Kilt pin vs. broach

[OC Richard]

In terms of shape & style, this is my favourite, but it would never do for a broach as it is far too small - about 2"

Lovely, Father! I would love that as a cap-badge, 2" is perfect for the Glengarry.

My kilt pin, whenever I do wear one, is likewise a Celtic cross. I had this made for me in the 1980s, the firm (Ortak?) offered it only as a pendant and I inquired about having one made with a pin back. I've cherished it ever since, though I rarely wear a kilt pin. I tend to wear it when piping for church services.

[MichiganKyle]

IMG_20200828_1015176 - Edited Small.jpg

This is the one I'm currently wearing today on my Holyrood kilt. Got it from J. Higgins:

https://www.jhiggins.net/kp54p-kilt-pin/

[Father Bill]

Lovely, Father! I would love that as a cap-badge, 2" is perfect for the Glengarry.

My kilt pin, whenever I do wear one, is likewise a Celtic cross. I had this made for me in the 1980s, the firm (Ortak?) offered it only as a pendant and I inquired about having one made with a pin back. I've cherished it ever since, though I rarely wear a kilt pin. I tend to wear it when piping for church services.

Beautiful, Richard. I can certainly admire that!

[Father Bill]

This is the one I'm currently wearing today on my Holyrood kilt. Got it from J. Higgins:

https://www.jhiggins.net/kp54p-kilt-pin/

That's exactly what I have on my Sinclair Hunting Tartan kilt. Got it in St. Andrew's.

[Father Bill]

Oh goodness, no. I wasn't thinking something of that size, merely the same proportions.

I tend to wear my kilt pins at a similar height to your Boghall & Bathgate picture, but nearer to the outer edge of the front apron. It does tend to catch on things more (quite frequently on my headphone cable at work), but it also does serve the stated functional purpose of keeping the outer edge of the apron from blowing in the wind too much. To the point where I've been out and about and noticed the outer apron flapping in the wind more than I'm used to before realizing that I forgot to put the kilt pin on after washing.

Strongly, strongly recommend higher up and a bit further in, lest you end up catching it and ripping your tartan. Even if the outer apron blows straight up, the inner apron will preserve your dignity and modesty. I won't say 'never' but I'm quite sure that it would be the best description of both of them opening.

Don't forget that a pin is merely decorative bling and is in no way part of the functioning of a properly worn kilt.

[MichiganKyle]

Strongly, strongly recommend higher up and a bit further in, lest you end up catching it and ripping your tartan. Even if the outer apron blows straight up, the inner apron will preserve your dignity and modesty. I won't say 'never' but I'm quite sure that it would be the best description of both of them opening.

Don't forget that a pin is merely decorative bling and is in no way part of the functioning of a properly worn kilt.

I respect your opinion and appreciate the guidance, but I rather like them a little lower. I know this is a hotly-debated topic, but I think this may also be partially due to the difference between wool and synthetic kilts. I can't wear wool, which means all of my kilts are of the synthetic casual type. None of them have liners, none of them are particularly heavy weight fabrics, and none of them are particularly expensive. None of them are heirloom-quality kilts and I have no doubt I will end up wearing all of them out eventually. That said, I've found that for me, a kilt pin is both decorative (I get quite a few compliments on the pins, actually) as well as practical and functional in the position it's in. On my lighter weight Sport Kilts it's absolutely essential to keep the outer apron from folding up in the slightest breeze - without it, the outer apron would be completely disheveled nearly any time I'm outside. Additionally, I wear my kilts as regular clothing, and while the underapron does do a good job of preserving modesty, I tend to prefer that my outer apron mostly stays put. I'm a fairly modest person and don't really want to trigger the kinds of thoughts I imagine that might cause in folks uninformed of how a kilt is constructed, seeing a kilt flapping around like that, especially in the front.

My kilts are also all hemmed instead of fringed, which means if I can place the pin near the outer edge of the front apron (within the hem area, which on most of mine is about 1.5-2" wide), I can stick the pin through two layers of fabric, reducing the stresses on either of them. I've actually considered whether it would work well to instead stick a weight in the hemmed corner behind the front surface of the outer apron, which would serve the same functional purpose. Potentially using a magnet with magnetic kilt pins. But then again, that has the potential to cause me a few problems at work, since I deal with servers which still use magnetic storage media.

You are correct in that they will probably end up catching on something eventually and ripping the tartan. But the things I tend to catch my kilt pins on (wiring, typically) would snag no matter whether I wore the kilt pin high or low. So it would come down to not wearing a kilt pin at all if I really wanted to protect the tartan. For me, it's worth the risk to the tartan for the functional and fashionable aspects of wearing a kilt pin. I've had the same problem for years with wearing pocket watches, and I came to the same conclusion with them. And by the time I do rip the tartan on one, it will likely be time to replace the kilt due to wear anyway.

Again, I appreciate the guidance and respect your opinion on the subject. For a more formal kilt, it would make much more of a difference. I've just found that this works very well for me.

[imrichmond]

Originally posted by OCRichard:

As best I can tell, our modern traditional kilt pins, usually sword-based, sometimes a dirk or axe

Just as a matter of interest, I am currently battling Facebook over my posting of a couple of sword-shaped kilt pins and one in the shape of a firefighter axe. Facebook has banned them for contravening its policy on the promotion and use of weapons and explosives. Coincidentally, my posting of a set of Gibson Fireside smallpipes was initially banned for violating no less than two policies: the one on the promotion and use of weapons and explosives (I couldn't quite figure the reasoning on that one!) plus their policy on the use and promotion of tobacco (presumably confusion over the meaning of "pipes"). I got that ban reversed on appeal. I'm still appealing the others on the grounds that these are traditional designs and, in any case, are pins/brooches no more than 3" long. Such is life when regulated by computer bots and algorithms.

[OC Richard]

I am currently battling Facebook over my posting of a couple of sword-shaped kilt pins and one in the shape of a firefighter axe. Facebook has banned them for contravening its policy on the promotion and use of weapons and explosives. Coincidentally, my posting of a set of Gibson Fireside smallpipes was initially banned for violating no less than two policies: the one on the promotion and use of weapons and explosives (I couldn't quite figure the reasoning on that one!) plus their policy on the use and promotion of tobacco (presumably confusion over the meaning of "pipes").

Wow that's crazy.

I know years ago when I went to get a vanity license plate I discovered that "pipe" "piper" etc were all banned due to being "drug related". (California has gone back and forth over the years on these terms so you will see California plates with them.)

One of the many strange things with Facebook is that when I was starting a post describing what weapon a TV character carried Facebook automatically launched me into a template designed for people listing guns for sale. I tried wording my post in several different ways but no matter, to Facebook I was listing a gun for sale, and I had to give up.

[OC Richard]

Beautiful, Richard. I can certainly admire that!

Thanks!

I couldn't find a single photo of me wearing it. It's a bit on the small side for a kilt pin, and delicate-looking. It's wonderfully lightweight.

About my not wearing kilt pins in general, I've mentioned before that as a piper kilt pins pose a danger to your kilt, due to sometimes having to shove your way through a crowded banquet room while both hands are engaged playing the pipes. A kilt pin is going to catch on something sooner or later.

I made mention of clan crest do-dads being popular in Victorian times, then falling out of favour.

We see so many clan kilt pins nowadays it's a bit refreshing to go back when they weren't popular.

Here, in 1936, not many offerings in the way of kilt pins.



This 1978 catalogue has a wonderful selection, most by Robert Allison (est 1938). You can see that RA did make clan crest kilt pins, but they very rarely show up, indicating that they were among RA's least popular kilt pins. You see hundreds of plain swords or the swords with the targe, lion, or ship for every clan one.



The turning of the clan crest kilt pin tide: a catalogue from the 1980s, and what we see in the lower left is the new breed of clan kilt pins, being churned out in their thousands by Art Pewter Silver (1968) and Carrick (1971). The traditional Robert Allison designs still predominate, but this changed at around that time (they wound up in 1982).

[Tomo]

Originally posted by OCRichard:


Just as a matter of interest, I am currently battling Facebook over my posting of a couple of sword-shaped kilt pins...

How strange, I follow at least 3 sgian makers on Facebook (Macnab Knives, Aspect 6 and Antler Sgian Dubhs) who all regularly post pictures of their work...