarily a bad thing since that likely would enhance its breathability and "drape", which in turn would make it a good choice for a good kilt with good "swing".

[Machaggisnz]

In the 18th century the standard fleece used for tartan came from the Scottish Dunface but that was 'improved' (effectively bred out of existance) in the 1800s. Today a good worsted cloth will be woven from a Crossbred yarn but don't ask me what the cross sources are as I haven't the faintest idea. It might surprise some to learn that most yarn for tartan is actually imported, often from New Zealand.

Crossbred wools in New Zealand will come from a lot of breeds such as Romney, Border Leicester, Suffolk, Corriedale etc. mostly British breeds that we've tried to optimise. They're selling for about US$ 2 per pound at the moment whereas mid grade merino is fetching US$10 per pound. That said there's no limit to the price for super premium merino. My dads cousin farms merino and his best effort was a part bale of wool which was enough to make about 40 men's suits which sold to an Italian firm for a shade under US$ 800 per pound. I shudder to think what a 20 oz 8 yard kilt would set you back.