Waist alteration

**oregonscot** · 22nd February 09, 05:00 AM

How difficult is it to alter the waist size on a Kilt? Going smaller of course.

Donn

**Barb T** · 22nd February 09, 05:48 AM

If all you have to do is move the apron edge buckles and the underapron strap, it's easy. If you have to actually alter the kilt, it's a really big job.

Do you want to make it bigger or smaller, and by how much?

**Nick** · 23rd February 09, 05:42 AM

Barb, about how much can one move straps and buckles before the fit and balance is thrown off? I can't wear my Ancient MacBeth without cinching my belt anymore, and it's the only good kilt I've brought with me to England!

**oregonscot** · 23rd February 09, 08:57 AM

Originally Posted by Barb T.

If all you have to do is move the apron edge buckles and the underapron strap, it's easy. If you have to actually alter the kilt, it's a really big job.

Do you want to make it bigger or smaller, and by how much?

Hi Barb,
I would be going smaller, from a 44" to about a 36".
What do you think?

Thanx
Donn

**fluter** · 23rd February 09, 12:20 PM

Two inches is viable. Eight inches sounds to me like a major re-build.

**Barb T** · 23rd February 09, 04:39 PM

8' Is a huge amount - that would mean that the apron would extend into the pleats an extra 4" on each side. So the apron would look disproportionately wide by quite a lot. It might feel kind of funny - like sheath skirt with pleats in the back.

Having said that, I moved the buckles on one of our band kilts over 7" when one of our pipers lost a lot of weight, and you needed to look to really notice. It was an OK solution for her and wasn't noticeable in a band parade. And she gained back most of the weight anyway.

And note: if someone altered your kilt, they would only alter the apron (the pleats can't be taken out, because they've been cut out above the fell). So, if you had the kilt altered, the reverse disproportion would happen - the pleats would be 4'' too big on each side, and the apron would be 8" too small across the front. I think that would actually look odder than moving the buckles.

**nab2488** · 23rd February 09, 08:43 PM

I actually have a similar problem right now. I ordered a kilt from sport kilt in the same size I had gotten from them before XL. Well my new kilt had sewn down pleats which the old one didn't well the old one fit just fine the new one with sewn down pleats doesn't. Well, if I just don't pull it as tight as my old one I can move the buckles forward about 1 inch and it should look fine. Barb do you think 1 inch would be to much to move the buckles?

**Barb T** · 24th February 09, 05:45 AM

You can certainly move the apron edge buckle(s) forward (and remember to move the underapron strap, too). The problem is that, at some point, the underapron starts to show, and it's really obvious.

On the other hand, when you move the buckles back to make it smaller, the fringe edge just covers up a few more pleats, and, unless someone really looks to see that the center back is no longer centered, it's not at all noticeable. And it's _really_ not noticeable if the kilt is pleated to the stripe, because there's no obvious center back.

So, you typically can't make a kilt very much bigger before the underapron starts to show, but you can make it a _lot_ smaller before anyone notices. Whether your underapron will show with a buckle move of 1" depends on where they put the buckles in the first place.

Best of luck!

**nab2488** · 24th February 09, 01:56 PM

Thanks barb I have played around with the buckles and I have found a place where I think the buckles look good and not to much of the under apron shows. I think to the general public and most people on the board because of the stewart black tartan it doesn't look that bad. It only shows about half an inch of the under apron. I am sure someone like you barb would notice but most people won't notice. It isn't perfect but I didn't expect it to be. Some day I hope to have a 500 dollar kilt but right now a fixed 100 dollar one is fine my me.