2 Questions

[gilmore]

Hi, I'm new to the whole world of kilts, I've always thought there were cool but I've always been put off by the price, especial as I'm a student and have a limited budget, but I've found a site selling kilts for just £45 so I thought I'd go for it.

I just wounded to know if anyone has one of these kilts and how good a quality they are, here's the link.

Secondly, I'm unsure weather to go for my family tartan (Anderson) or plain black. As it's just for casual wear, (down the pub, around campus, etc) I'm worried tartan would look to formal, On the other hand plain black might lead to it not been recognised as a kilt. I'm in England and solid color kilts are less common here than they are in the US. Your opinions pleas.

I have never seen those kilts (that I know of) but 16 oz/yard is a nice heavy weight, and though polyvicose is not wool, it is durable.

As to tartan vs. plain black, if you are worried about looking too formal, it's usually better to be overdressed than underdressed, and that tartan is darker, and would not be mistaken (at least among the cognescenti) for a dress version of a clan tartan, which would have more dominant white stripes. If solid colored kilts are not worn so much in the UK, you might feel more comfortable wearing tartan, and more appropriately dressed.

Another thing is how they hold up to wear and tear. Have you ever had a solid black or dark piece of clothing? Many of them show up lint, dog and cat hair and other things that cling to them easily. As a drag queen I once knew complained while repeatedly brushing her dark gray wool skirt, "It'll pick up everything but a man."

From only looking at them online, I would go with the tartan, since my guess is it will show wear less, and it sounds as if you might get more use out of it.