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  1. #11
    Join Date
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    There are posts on the site from the forum owner Steve Ashton, aka The Wizard of BC in his former working persona, with pictures showing the differences in the various waist configurations. I suggest looking for one of those posts. (He may chime in here with those photos.)

    One caveat about using the bellybutton/navel as a reference point, which Steve also notes. Yes, everyone has one in about the same location, but they're not all located exactly the same vertical distance from the horizontal line formed by the hip bones. Some of us 'gifted' with a larger waistline than others have their navels a little lower or even drooping down over that line, so the "two inches above your navel" 'rule' doesn't quite work.

    FWIW (for what it's worth), I think your photo of you in the towel would work for a casual kilt.
    John

  2. #12
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    14th December 22
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    Quote Originally Posted by EagleJCS View Post
    There are posts on the site from the forum owner Steve Ashton, aka The Wizard of BC in his former working persona, with pictures showing the differences in the various waist configurations. I suggest looking for one of those posts. (He may chime in here with those photos.)
    Steve already posted one such photo in this thread and I have seen another, older post from him showing the same thing from a frontal perspective but I can't seem to find that one right now, I may have closed that tab accidentally.

    Quote Originally Posted by EagleJCS View Post
    One caveat about using the bellybutton/navel as a reference point, which Steve also notes. Yes, everyone has one in about the same location, but they're not all located exactly the same vertical distance from the horizontal line formed by the hip bones. Some of us 'gifted' with a larger waistline than others have their navels a little lower or even drooping down over that line, so the "two inches above your navel" 'rule' doesn't quite work.
    Steve already mentioned that in this thread so I'm aware of the issue. For the picture I posted I simply went for 'at navel height' because I think it strikes a good balance between being at the widest part of my belly (which I think is actually halve an inch above my belly button) and having enough room between the top of the kilt and my neck for my taste. But maybe I should move it up that halve inch.

    Quote Originally Posted by EagleJCS View Post
    FWIW (for what it's worth), I think your photo of you in the towel would work for a casual kilt.
    That's very helpful to know, thanks!
    Last edited by Scottish Rock; 19th December 22 at 07:19 AM. Reason: typo

  3. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scottish Rock View Post
    Steve already posted one such photo in this thread and I have seen another, older post from him showing the same thing from a frontal perspective but I can't seem to find that one right now, I may have closed that tab accidentally.
    Doh! I should have read through the thread more thoroughly.
    John

  4. #14
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    14th December 22
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    Quote Originally Posted by EagleJCS View Post
    Doh! I should have read through the thread more thoroughly.
    I'm just happy you took the time to reply

  5. #15
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    If I can mention the towel photos a bit. If you put the towel on and tuck it just as you would coming out of the shower. Let the towel find its best place to sit on your body.

    If your towel moves after bending and sitting then it is trying to find a place where it wants to naturally fit.
    Steve Ashton
    Forum Owner

  6. The Following User Says 'Aye' to Steve Ashton For This Useful Post:


  7. #16
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    27th March 22
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    So much to sort through!

    It is a bit overwhelming when you first get into wearing a kilt...lots of terminology!
    As you are in the Netherlands, are there any kiltmakers close by?
    Lady Crystal is in France and does some rather nice work...
    Of course a nice little short holiday in Scotland for Hogmany would be the perfect excuse to visit a local shop and even just rent a kilt for a day or 2.... The folks will measure you, advise you, and probably give some good pointers as to what fits your body the best.

    The cloth above the buckles does not sag, there is an interfacing under the cotton liner.

    Buying a kilt can be a significant expense, but get a good fit (feels wonderful) and you will know exactly what to ask for on your next 3 or 5 kilts....

    But seriously, you are doing a good job of asking very important questions, and getting help from some really good experts!

    Kilts are quite comfy and addictive!

  8. #17
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    14th December 22
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Ashton View Post
    If I can mention the towel photos a bit. If you put the towel on and tuck it just as you would coming out of the shower. Let the towel find its best place to sit on your body.

    If your towel moves after bending and sitting then it is trying to find a place where it wants to naturally fit.
    That's an interesting idea. But wouldn't it be true that the place where the top of the towel ends up will correspond to the strap on the actual kilt, not the top of the kilt?

    Also, in the case of a kilt with 3 straps, would the top of the towel not correspond to the bottommost strap on the kilt (unless you leave that bottom strap very loose of course in which case the top of the towel would correspond to the topmost strap again)?

    Just trying to get as deep an understanding as possible. I'm an engineer so...


  9. #18
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    14th December 22
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kitfoxdave View Post
    As you are in the Netherlands, are there any kiltmakers close by?
    Yes, I'm from the Netherlands. No idea if there are any good kiltmakers around here.

    It would be nice to be able to visit a kiltmaker in person, I'm sure it would be very educational and possibly the most certain route to a properly fitting and good looking kilt, if they know what they are doing. At least with some of the reputable online shops I know I'm dealling with people who do.

    Quote Originally Posted by Kitfoxdave View Post
    Of course a nice little short holiday in Scotland for Hogmany would be the perfect excuse to visit a local shop and even just rent a kilt for a day or 2.... The folks will measure you, advise you, and probably give some good pointers as to what fits your body the best.
    Apart from all the expense and trouble involved, I'd like to keep this a surprise to me wife. Just a few days ago she mentioned again, without any clear trigger, that she'd love to see me wear a kilt and she's been saying that for years. So not really an option.

    Even a longish drive to a 'nearby' kiltmaker might require some explanation so online is probably still the best option for me.

    Quote Originally Posted by Kitfoxdave View Post
    Buying a kilt can be a significant expense, but get a good fit (feels wonderful) and you will know exactly what to ask for on your next 3 or 5 kilts....
    I'm kinda hoping to get it right the first time, but I think you probably just meant I might want to get more after the first one. I don't know about that but who knows.

    Quote Originally Posted by Kitfoxdave View Post
    But seriously, you are doing a good job of asking very important questions, and getting help from some really good experts!
    Thanks for the kind words. As I mentioned to Steve in my previous reply to him, I'm an engineer and basically trying to science the s**t out of this, like I always do .

  10. #19
    Join Date
    27th March 22
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    Avoiding the "slip"

    If you do find that the kilt slips on your body, you can get a strip put in by a seamstress or tailor that has a small strip of rubber that helps to avoid the garment from sliding down... some of my older "Docker" pants came this way.

    For comfort while sitting, keep in mind the kilt belt is wider than what you are used to wearing, and can be uncomfortable with a lower waist. No issue at the traditional kilt waist location... having been a Aerospace (structural analysis) engineer for too many years... comfort while sitting is quite important.

    The wider belt also helps with posture, one tends to sit up straighter and stand straighter as well.

    And yes, I do wear a kilt to work at least once a week... after 6 months your colleagues get used to it! A reminder to the folks in the guard shack that it is indeed Friday!

    Try not to over think the choices too much. I KNOW it is in our nature as engineers....

  11. #20
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    18th October 09
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    It's not only how the kilt feels on you, it's also how the kilt, waistcoat, and jacket form an integrated system.

    As customers, especially here in the USA (many of whom don't have a grounding either in Highland Dress or in traditional men's suits) ask their kiltmaker to make their kilt shorter and shorter, the waistcoat and jacket (which are in fact properly made) now appear too short, and there's a knock-on effect of customers wanting longer and longer waistcoats and jackets.

    Most Pipe Bands around here wear waistcoats from J Higgins, who offer them in a number of lengths. The longest are absurdly long and wouldn't have existed either with trousers or with kilts at any prior time. (Waistcoats and jackets, using traditional sizing, already get longer as the chest gets bigger, so I'm talking too long proportionally.)

    What's happing is that the "waist" of the overall system has been moving downward, spoiling the traditional profile of men's clothing.

    The answer, if one wishes to wear ordinary traditional jackets and waistcoats (rather than the distended new ones) one needs to likewise wear the kilt at the corresponding traditional height.

    Here's an example from my closet. You can see the height of the kilt, and how there's no gap between the kilt and any traditional/ordinary Highland Dress waistcoat. Still today most UK-made Highland Dress waistcoats are made in the shorter length that all waistcoats for suits, trousers, and kilts were made until fairly recently.

    Last edited by OC Richard; 20th December 22 at 04:49 AM.
    Proud Mountaineer from the Highlands of West Virginia; son of the Revolution and Civil War; first Europeans on the Guyandotte

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