wood kilts and dry cleaners

[Chef]

Be very careful!!!

First does the kilt really need to be cleaned? If it just really needs to be pressed don't get it cleaned. The chemicals used are very bad for a kilt. They remove the lanolin from the kilt. The more you have it cleaned the faster it will wear out and the easier it will get dirty.

Make sure the cleaner you are using is familiar with a man's kilt. Many are not and they can absolutely ruin an expensive kilt. A numpty with the hot presses used at a cleaners can be a disaster for the pleats. If you don't feel comfortable with the cleaner after you talk to them try to find another. In the past I have suggested that you locate a local piper or pipe band and find out where they get their kilts done.

If you can't find someone who has done real kilts, one consideration is to have basting stitches put into the pleats before you take it to the cleaners. This will protect them.

To repeat however, does it really need to be cleaned. Spot cleaning can take care of most problems.

[Kiltman]

Be very careful!!!
If you can't find someone who has done real kilts, one consideration is to have basting stitches put into the pleats before you take it to the cleaners. This will protect them.

To repeat however, does it really need to be cleaned. Spot cleaning can take care of most problems.

Basting the pleats in is absolutely essential. A kilt should not be pressed like a woman's skirt that is pleated.

[Panache]

Being that few on XMTS are familiar with wood kilts, I have changed your title to "wool kilts"

Cheers

Jamie

[Phil]

Being that few on XMTS are familiar with wood kilts, I have changed your title to "wool kilts"

Cheers

Jamie

Nothing to do with this I suppose? - http://www.woodenkilt.com/

Be very careful as others have said. A light spongeing or spot cleaning might do the trick.

[Confused.Nihilist]

I talked to Jerry at SWK and he recommended the dry cleaner for my wool kilt. Go fig. Guess I should have done that first. I may put it off for a few weeks though. Thanks for the info guys.

Oh and I found a wood worker to whittle away the dingy spots on my wood kilt. The comfort liner spare splinters in the bum, by the way. So that's taken care of too!

[McFarkus]

Being that few on XMTS are familiar with wood kilts, I have changed your title to "wool kilts"

Jamie

Jamie,

It still says wood on my monitor.

[Barb T]

Unless you've spilled something on a kilt or have sat in something mucky or have been wiping dirty-sweaty hands on your kilt, it's unlikely to need cleaning. You never want to dry clean a kilt just on principle! If you're careful to air a kilt after wearing it (i.e., don't put it away sweaty), you can go years without having to clean it. My band kilt is perfectly fine after 6 years of wearing it for parades and competitions every weekend in the summers. But I'm careful about letting it dry and air well. So, it's not dirty or smelly.

If you have a spill, use something like Era and a Q-tip, and blot the dirty spot - don't rub, or you'll have a fuzzy patch. Let it soak, and blot-rinse with a clean wet towel. Takes out almost anything from coffee to mustard to clown make-up (don't ask....).

I really really have to underscore that a dry cleaner can completely ruin the pleats. It's a big temptation for the dry cleaner to lay the kilt out flat in an arc, fanning the pleats, and then pressing the dickens out of them. Pleats _must_ be pressed with a constant width from the bottom of the fell to the bottom of the kilt. If the pleats are pressed in wedges because the kilt was fanned on the press board, you'll get the dreaded waves across the bottom of the kilt. And, once it's mis-pressed, it's almost impossible to re-press it correctly.

If a kilt has any shaping at all (i.e., the waist is smaller than the hips), you can only press the pleats straight and parallel if you hang the entire fell off the end of the ironing board and have only the open part of the pleats on the board when you're pressing. If you're careful, you can do this on a touch-up basis without basting. Just line the pleats up in nice straight parallel lines, and press small sections at a time. If the pleats _really_ need a good press, you're better off basting the pleats in place and pressing.

Here are a couple of pics, one showing a couple of well-pressed kilts and one showing a badly pressed kilt - you'll see the "waves" in the latter.

You can also see in the first kilt on the left, below, how easy it would be to have the pleats fan if you tried to lay the kilt flat, because it has so much taper between the waist and hips. But, you can see that the same would be true for the other kilt in the picture, because it, too, has taper.

[Chef]

Basting the pleats in is absolutely essential. A kilt should not be pressed like a woman's skirt that is pleated.

I agree if the cleaner does not know how to press a kilt. I am lucky enough to have a cleaner that knows how to properly press a kilt by hand.

Another option is to contact the original kilt maker. I know some will handle the cleaning of kilts they have made.

[Cawdorian]

A good friend of mine is the Quartermaster for one of the large pipe bands here in Atlanta. I asked him if they had a dry cleaner who cleaned or pressed their kilts for them. He told me "never send a kilt to the cleaners, just give it a good brushing every now and then and if you have a spot on the kilt, only spot clean it".

He also told me that he pressed his own pleats because he doesn't trust anyone else with them. Use the proper wool pressing method using a pressing cloth and iron.

Words of wisdom from a gentleman who is responsible for the care and feeding of about 150 kilts.

[Nanook]

Be very careful!!!

First does the kilt really need to be cleaned? If it just really needs to be pressed don't get it cleaned. The chemicals used are very bad for a kilt. They remove the lanolin from the kilt. The more you have it cleaned the faster it will wear out and the easier it will get dirty.

What about the Electrolux Lagoon System: http://www.laundrysystems.electrolux.com/node143.asp

"Lagoon™ includes washing, drying and ironing using water as a base for a surprisingly effective and ecological wash. Lagoon™ can be used for all types of fabric, even for fabrics which were previously thought of as solely the domain of dry cleaning."