I am going to have to disagree with some of the posts in this thread. I'm sorry.

A Kilt is the second only to a mans tailored suit jacket in complexity. It is NOT a piece of fabric with pleats sewn into a waistband.

Oh sure, you can make such a thing but it is this thinking that makes people believe that someday kilts will be mass produced and cost the same as a pair of jeans.

In a Traditional Style Kilt the pleats are arranged with great precision to best show off the Tartan. There are so many variables that this is a true art form.

Then the stitching is done in such a way to allow the fabric to hang, and move when walking, like no other garment in the world.

Yes, the fabric is cut away on the inside to thin the back and prevent "Pillow Butt", and yes there is a liner that covers that area, but thinking that the liner is there to keep the kilt clean or act as a sweat guard is false thinking. The liner is there to cover the re-enforcements built into the kilt to allow the fabric to float over the wearer without pulling, or puckering and allow the pleats to swish and flow without curling.

I have tried to find a simple way to explain this but basically you strap on the interfacing and re-enforcements and the outer fabric floats over those.

If you want to learn how to make a Traditional Kilt there is no better resource than "The Art of Kiltmaking". The cost of a book is nothing when compared to the cost of good quality kilt fabric and the pride of owning a truly well made kilt.

The difference in look, and swish, and feel of a Traditional kilt is evident from across the street when compared to "a length of fabric sewn into a waistband".

Does a well made Traditional Kilt have to cost $1000.00? No. The majority of that cost is in the fabric which can be $60.00 to $100.00 per meter. Any good quality fabric can be used to make a kilt.
It is the inner construction that is the secret.

I too, once thought that I could just sew some pleats into some fabric and call it a kilt. I was mistaken. I've been in this business for five years now and am still learning, still amazed at the complexity of this garment we call The Kilt.