How much tartan for a kilt?

[Barb T]

So, if I cut a length of 8yds, when I go to find the center back, how will I know?

T.

Fold the tartan in half, and the center back is the middle of your length of tartan. Start counting pleats from the center mark toward the apron.

For 45" hips, and a split of 22/23, you'd have 30 pleats if you made each pleat about 3/4" at the hips. You don't want them any smaller than that at the hips, and bigger would be OK, too. I'd say, maybe 27 would be good. So, if you count more than 14 pleats from the center of the tartan toward the apron, you can just choose one of the pleats that isn't right at the half way mark to be the center back of your kilt. That just means that you'll have a little left over at the end of the whole length.

Barb

[ChattanCat]

Fold the tartan in half, and the center back is the middle of your length of tartan. Start counting pleats from the center mark toward the apron.

For 45" hips, and a split of 22/23, you'd have 30 pleats if you made each pleat about 3/4" at the hips. You don't want them any smaller than that at the hips, and bigger would be OK, too. I'd say, maybe 27 would be good. So, if you count more than 14 pleats from the center of the tartan toward the apron, you can just choose one of the pleats that isn't right at the half way mark to be the center back of your kilt. That just means that you'll have a little left over at the end of the whole length.

Barb

What Barb says. I bow to the expert kilt maker.

[Pleater]

If 8 yards turns out to be too much, then you might consider just folding the excess back under the aprons to beef them up a bit as the fabric is rather on the light side.

You can still shape the folded edge, just sew it as you would a dart and then fold it on the centre line so the excess forms a facing.