Seeking experienced advice on wearing and caring for the kilt

**tulloch** · 29th March 15, 07:03 PM

I agree completely with Paddy. I think it is not just a point but very important that you treat this as something very special that will be endowed with some great associations and feel doubly good to you over the weeks and years. Wear it around the house a little and maybe go out to the car to see about care during entry and exit. But this is something that should be seen as very special to the day of your wedding. Not the same thing your friends have seen you wearing about yet.
As to the technical aspects of owning this garment I have to say that Barb's book has been really informative and I feel comfortable and competent about kilt care from what I learned there and here on xmarks.
For the most part, save it for that special event.
Become informed and better able to make decisions about care.
Enjoy.

**Father Bill** · 29th March 15, 07:09 PM

Pretty obvious from comments in other threads that the Scots see it as Sunday best or higher. Practise, but keep that in mind.

**Dileasgubas** · 29th March 15, 08:18 PM

I would have to agree that a bit of practice is worthwhile. There is a knack to feeling at home in a kilt, and that comes with experience. I may be wrong, but it seems to me that a kilt kind of moulds to fit the body in time, so both a new kilt wearer and a new kilt could benefit from a break-in period.

**Tenmiles** · 29th March 15, 10:14 PM

Originally Posted by tulloch

I agree completely with Paddy. I think it is not just a point but very important that you treat this as something very special that will be endowed with some great associations and feel doubly good to you over the weeks and years. Wear it around the house a little and maybe go out to the car to see about care during entry and exit. But this is something that should be seen as very special to the day of your wedding. Not the same thing your friends have seen you wearing about yet.
As to the technical aspects of owning this garment I have to say that Barb's book has been really informative and I feel comfortable and competent about kilt care from what I learned there and here on xmarks.
For the most part, save it for that special event.
Become informed and better able to make decisions about care.
Enjoy.

Just to clarify a point; this isn't "my" wedding; I am to be one of a dozen groomsmen for my wife's brother in his entourage; it's HIS wedding.

But having pondered Paddy's points further today, I think I have hit on what may be a truth about the difference between mine and my wife's points of view on this matter.

You see, since the groomsmen are dressing in Highland Formal, naturally we're all wearing kilts and Prince Charlies, etc.
The tartans are not required to be uniform; the groom has invited us to wear our own tartan, if we have such (he will be wearing his family's, but doesn't insist we all wear the same), or to pick whatever we'd like best from whatever company we might hire our outfits from.

I thought that this was a fine impetus to at last purchase a proper tailored kilt of my own, and saved up to do so.

But here, I suspect, is the difference in our mindsets:
I think perhaps my wife has viewed the process as "Buying a kilt for the wedding, which, by happy coincidence, I will be able to keep and wear as I please afterward",
While I think that I had been viewing the process as "Buying a kilt for myself, which, by happy coincidence, means I can wear it to the wedding and not have to rent one".

**Liam** · 29th March 15, 10:30 PM

Good luck my friend....

**Tenmiles** · 30th March 15, 10:11 AM

We've had the long discussion, fully understood one another's views and feelings, and come to an accord.
That said, I still appreciate all the advice regarding care and maintenance (and any further which may yet be shared)!

**Dale-of-Cedars** · 31st March 15, 05:05 AM

Had much the same discussion with my better half when I got my first kilt for my son's wedding.
While you may not have the option, I 'skirted' the issue by getting a second-hand kilt to wear for the week prior to the wedding to get used to it.
(See my Kilted in California thread)

**Tenmiles** · 31st March 15, 11:56 AM

Well, part of our accord is the acknowledgement that my "gear fund" (for a backpacking trip I am taking this summer) includes leeway to purchase a second kilt, of a much less costly variety (perhaps either a utility kilt or a tartan wool kilt from somewhere like UTKilts for between $65-$95 bucks), as part of my "outfitting myself for the trip".

This alone was enough to brighten my outlook; not only because it means I can soon have a kilt I can wear however and whenever I please, but also because it'll mean that I end up with more than one kilt overall!

**Dale-of-Cedars** · 31st March 15, 08:43 PM

Pro Tip: If you have one near, keep an eye on the skirts section at Goodwill. I found a second-hand wool kilt suitable for care-free wear ($20 with a few moth-holes) in the equivalent second-hand store near me...

**tpa** · 3rd April 15, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by Tenmiles

Well, part of our accord is the acknowledgement that my "gear fund" (for a backpacking trip I am taking this summer) includes leeway to purchase a second kilt, of a much less costly variety (perhaps either a utility kilt or a tartan wool kilt from somewhere like UTKilts for between $65-$95 bucks), as part of my "outfitting myself for the trip".

This alone was enough to brighten my outlook; not only because it means I can soon have a kilt I can wear however and whenever I please, but also because it'll mean that I end up with more than one kilt overall!

Good news indeed.