13 oz kilts

[Nathan]

So I recently picked up this 13oz MacDonald of Clanranald modern kilt online for a fantastic price. Although I already have a 16oz kilt in the same tartan, this one is clearly from another mill. I like that the centre line chosen on the apron is different from my other kilt.

This kilt was originally sold by Kirk Wynd out of Kirkcaldy and St. Andrew but I can't identify the mill. The thread count and pigment differ from my Locharron strome, certainly.

New kilt front


New kilt back


inside




New kilt sett close up for the resident experts


The new kilt is the one on the right, without the kilt pin. The lamp was to the left so the colours aren't as dark as they appear in the photo.



both are obviously pleated to the sett.


Aside from wanting to share my latest acquisition with the Rabble, I wanted to know a few things.

This is my first 13 oz kilt. I'm assuming this is an 8 yard kilt but I don't know for certain. Would I take a tape measure and open each pleat to find out or is their an easier way?

This kilt is very light and very comfortable. Should I be worried about a Marilyn Monroe type incident with a kilt this light? It's so different from what I'm used to.

I understand that the weight of the wool is personal preference and that this is a traditional kilt that is as appropriate for formal occasions as my 16oz. Am I correct?

Does anyone want to venture a guess at the mill?

[Nathan]

Upon reflection, perhaps I should have posted this to "The Tartan Place" sub-forum. Hopefully it's ok here, but if not, apologies to the moderators.

[RockyR]

What is the sett size of the new one in 13 oz?

[Nathan]

What is the sett size of the new one in 13 oz?

Good question Rocky! Is that not clear from the photos? If not, how would I determine that exactly? I wear these things, but I don't make them like my brother or yourself so please excuse my ignorance.

[chasem]

Sett size is hard to judge in pictures. Simply use a ruler or tape measure to measure from one line on the tartan to the next repeat of the same line (for example, center of the blue block to the next center of a blue block on that MacDonald tartan).

On tartans with similar but different blocks (black watch based tartans, for example), one must make sure to go a full repeat of the tartan, rather than just "the next line of that color." Or on your MacDonald - start with a white line and skip one when measuring so that you measure from the first to the third white line.

If that second paragraph's wording causes confusion, ignore it and just follow the instructions in the first paragraph

[Nathan]

If I understood the instructions correctly, the 13 oz is 7.25" and the 16 oz is 7.5".

edit:
I did take the tape out and measure along the bottom of the kilt from the fringe all the way along to the under apron including the bit that's folded over and sewn. My measurements came out to 6 yards and change. I've never heard of a six yard knife pleat kilt. Is this considered an 8 yarder even if there was some left over due to waist size?

[Downunder Kilt]

I don't know about in years gone past in relation to 6 yard knife pleated kilts, but I currently have one on order from Matt Newsome.

[OC Richard]

Many kiltmakers will make you a kilt from 8, 7, or 6 yards depending on your preference. The kilts will be made the same, but as the yardage decreases the number of pleats likewise decreases, but the width of each pleat increases (assuming the kilts are all pleated in the same manner, for example all pleated to the sett).

This isn't new: a vintage catalogue from a leading Scottish maker from the 1930s offers kilts in 6, 7, or 8 yards.

I was impressed by the comfort of a band kilt I was issued once. It was 16oz tartan and had a nice heft but the pleats were fewer and wider and when I measured it I found it contained around 6 1/2 yards of fabric. Therefore there was less weight in the rear of the kilt and it seemed to me that the kilt was more balanced and comfortable.

In the two kilts I have had made since, a 13oz and a 16oz, I have specified 6 to 7 yards. I really like the way these kilts feel and fit.

I usually wear the 16oz because I prefer the weight and feel of the fabric. When I first put on the 13oz, after not wearing it for months, it feels so thin and flimsy. Hard to remember that I once wore 13oz kilts regularly.

What a change recently, when I got an 8-yard 18oz kilt! That thing is heavy.

[plaid preacher]

If I understood the instructions correctly, the 13 oz is 7.25" and the 16 oz is 7.5".

edit:
I did take the tape out and measure along the bottom of the kilt from the fringe all the way along to the under apron including the bit that's folded over and sewn. My measurements came out to 6 yards and change. I've never heard of a six yard knife pleat kilt. Is this considered an 8 yarder even if there was some left over due to waist size?

The amount of material is influenced by your measurements, the size of the sett, and the number of pleats. You look like a thin fellow, as I used to be many years ago; and as Richard rightly noted, it appears that the pleats on your kilt are maybe just a little wider (about 1") as opposed to 3/4", and that there are somewhere around 20 pleats (just few under what is often considered a traditional kilt). But I would suggest no one would ever notice, including many of us here, unless, of course, you point it out. Traditional is more about the number of pleats than the actual amount of fabric because of the aforementioned factors. (At least that's what I picked up reading Barb's wonderful book on kiltmaking.)

[Spartan Tartan]

13oz is perfectly appropriate for any occassion if constructed in a traditional manner. You will notice the difference in weight, but that is nothing that is visible to others...so the weight of the material would not be readily spotted to a casual observer.

In short, your new kilt is equally appropriate to any event as your heavier one.