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[Todd Bradshaw]

This eBay store is a really good place to look for donor coats, either for shooting vests, hat fabric or conversion to tweed kilt jackets. Punch in your size and you will probably find a wide selection of tweeds at cheap prices. You can also usually tell those that have patch pockets from their thumbnail pictures. If so, it makes conversion much easier.

http://stores.ebay.com/onlynamebrand...p2047675.l2563

For the shooting vests, we take the sleeves off and remove the padding in the shoulder areas. The facings that firm up the fronts and lapels are left in. Then we gradually start enlarging the arm holes and narrowing the area on top of the shoulders. We re-press the lapels and usually add a button and button hole up higher, extending the front closure to a higher level and shortening the lapels (unlike kilt jackets, you generally see these worn all buttoned up). Then we taper the body in the waist area using existing side or back seams to get a fairly snug, non-jacket-like fit and we add a couple of buttoned side "snugging tabs" at the sides of the waist, which are more cosmetic than functional. The leather shoulder patch is sewn to the front before the tweed and lining are rejoined at the arm holes.

The original slot pockets (if it has them) are left, the flaps removed or folded inside and a button hole is added. The big bellows pockets are made from sleeve fabric, lined, sewn on, and the jacket lining at the bottom is then reattached. The entire process actually sounds more complex than it really is, though since you are working on an existing garment it can take some brainstorming at times to sew parts that would normally be sewn before assembly.

To do one with a kilt-cut bottom should be pretty similar to a jacket conversion, but the bellows pockets will need to be reshaped or reduced in size for the shorter bottom and sporran gap. Chances are though, that if the donor jacket has inset side pockets, you can probably shorten them, cover them with the bellows pockets, and keep them as inner, hidden pockets. That would solve one of the bigger problems with doing conversions. Staghorn-style buttons are available on eBay and from a few retail suppliers if you want to complete the look.

[SayBurr]

Not being good at this sort of thing. Your instructions and photos have inspired me to give this a shot. Thanks