Jacket Conversion

**MacMillans son** · 20th August 10, 07:44 AM

Welcome from Roseville Ca.

I have purchased a few thrift store tweed jackets for conversion. I have had one of them converted at a local alteration shop. I was fortunate to able to provide them with a crail jacket that I have for a visual idea of what I wanted (photos would have worked as well) We were able to walk through the process and discuss the benefits and trade offs of : cut line here vs. there, pocket flap raised or modified, finished length with my kilt on, amount of nip at the waist etc. All for $80.00 plus the $7.00 I paid for the jacket. I am really happy with the results.

I hope that helps, and again, welcome aboard!

Brooke

**Jere Mac** · 20th August 10, 10:27 AM

Brooke: Thanks. Another member steered me to a woman who does the same. Finger's crossed.
Jere

**piperdbh** · 20th August 10, 10:30 AM

VMac will take care of you, and when you get a jacket from her you'll see that it's not a terribly complicated process to cut down a jacket. Keep us posted with the results.

**Jere Mac** · 20th August 10, 10:35 AM

Piperdbh:
I sent her two jackets yesterday. Her charges are quite reasonable.
Will keep you posted. Jere

**Tartan Hiker** · 22nd August 10, 07:00 AM

Welcome to the forum from up the road a piece in Asheville, NC. Come on up sometime and I'll show you around the most kilt-friendly town this side of the Atlantic.

**Jere Mac** · 23rd August 10, 04:49 AM

Bill:
Thanks for the welcome. I may be up your way for a nephew's wedding next year.

All the best from the Great State Of Mecklenburg.

Jere

**Mike_Oettle** · 25th August 10, 02:40 AM

Jere, my apologies for neglecting to notice that this thread was in Kilt Board Newbie.
Welcome to X Marks from the bottom end of Africa.
When you refer to the great state of Mecklenburg, I take it you mean Mecklenburg County, NC.
The Land Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is in what used to be East Germany.
Some interesting tips came up concerning jacket conversions, but I will have to find someone locally to do that for me. Perhaps I can persuade my neighbour.
Regards,
Mike

**Jere Mac** · 25th August 10, 05:04 AM

Mike:
Thanks for the note. Some politicians and others in North Carolina refer to Charlotte and Mecklenburg county as The Great State of Mecklenburg. Mecklenburg county is the most populous county in the stater and I'm guessing that the politicos in our state capital, Raleigh, coined the term when dividing up the "pork" one fiscal year.
The county was named in 1762 after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of George III of England. The royal couple had never met prior to their marriage. I understand that George's mother had a lot to do with the union. Some things never change?
Thanks again and best regards from Charlotte, The Great State of Mecklenburg and North Carolina.
Jere

**Mike_Oettle** · 26th August 10, 03:17 AM

Interesting connection, Jere. We have a flower that grows wild in this part of the world that was named for Queen Charlotte.
It is cultivated around the world these days, and it has even been adopted as a symbol of Los Angeles, but its natural range is entirely South African.
The botanical name is Strelitzia reginæ. The reginæ bit refers to Charlotte as Queen, while the generic name comes from her father’s capital, the city of Strelitz in Mecklenburg.
(Nowadays Strelitz is part of Brandenburg, thanks to a reorganisation carried out by the Soviet occupation government in the early 1950s.)
The type species, S reginæ, is also known as the crane flower or the bird of paradise flower, and its natural range is along the Eastern Cape coast from Humansdorp (half an hour’s drive west of Port Elizabeth, where I live) to Pondoland, on the Natal border.
It skips Natal proper (the old colony) and is then also found on the coast of Zululand.
There is a colour variant with yellow in the flower, rather than orange. There is also a variant in which the leaves never open fully, but resemble spears. That one is unique to the Port Elizabeth district.
There is a much taller species, S nicolai, also called the Natal wild banana (it has a superficial resemblance to a banana tree) which is quite different in the colouring of its flowers.
I have designed tartans based on their colours which can be seen at http://www.facebook.com/mike.oettle#...&ref=fbx_album
http://www.facebook.com/mike.oettle#...&ref=fbx_album
and http://www.facebook.com/mike.oettle#...&ref=fbx_album
Regards,
Mike