Share your kilt reaction stories

[OC Richard]

wouldn't a "half kilt" mean 5 yards instead of 8?

I was thinking something along the lines of what happened at one wedding I was to pipe for.

It often happens to a wedding piper: You show up before the service, you're told that you should touch bases with the Best Man, and you end up in the room where the Best Man and Groomsmen are getting dressed, putting on their Kilt Hire attire.

For many gents it's their first time, and you see a lot of strange things.

There are the typical things like having the pleats in front, or the Sir Sean thing of separating the pair of flashes for an inside-outside thing, etc.

But one thing took the cake: a guy had put on his kilt so that the under-apron, instead of continuing across and going underneath the upper apron, had it folded and doubling back at his right side, and going under the back of the kilt. This left his right thigh bare all the way up!

He was actually going to go out and stand in the wedding that way.

[Canadian Vet]

I was thinking something along the lines of what happened at one wedding I was to pipe for.

It often happens to a wedding piper: You show up before the service, you're told that you should touch bases with the Best Man, and you end up in the room where the Best Man and Groomsmen are getting dressed, putting on their Kilt Hire attire.

For many gents it's their first time, and you see a lot of strange things.

There are the typical things like having the pleats in front, or the Sir Sean thing of separating the pair of flashes for an inside-outside thing, etc.

But one thing took the cake: a guy had put on his kilt so that the under-apron, instead of continuing across and going underneath the upper apron, had it folded and doubling back at his right side, and going under the back of the kilt. This left his right thigh bare all the way up!

He was actually going to go out and stand in the wedding that way.

... sounds like an Oscar Award Red Carpet kilt arrangement.

[kilted2000]

I was thinking something along the lines of what happened at one wedding I was to pipe for.

It often happens to a wedding piper: You show up before the service, you're told that you should touch bases with the Best Man, and you end up in the room where the Best Man and Groomsmen are getting dressed, putting on their Kilt Hire attire.

For many gents it's their first time, and you see a lot of strange things.

There are the typical things like having the pleats in front, or the Sir Sean thing of separating the pair of flashes for an inside-outside thing, etc.

But one thing took the cake: a guy had put on his kilt so that the under-apron, instead of continuing across and going underneath the upper apron, had it folded and doubling back at his right side, and going under the back of the kilt. This left his right thigh bare all the way up!

He was actually going to go out and stand in the wedding that way.

Curious, when you see things like this, do you say something or not?

[OC Richard]

Oh yes I say something.

It seems part of the job, giving tips on first-timers how to put everything on.

Another part of the job is informing people what pipers can and can't do.

Sometimes the client will say things like "I want you to play quietly while they're saying their vows" or "I want you to start quietly then turn up the volume" or "I want you to start loud then fade out".

The piper has to explain that there's no volume control knob on the pipes- it's "on" or "off". (If these things are asked in advance I can bring my Scottish Smallpipes for the quiet bits.)

And for some reason they always want the piper to march up or down stairs while they're playing.

[MartinMU]

When I started with my regiment piper look last year, the first thing my colleagues asked - are you going to be a true scots man. What will you be wearing underneath. My response was pretty simple, stockings, gaiters and brogues 😉

At the event two weeks ago, in the streets, me as being the only kilt wearer at -5 celsius, i got loads of compliments from people on the street. I had a significant presence with my style. I felt myself proud and gorgeous. Almost like a true scots man 😇

[OC Richard]

...I started with my regiment piper look...

A specific regiment? A regiment you served in?

It's a tricky subject and can get "kilt reactions" different to the ones pipers in ordinary civilian dress get.

From the first 19th century civilian pipe bands up until the 1970s civilian bands nearly always wore one of two types of outfits:

1) the ordinary civilian Evening Dress of the period

2) outfits based on the Full Dress of regimental pipers.



The tricky part of the regimental route is that each regiment's pipers had a unique uniform, so civilian pipe bands generally wore:

1) an outfit following the dress of a specific regiment

2) an outfit which was a hodgepodge of the dress of various regiments

3) an outfit which, while following the overall appearance of military dress, avoided all military-specific items (badges, sporrans, tartans, etc.)

Following the dress of a specific regiment, especially one still in existence, can blur the lines of being a re-enactor in some people's eyes.

[MartinMU]

A specific regiment? A regiment you served in?

Thanks for the tips.

In Switzerland we don't have piper regiments. I server in the Swiss Air Force and there is no dedicated band, but the regular swiss military brass bands.
General public cannot differentiate if I have black watch regiments buttons or RRS buttons on my tunic. They will not be able to tell the difference between a black watch tartan or a Royal Stewart tartan nor if my hose is the one of RRS or of an irish regiment. Due to this, any reaction I can expect and i experienced is if i am wearing something under the kilt and the gorgeous look which lot of people like from military tattoo's.

Yes, the tunic is kept neutral. All chevrons, insignias have been removed. I am not allowed to carry military uniforms neither the swiss nor foreign one in public. No sgian dubh, no dirk either. Thats forbidden.


In all cases, here in Switzerland, I am doing pretty ok wearing this for my events.

[RGM1]

My experience is quite positive in wearing a kilt. Some of the strongest statements of appreciation are from well dressed women who I assume understand better than most the effort it takes to do it right. Not being the sort who has gotten a lot of these comments, they are most appreciated. Nice not being invisible.

[jsrnephdoc]

An example of surprising knowledge:

Informed understanding often comes in those surprising moments—often trivial, most appreciated when truly innocent and spontaneous.

I've told this story once before in these discussions, but here goes again.

Bozeman, MT, USA is a special place, in part because of its fabulous university, which features a fabulous paleontology department and museum, the former headed until embarrassed by the his "extracurricular activities" by Jack Horner, famed for promoting the realizations that many dinosaurs weren't lizards, but euthermic and resident in organized colonies (and teaching famed movie director Steven Spielberg what they actually looked like and how they moved).

One of those bright young college students had an afternoon gig at a lovely Bozeman Symphony concert matinee, where the compositions being played were all examples of John Williams's movie music. At the font door of the concert hall an assemblage of Star Wars Characters (Chewbacca, C3PO, and the like) were available for attendees who wished to have photos taken with the characters. I was kilted, and the photog-student asked about my tartan.

At the time, my collection of kilts was smaller than now, and we began a brief discussion of non-clan tartans. I showed him my "Sgian Dubh" (not!!!, but particularly appropriate in Dino-crazed Bozeman—see my avatar). Then I told him about my eagerly awaited NEXT kilt, which would be sewn by a particularly knowledgeable geology professor in Upstate New York. Suddenly his interest deepened, because CLEARLY my small but somewhat corpulent frame testified that I didn't come directly to the concert from tossing the caber or hay bale at local Highlands Games. He expressed that admiration with his question: "Barb Tewksbury is making a kilt, for YOU?

[Kilted contractor]

I've had many different but mostly good reactions to my kilt.
One that stands out to this day was with a couple older lady's. Had stopped to get coffee and was getting back into my car. I had seen 2 lady's staring at me as they pulled up to the coffee shop. I started to back up when I thought one waved so waved back. She proceeded to wave me to stop. So as I did they started the small talk and one got this look and said I've always wondered what is worn under a kilt. I said ma'am that is a mystery.
She leans into my car face about 6 in from mine. She looked down at my lap looked back at my face as she leaned back out of it and said I might be old but I ain't dead yet. Not very many times I'm speechless but that was one time I was.