Scottish Wildcat Tartan

[McMurdo]

The 4th weaving is still open, and I am ordering tomorrow. I am torn between 3 metres or 4, wich is basically 6 or 8 yards. I just wonder how much of a difference in "swish" that would be. It is a pretty big difference in price.

I don't think it makes a huge difference but having said that there is a difference. I think you'd be fine with a 6 yard kilt, with an 8 yard you can really feel it. To my mind getting in on this is the most important thing.

[The Wizard of BC]

If I may,

How much fabric is used to make a kilt is a combination of four things.

1) The size of the wearers hips. The larger the guy is, the more fabric is needed to go around him. Most kiltmakers will order 4 yards of double-width fabric to make an 8 yard kilt for a guy with hips less than 45 inches. For hips between 45 and 50 inches they will order 4.5 yards of double-width fabric and above 50 inches they will order 5 yards of double-width fabric.

2) The size of the Sett of the Tartan. The larger the Tartan pattern is, the more fabric each pleat uses up. If the kilt is to be pleated to Stripe, each pleat uses up one full Sett of the Tartan. If the kilt is to be pleated to Sett, each pleat uses up just more than one full Sett of fabric.

3) How the fabric is to be folded into pleats. Narrow Knife pleats require more pleats to go over any given hip size so need more fabric than wider knife pleats. This is how the 5 yard kilts are made. Each pleat is simply made wider.
Box pleats will usually use less fabric per pleat than knife pleats and as box pleats are usually wider to begin with there are fewer pleats in total. A box pleated kilt is usually referred to as a 4 yard box pleated kilt while a wide knife pleated kilt is usually referred to as an 5 yard knife pleated kilt and a narrow knife pleated kilt is usually referred to as an 8 yard knife pleated kilt

4) And finally if the kilt is pleated to Sett or to Stripe. In general, a kilt pleated to Sett will require a bit more fabric than one pleated to Stripe.

With all of this said your kilt may not have exactly 4, 5, or 8 yards of fabric.



Fabric weights are normally meant to mean ounces per linear yard of double-width fabric. So 36 inches long by 60 inches wide or 2160 square inches of fabric.

16 oz fabric weighs 16 oz, or 1 pound, per linear yard, double-width.
13 oz fabric weight 13 oz per linear yard, double-width.

If you have a 16oz kilt with exactly 8 linear kilt yards of fabric it should weigh exactly - 16 oz X 4 yard of double-width fabric for a total of 64 oz or 4 pounds.
A kilt a 16 oz kilt with exactly 5 linear kilt yards of fabric it will weigh exactly - 16 oz X 2.5 yards of double-width for a total of 40 oz or 2.5 pounds.

If you have a 13 oz kilt with exactly 8 linear kilt yards of fabric it should weight exactly - 16oz X 4 yards of double-width fabric for a total of 52 oz or 3.25 pounds.
If you have a 13oz kilt with exactly 5 linear kilt yards of fabric it will weight exactly - 13 oz X 2.5 yards of double-width fabric for a total of 32.5 oz or 2.03 pounds.


The difference between a 16 oz / 8 yard kilt and a 13 oz / 8 yard kilt is only 3/4 of a pound.
The difference between a 16 oz / 5 yard kilt and a 13oz / 5 yard kilt is less than 1/2 pound.

But a 13 oz 5 yard kilt is almost 2 pounds less, or almost half, of a 16 oz 8 yard kilt.

[Tobinn]

Boy, that's a great looking tartan! If the pics on the internet don't do it justice...well I hope I never see it in real life 'cause jealousy is ugly.

I wish I had the money...and it's a good cause, too.

I've the same opinion regarding the Antarctic tartan. One of these days I'd love to get a kilt in that as an homage to my grandfather (on my dad's side) as he sailed on one of the first scientific voyages to/around the Antarctic in the 1930's.

[Barb T]

Here are some pics of some of the Scottish Wildcat kilts that I made from the very first run of the Wildcat. The first one is McMurdo's (although my husband is the model), and I love the almost furry cat-like quality of the the gray in the pleats combined with the laser-like golden eyes of the cat inside the "flash".

The second kilt is a Reverse Kingussie that I was working on in Iceland for XMarker Creag.

[Barb T]

And, since the Antarctica was mentioned, here's our daughter's Highland dance kilt in the Antarctica tartan, pleated to the stripe, with flash. Matching hose, as well. She chose the Antarctica tartan because she went to the Antarctic with my husband when she was in high school. She took along her practice chanter and got a chance to play the South Georgia Whaling Song on South Gerogia Island, where Sir Ernest Shackleton is buried.

[McMurdo]

Here are some pics of some of the Scottish Wildcat kilts that I made from the very first run of the Wildcat. The first one is McMurdo's (although my husband is the model), and I love the almost furry cat-like quality of the the gray in the pleats combined with the laser-like golden eyes of the cat inside the "flash".

The second kilt is a Reverse Kingussie that I was working on in Iceland for XMarker Creag.

Still the best kilt I've ever owned from the best kilt maker on the planet. Barb your work is outstanding.

[Twrecks911]

Yeah. I have ordered 8 yards and hope to take it to next year's kilt kamp.

[Barb T]

Thanks, McMurdo! I'm blushing!

[jthk]

Still the best kilt I've ever owned from the best kilt maker on the planet. Barb your work is outstanding.

I'd like to concur with McMurdo.

[Arnot]

I received my Wildcat tartan today. Can't wait to get to work on my kilt, unfortunately I am in the middle of a bit of a big job on my MOD Cameron kilt. Once that's done I'll start my Puddy Tat kilt.