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Originally Posted by Jock Scot

Indeed they do.The tartan of the Atholl Highlanders are a prime example of this. I seem to recall that the last time I saw them parade, there were at least four very different shades of their tartan to be seen being very proudly worn by all ranks.

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Ah yes, but they are a bit older, c.1840 to be precise. I doubt much modern tartan will still look so good after nearly 200 years of use.

When I started making kilts I used pretty much any fabric I had that was not too skimpit, and then wore the result out in sun, sand, wind and rain, a couple of snowstorms and a dunking or two in the sea.

It was not long before the effects of such treatment began to impact on the dyes - things with blue being particularly prone to fading. After encounters with the local heathland vegetation on top of that, several kilts have been stripped for parts and discarded or dyed darker, or even recycled as lining material.

Anne the Pleater

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Originally Posted by figheadair

Ah yes, but they are a bit older, c.1840 to be precise. I doubt much modern tartan will still look so good after nearly 200 years of use.

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They were in the NYC Tartan Day Parade. I didn't notice at the moment (too wrapped up in the marvelous sound and their stern countenances), but when I look at my video the shadings of their kilts are obviously a spectrum. Is that fading of the dyes, or a reflection of differing dye lots for garments produced at different times? Are some of those GARMENTS almost 200 years old?

And, I can't help but observe that many in the rifles corps (two separate ranks, for reasons I don't know) that followed the pipers and drummers, the faces of the marchers showed various degrees of weathering as well. Some of them may have been almost as old as ***I*** but the radiating pride they had in their service was stirring.

I can post my brief iPhone video if anyone is interested.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

I marched right behind with the Murray of Atholl North America contingent and there were shades of difference in their kilts. This was particularly noticeable in their flies. The explanation I got was that many were quite old and had faded over time. I will find and post a picture of me taken standing right next to them which may give a sense of the differences. They were still quite impressive.