I grew up in a household where my dad’s Scottish heritage was hugely important to him, and consequently to my Mom, me, and my sibs. We had tartan bits by the time we started kindergarten; I played the pipes (badly) in college; my sister and my parents have attended TWO clan gatherings in Pitlochry.


While my schoolmates were listening to Elvis, our home stereo featured Harry Lauder, Roaming in the Gloamin’, or the Royal Scotts Guards, demonstrating how the Pipes SHOULD sound. I played the bagpipes (horribly) in my college’s Pipes and Drums Corps.


However, I didn’t acquire a Robertson kilt of my own until I was almost 70 years old, from Wm Glen & Son in San Francisco. Unfortunately, I wore it fewer than a dozen times before my spouse and I lost everything we owned in the Tubbs California wildfire inferno of October 17, 2017. Within 2 years we were forced for economic reasons to leave California, once all the insurance companies suspended making “temporary living expense” payments, at which time only 8% of the 5,000 incinerated homes had finished reconstruction.


Our diminished economic circumstances seemed to predict I’d never re-assemble a Highlands wardrobe, but shortly after we arrived in Montana, two packages arrived, about a month apart. The first carried a sender's address of “Kinloch Anderson” (who make Scottish apparel for the British Royal Family). Inside was a lovely barathea kilt jacket of the style worn by the King. The second came from USA Kilts, and it was a lovely Robertson Ancient Hunting tartan kilt, made with 13 oz fabric from Lochcarron Mills. I quickly discerned that my world-wandering older son was the gifter, and his gifts deepened our relationship with each other AND my Scottish heritage. We now attend Burns Night Suppers and highland games together and even shared 2 weeks in Scotland with my sister two summers ago (one highlight being a tour of Lochcarron Mills).


On arrival, the kilt was a bit too large, but after I decided to deal with my “acute and chronic pasta poisoning" (Diabetes Type 2) with injected Ozempic, my emotional attachment to it remained indelible but IT refused to remain attached to ME as I rather rapidly shed more than 40 pounds along with my infirmity.


Many kilt makers (I now own 5 kilts, including the subject specimen) have told me attempting to dramatically reduce the size of this kilt would not yield results that would please me. J Higgins in Kansas apparently do such work for kitlts being repurposed in pipe bands to a new or newly slendered band members. But, Lochcarron’s 13 oz fabric has a 23 inch sett size, and I have difficulty imagining them being able to center the tartan pivot points, either on the outer apron in front or the pleats in back (it’s pleated to the sett).


So, I think I should try to give it a new home. IT was made to a high “kilt waist” size of 45½”, with a 46” hip circumference and length of 21½”. For reference, my current kilt waist is 38”. I’m about 5’ 6’ tall, and the length of the kilt is 21½” (just right, until it falls off my body). I can still wear it with suspenders, but it’s obvious it contains WAY too much fabric for my trimmed down body.


Higgins would charge at least $295 plus shipping charges to reconstruct the kilt. I’ll sell it to a new owner for that price. I have great respect for USA Kilts, and they are one of the sources that tell me I should try to sell it rather than having it reconstructed.