outdoor kilts

[furrycelt]

It is this very reason (camping and hiking) that I want to buy a "Survival" UtiliKilt. One thing I love to have outdoors is pockets, and lots of 'em. This UtiliKilt would be pefect. And when it gets all dirty and smelly from a weekend in the woods, I can throw it in the washer when I get home.

I just can't imagine taking an expensive wool kilt out in those conditions and subject it to that abuse. Though you guys got me thinking cause wool does have some great properties. Perhaps I could take one of my cheap historical repro's outdoors. But again, I am left with cleaning it and with no pockets. Which leaves me with a rather dumb question: what would happen if I take a 100% wool kilt and just throw it into a standard washer and/or drier?

TANGENT: The historical re-enactment group my dad belongs to did some research and learned that to truly make a historically accurate kilt, not only must it be made of pure wool, but that wool cloth should be impregnated with lard to increase its insulative properties, and make it somewhat water-resistant. I can't imagine... not like the highlanders were known for the beautiful body odor anyway.

[Andrew Breecher]

It is this very reason (camping and hiking) that I want to buy a "Survival" UtiliKilt. One thing I love to have outdoors is pockets, and lots of 'em. This UtiliKilt would be pefect. And when it gets all dirty and smelly from a weekend in the woods, I can throw it in the washer when I get home.

Warning: the Survival Utilikilt is made of a cotton twill material (according to their web page). When cotton gets wet it stays wet. It has no insulative properties at all. When cotton is wet and cold, it leaches your body heat from you and releases it into the air. You could easily catch hypothermia. There's a saying among hikers: "Cotton kills."

Both wool and poly/viscose retain heat even when wet. You can wear a wet woolen kilt in the winter time and your legs will still be warm. They'll be warm and wet, but they'll be warm.

You can throw a poly/viscose kilt in the wash, and in the dryer. If you wash a woolen kilt (and especially if you dry it) you're going to end up with a shrunken kilt. Wool needs to be specially cleaned.

If you know it's going to be dry out for the whole weekend, by all means wear a cotton kilt. But if it's going to rain, please don't put yourself in danger by doing so. You'll be miserable, and you could end up in trouble.

Andrew.

[furrycelt]

There's a saying among hikers: "Cotton kills."

Yikes!... I am now suspicious of my jeans, underwear, bedsheets, shirts... my gosh, I am surrounded and out numbered!!

;)

I consider myself quite an outdoorsman (though I have never done the whole A.T. and have much respect for those who have). I had never heard this quote. Yet, I am aware of the dangers of hypothermia, and fully aware of how moisture and water can worsen those conditions. I have had Class A survival training, courtesy of American tax dollars. Getting *any* clothing wet is dangerous in cold weather. Cotton I guess can "kill", but it can also save you. It wicks moisture away from the skin very well. Synthetics make me feel clamy cause they trap moisture. Trapped moisture can cause one to lose body heat more rapidly. My ideal is cotton against the skin, other stuff on the outer layer if the weather is going to be cool and/or wet. If I would be exposed to extreme cotton killer conditions, I would have another layer over my kilted butt anyway (be it a tent, poncho, anorak, etc).

Regardless, I hear what you are saying, and I do appreciate your advice. It has caused me to pause and re-think about getting a cotton-based kilt for the outdoors. Again though, I would be all for wearing a wool kilt out and about the wilderness, if the kilt had pockets, was easy to wash and clean, and was not expensive. Which leads me to...

I would never ever dare throw my formal wedding-day wool kilt into the washer and drier, nor my wifes 100% wool sweater. Yet, I have wool hiking socks that I freely abuse and clean without a thought. What's the difference? Can one of our kilt makers acquire or make a cloth that is perhaps a wool blend, so it can be all wool can be wool and yet be washable, wearable, able to be dragged across rocks and sticks without getting pulls, etc.? (Pardon my obvious sartorial ignorance.)

[Angus MacSpey]

I would never ever dare throw my formal wedding-day wool kilt into the washer and drier, nor my wifes 100% wool sweater. Yet, I have wool hiking socks that I freely abuse and clean without a thought. What's the difference? Can one of our kilt makers acquire or make a cloth that is perhaps a wool blend, so it can be all wool can be wool and yet be washable, wearable, able to be dragged across rocks and sticks without getting pulls, etc.? (Pardon my obvious sartorial ignorance.)

That's exactly right. Your wool socks have other fibers mixed in, including usually something for elasticity, such as lycra. It may have something to do with the knitting process too, but I'll have to defer to the textile experts on that.

As for synthetics, I've found those to wick moisture the best - stuff like Thermax and other polypro type fabrics. But the minute I go indoors wearing it, I boil. If I'm going to be in and out all day, I'll wear silk thermals. They insulate well for their weight, wick well, and keep you cool inside.

Nothin' but cotton for summer, though.

And thanks, Iolaus, for the heads-up. I'll check it out.

[Yaish]

There are some new fabrics out now that rely on mechanical action, rather than the material for their moisture wicking abilities. The weave on the material is two ply. The inner material absorbs moisture from your skin, then the out material releases it to evaporation. It looks and feels just like a standard garment though.
Good for summer, but in winter it still wont help much for insulation.

[Andrew Breecher]

I just can't imagine taking an expensive wool kilt out in those conditions and subject it to that abuse.

I take my $400 sleeping bag out in those conditions, why not a kilt? It's going to do the job I need it to do, and it's going to do it well. After thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail I needed a new sleeping bag. I'm wearing the same kilt for my next long-distance (2,600 mile) hike.

(I could have answered this in my above post as well, but I wanted that one to stay on the one topic.)

Andrew.

[KiltedCodeWarrior]

...(I could have answered this in my above post as well, but I wanted that one to stay on the one topic.)...

And there's also the fact that Kilted Gentry is just within your grasp so a few more posts won't hurt! :grin:

[Angus MacSpey]

Wool kicks ***. I use wool outer socks with polypropylene liners for skiing so my toes stay toasty. Wick that sweat away from your skin, and even wet wool socks insulate very well. Same goes, it seems, for the fur/hide of any cold-climate animal. Whether evolved or designed, it works. Now if I could just find a wild nauga and a buck gortx on my next hunt....

Next on list - toque made from baby seal blubber.

Well then... is there anyone who makes a plain wool (not tartan) heavyweight knockabout kilt? Could be machine-sewn, for that matter. Something cheaper than a traditional hand-sewn tartan tank, but with all the right properties for some hard core outdoor activity? That would be ideal.

I'm picturing a "Woolrich" type of kilt, sort of like the UK Workman's might be called the "Carhartt." [Coming soon to a Cabela's near you...]

And pockets! Pockets are good.

If ya know where I can get something like that, let me know!

[Iolaus]

Well then... is there anyone who makes a plain wool (not tartan) heavyweight knockabout kilt? Could be machine-sewn, for that matter. Something cheaper than a traditional hand-sewn tartan tank, but with all the right properties for some hard core outdoor activity? That would be ideal.

I'm picturing a "Woolrich" type of kilt, sort of like the UK Workman's might be called the "Carhartt." [Coming soon to a Cabela's near you...]

And pockets! Pockets are good.

If ya know where I can get something like that, let me know!

No pockets, but isn't the Stillwater Heavyweight made of wool now? and they had an all black (Shadow Tartan) kilt. Put in a velcro attached flannel liner for cold weather...

Wait until they restock for the new year; you might find something you like.

[Wompet]

Wool kicks ***. I use wool outer socks with polypropylene liners for skiing so my toes stay toasty. Wick that sweat away from your skin, and even wet wool socks insulate very well. Same goes, it seems, for the fur/hide of any cold-climate animal. Whether evolved or designed, it works. Now if I could just find a wild nauga and a buck gortx on my next hunt....

Silly Angus - nauga and gortx are endangered in the wild. You can only get them farm-raised. (Get the free-range gortx if you can - a littel pricier, but worth it.)

Well then... is there anyone who makes a plain wool (not tartan) heavyweight knockabout kilt? Could be machine-sewn, for that matter. Something cheaper than a traditional hand-sewn tartan tank, but with all the right properties for some hard core outdoor activity? That would be ideal.

I'm picturing a "Woolrich" type of kilt, sort of like the UK Workman's might be called the "Carhartt." [Coming soon to a Cabela's near you...]

And pockets! Pockets are good.

If ya know where I can get something like that, let me know!

Canuck made mention in a couple of posts about using hemp (not wool, I know, but better than cotton), but I don't know if anything ever came of it. An RKilt in plain wool ... probably have to modify how the cargo pockets are fastened to the kilt ...