Evening Attire?

[Tobus]

Yes! There are times when silver buckled shoes, patterned hose, fancy sporrans are nice for the rather more formal events, but these aren't necessary for most black tie events.

I am not going to make myself very popular with some here, when I say this, but I actually think there is somewhat of a "one-upmanship" thing going on, on this website -------rather like go "faster stripes" on cars------ with formal kilt attire. Don't misunderstand me please, it is very nice to own and wear silver buckled shoes, patterned hose, fancy sporrans, tartan waistcoats, etc., and yes! There are times when these smart items are warranted and, AND as I have already said, they are very nice to own and wear, but, BUT, they are not really necessary for most black tie events these days. So, they are not normally, "must haves".

Salient points as always, Jock. As long as one meets the minimum threshold for evening attire, all is well. Anything more is just personal preference or personal flair. It is important for people to recognise what's essential and what's just fluff.

I wouldn't necessarily call it one-upmanship, though, or think of it as something that's specific to this website. Highland attire has always had a "peacock" quality to it, most especially when it comes to the higher levels of dress. It seems to me that as Highland culture has been diluted and blended into a more pan-British culture, especially over the past century, the expectations of dress have trended more towards a Saxon-like uniformity. A typical English black tie event, for example, would find men all dressed exactly the same by design. And it is considered poor taste to show any individualism. What a pity to see Highland dress headed this direction! The days of men wearing unique bespoke doublets and ornate hair sporrans have been reduced to them mostly wearing the same generic designs that they all purchased from the same handful of outfitters (or worse, hire-shops!).

I don't know what kind of presence you have elsewhere on the internet for discussing Highland attire, but I can assure you that what we see here on this forum is pretty tame by comparison. I actually credit you for this. Your well-reasoned input over the years has guided a lot of members to refrain from "over-egging the cake" with their outfits (and yes, I borrowed that phrase from you). Or, at least, when they do go for the fancier accoutrements of Highland dress, they have a better idea that they have stepped out beyond a certain line. Some of the other internet discussion areas don't have that kind of gentle moderating voice to guide them, and one-upmanship definitely takes hold.

But beyond that, I think the last few years (perhaps the last decade or so) has seen a renewed interest in making Highland dress interesting again. Personally, I welcome it. Historical jacket styles and sporran styles are becoming popular again. And while there will always be those folks who wear costumish articles to emulate television shows or feel the need to design "fashion-forward" new styles, I see a lot more people these days dressed more traditionally with thought and research put into their choices. I'll take this any day over seeing the masses wearing the same articles from the same catalogs.