In line with the first post by Alan.

When I first decided to wear a kilt, I looked...and looked...and looked. I educated myself a bit and the purchased what I could afford. USAK Casual BTW. After all, who would spend hundreds of dollars to try something they may not like. That would be like buying a side of beef to see if you like steak.

In my research, I realized that like anything that is made by hand as well as mass produced there are going to be huge cost variances. So you figure your budget, or how long you're willing to jones by saving your pocket change. Then purchase what you can afford, or wait to build your funds.

So then I decide I'm going to learn to make kilts. Being the person I am, I decided to research as much as I could, then start small if you will. I chose the X kilt as my first victim. Granted, in past lives I've been a toolmaker, a designer and a mechanical engineer, so figures, measurements and calculations are no stranger to me. Neither is my anal retentive, perfectionist nature that makes me wish the marks on a tape measure came to a point so you could accurately measure the length of a 2 x 4 when building a dog house within a few thousandths of an inch. But I digress....

I purchased my material after wandering around looking at various colors and fabrics for a few days and set to work.

I had my kilt laid out and ready to sew. In about 6-8 hours!! Yeah, that was just the calculations, cutting the yardage in half, measuring and marking, which is probably the easiest part IMO because you can remark the lines and refigure if you make a mistake. You haven't sewn anything yet.

Then I find out that the fabric I've grown to love and couldn't wait to see around my waist contained a bit of spandex that was not known to me and when I started sewing my pleats they puckered like, well, something that really puckers. Mind you this was after I spent god knows how long pressing all of the folds for the pleats. I thought maybe this was the way it was supposed to be, so I kept at it and sewed about 5 of my 16 pleats. I'm now about 6-7 more hours deep into this kilt project. I press the pleats again so they look good.......for about 5 minutes then they pucker again. After a few hours of messing with the machine, I find out it's the fabric and I pitch the lot into the trash.

I've invested between 12 and 15 hours and not even finished sewing 1/3 of the pleats. (the first major sewing operation for those who haven't made an X kilt) I kept thinking throughout the process that if this wasn't relaxing to me, I'd never be able to earn a living at it, or have the patience to finish one kilt. And this was an X kilt with very good instructions. After this experience I couldn't believe how Rocky could only charge what he did to get me my casual in a less than a week.

Even if you don't know how to sew, or don't want to sew, look through the X kilt manual and go through the motions up to the point to which the sewing starts using a roll of paper towel for your "fabric". You will be AMAZED at the time it takes and if nothing else, you'll come away with a much better appreciation of kiltmakers. Be they hand stitching, 80 year old Scot sewing by lamplight in a cottage overlooking Loch Ness or the guy who whips out inexpensive "first kilts" for the masses at the rate of several a week.

Everything looks easy when you're watching a professional do it. That is why they are called professionals.

That being said.....

I tip my hat and raise my glass to all who have ever sewn a kilt, be it X or tank, it matters not, you have my admiration, respect and a bit of jealousy.