Fascinating . . .

[Father Bill]

Reading the forum in the last little while, it begins to bowl me over how often our discussions here have to do with trying to shoehorn a kilt into a situation where it would be unusual, odd, unwelcome, or even perhaps even misplaced or inappropriate, perhaps, and only perhaps folks, to please the ego of the individual. I begin to tilt more and more towards comments made by our more reticent highlanders whose basic question might be boiled down to the one word, "Why?" or at lease "Should you?" If it isn't a kilt that's being forced into the wrong situation, it sometimes seems to be the more extreme accoutrements.

I fear that these misuses may become abuses and end up making kilts into unfortunate jokes, silly costumes, or just an unwelcome presence.

Is it all really about trying to find an excuse to wear a kilt, or is it about dressing appropriately for an occasion and occasionally finding a good one where a kilt would in fact be just fine and then wearing it without turning oneself into a "strutter."

Kilts are beautiful garments with deep and long-standing meaning, so respectfully, folks, if you find this idea offensive...

...look in a mirror and wonder long, hard, and thoughtfully about why you're offended. Could it have perhaps, just maybe, become an unfortunate case of "Look at me?"

I'm trying here not to be offensive and I really don't want to create a storm, just thoughtful reflection (although I have deep fears that the former will be the result) but much of what I read seems strange and sometimes ill-informed.

[Bugbear]

I have thought long and hard about it, Father Bill, and also tried very hard to see this from the point of view of the Traditionalist Highlanders of the forum.

[knotty]

I think I can understand ... & I agree with you, to a point. There are a we things that come to mind. The biggest that come to mind for me are style & application.

With regard to style, there are very few wrongs any more. A kilt is not 1 type of garment. Even on this Forum there is historical, traditional & contemporary. When you look all that then add personal style & color choices, the possibilities become quite scary. Anyone who remembers the 60s, can recall the mix of plaids, stripes, patterns & colors we all covered our bodies with. I think as kilts become more mainstream we will see more of this.

Unfortunately application comes mostly down to personal style & choice. I have seem "gentlemen" dressed for the mush pit at a dearly departed & "ladies" at a similar situation dressed like their next job was at the street corner & didnt want to bother to change in between. Neither is what I would call correct but ...

I feel as long as we are all dressed appropriately for the situation, there should be no issue, regardless of the kilt. After all a kilt is just an article of clothing. Nothing more.

Craig

[Riverkilt]

Points to ponder for sure. For me - I'm for pushing kilts to edge of the envelope and then beyond. More folks become aware of them as a comfortable option, unrelated to the history part. We've seen fashion designers embrace the "kilt-like" garment and even books be written about these efforts - Bravehearts.

I'm getting ready to wear a kilt to our local pow-wow. Its called "UNITY" pow wow so why not? Have always had compliments before. Have worn kilts to The Gathering of Nations - a huge pow wow and seen many other's kilted there.

For me, I don't think of it of "shoehorning" I think of it as embracing the kilt in all possible situations.

When in those "unusual" situations kilted have never felt resentment or disgust from others - only appreciation and compliments and curiosity.

Course, I'm an old marketing and sales guy so maybe I don't see any objections.

I'm for anything that keeps the interest in kilts high and brings orders to the kiltmakers from new folks so the kiltmakers stay in business and are there when I get my next craving for a kilt.

I do endeavor to don what I consider (big danger there of course) the "best" kilt and accessories for the event and venue.

Only reason I don't own a pith hat is I can't find one to fit my 7 5/8" head...

[Brother Falldown]

Ron,

Pith helmet indeed! Google them. I have gotten two from some outfit in LA. Goggle Zulu Pith helmet I think. My mellon is a little larger than 7 5/8 and their one size fits all fits fine. Best $20 you'll spend in the Arizona sunshine!ith:

[Father Bill]

I never worry about what people may say to me. In that situation I can discuss it, explain, teach, perhaps if necessary apologize.

What worries me is those who walk away disgusted... and say nothing to me although perhaps to others. It becomes a backyard fence discussion (disgustion? ) over which I have no control and into which I have no input. Then I've done the opposite of what I may have wished to do.

[Riverkilt]

For sure, we never know about them folks.

Another great book - well great title, the content is a little lame, is "What You Think of me is None of My Business." Out of the "codependency" field.

If I can't control it - no point in letting it worry me...or the old adage, letting them live rent free in my head. Don't know that wouldn't happen no matter how we dressed - too scruffy, too fancy, wrong color, et.al. Some folks prefer living resentment to resentment and not much we can do about it.

Yikes Ron....take off the counselor hat!! You know the Padre gets it.

[tundramanq]

I see the kilt as a practical, comfortable garment and do dress for the situation.
As long as I do, it's not worth worrying about the behind your back bunch. They will poke fun at anything different from themselves. They will see a traditional kilt and sporran as a guy in a skirt and purse. Fine as long as they stay under their rock and don't bother the living.

[Thorina]

I see much of this as a cultural thing. People from across the pond and in Canada have a different mindset than most Americans.
IMO unless a formal or nearly formal occassion, wearing a kilt with full regalia to every event possible is silly.
I see it as a useful garment. Not much more than that.
I like historical clothing. Some of it is very useful and again, IMO shouldn't be cast by the wayside just because it's old or one group thinks they have a patent on it.

A kilt is hardly the worst thing someone can be dressed in these days.
I don't think most kilt wearers in the states are out to make a mockery of it. As with many things American, we take something we like, and modify it to suit our tastes and needs. We've been doing it for several hundred years.
We do not have a long standing history of being a single ethnic group of people. With this blending, we take bits and pieces of all cultures.

Ancestory wise, most of us are mixed. Very few Americans claim full blooded anything. Most Americans, when going through their blood line have very similar backgrounds....me grandmother on this side came from x, grandfather came from y, grandmother on the other side z, and grandfather a mixture of w and t.
My children's grandparents are Lanape Indian, Inuit, Scottish, Czech, Irish, Mexican, English, and French.
They all have blue eyes, 2 are blondes; all with an Hispanic Sir name. All but one blonde tans real well.

If my middle son wants to show off his heritage, he could be dressed in a nice Hamilton grey tartan, with a sporran made of leather with bead work and feathers, a berret, fur boots, and a surrape.....drunk, talking about his hatred of Germany while eating fish and chips. (did I get them all in there?)

In other words, most of us do not have a sense of a single heritage or national identity, where as many Canadians and Europeans do.

[CMcG]

Father Bill,

This is an interesting and worthy topic, but I'm going to need to time to think about it. Too many recent threads have consumed my available mental resources and I should really finish up that pesky dissertation proposal I've been working on

...
In other words, most of us do not have a sense of a single heritage or national identity, where as many Canadians and Europeans do.

I think many Canadians have just as mixed a sense of heritage and national identity as Americans, if not more so. The analogy that we learned in school is that being Canadian is like being part of a rope; it is stronger because of being made up of individual strands, which remain distinct even as they are part of the weave. Do people still use the melting pot analogy to think about the US?

I suspect many European countries may be different, but they can comment for themselves.