Wool Kilts for Someone on a budget

**Alan H** · 16th March 09, 11:21 PM

Learn how to make one.

**English Bloke** · 17th March 09, 03:16 AM

What price glory. The link is to the Gordon Highlander which is the cheapest at $195 but there are others, all military pattern up to $315. Type 'Kilt' in the search box to find the rest.

Haven't got one myself but there has been alot of discussion (mainly very good) on here about them.

**bricelythgoe** · 17th March 09, 06:23 AM

Originally Posted by Alan H

Learn how to make one.

Not sure my skills are there yet.

**RadioKen** · 17th March 09, 10:29 AM

Originally Posted by bricekolob

Not sure my skills are there yet.

Alan beat me to that comment! I'm in a similar financial boat and my wife has informed me that the quickest way for me to get a nice wool kilt is for me to make it myself. Don't worry about your skills (or lack thereof). Get some inexpensive material and the X-kilt pattern and start practicing. The skills will come soon enough and you'll have a few nice casual kilts to boot!

~Ken

**Downix** · 17th March 09, 12:05 PM

Originally Posted by RadioKen

Alan beat me to that comment! I'm in a similar financial boat and my wife has informed me that the quickest way for me to get a nice wool kilt is for me to make it myself. Don't worry about your skills (or lack thereof). Get some inexpensive material and the X-kilt pattern and start practicing. The skills will come soon enough and you'll have a few nice casual kilts to boot!

~Ken

That's what I am doing, then again, my ultimate goal is to be able to make them for other people so I have co-workers buying up fabric for me to work with while sitting at my cube at work.

**Alan H** · 17th March 09, 11:07 AM

Originally Posted by bricekolob

Not sure my skills are there yet.

Some guys gotta buy kilts. Some guys don't WANT to make a kilt. That's cool.

Some guys don't think they can make a kilt. Now, if you're missing a hand, or if you're blind, or if you're so ADD that you can't concentrate on anything for more than ninety seconds, then yeah, you probably can't make a kilt. Also, it must be said that making a full-on traditional kilt your first time out of the blocks is kind of a daunting proposition. I mean, it's at least 40-50 hours of work.

However, if you start with an X-Kilt, and then make another X-Kilt, and then make a machine-sewn box pleat kilt...

...and then buy Barbs book and read it, and then make a mostly hand-sewn kilt following the instructions on some inexpensive tartan off of ebay or from Fraser and Kirkbrights remnants...and THEN go buy the killer-diller 16 ounce dream tartan, the odds are pretty good that you'll turn an entirely acceptable product...AND you will have learned a lot AND you will truly appreciate why a professional-quality kilt costs as much as it does.

If that process, which will take about 2 - 4 months for a regular working stiff with a day job, is too much to contemplate, well then....

read the post about saving your pennies.

**bricelythgoe** · 17th March 09, 08:11 PM

Originally Posted by Alan H

Some guys gotta buy kilts. Some guys don't WANT to make a kilt. That's cool.

Some guys don't think they can make a kilt. Now, if you're missing a hand, or if you're blind, or if you're so ADD that you can't concentrate on anything for more than ninety seconds, then yeah, you probably can't make a kilt. Also, it must be said that making a full-on traditional kilt your first time out of the blocks is kind of a daunting proposition. I mean, it's at least 40-50 hours of work.

However, if you start with an X-Kilt, and then make another X-Kilt, and then make a machine-sewn box pleat kilt...

...and then buy Barbs book and read it, and then make a mostly hand-sewn kilt following the instructions on some inexpensive tartan off of ebay or from Fraser and Kirkbrights remnants...and THEN go buy the killer-diller 16 ounce dream tartan, the odds are pretty good that you'll turn an entirely acceptable product...AND you will have learned a lot AND you will truly appreciate why a professional-quality kilt costs as much as it does.

If that process, which will take about 2 - 4 months for a regular working stiff with a day job, is too much to contemplate, well then....

read the post about saving your pennies.

I appreciate the advice. Unfortunately I am the regular working stiff with a day job and a night job. Plus I have no sewing machine to work with. I have thought about sewing my own, but don't want to make a khaki colored kilt (just not my style). And if you read the post about saving your pennies, then you would realize I already have. No matter how much I save, I can not justify a 600 dollar item. Perhaps I will be able to sew one, when I don't have so much on my plate and I have a room to do it in.

**fluter** · 17th March 09, 09:31 PM

Originally Posted by bricekolob

Perhaps I will be able to sew one, when I don't have so much on my plate and I have a room to do it in.

The sewing machine is optional, especially if you don't want an X-kilt or similar contemporary/casual garment. You'll probably want your good trad kilts to be hand-sewn, unless it's done by a true expert.

I'm working on my third hand-sewn kilt, and my feeling is that someone with decent bachelor sewing skills and plenty of stubbornness can do it. It is unlike almost any other tailoring, so don't be put off; but it's good to have an advisor who knows how to sew.