The Great Kilt

[Toddy]

I got no change out of a thousand for kilt and jacket for my son twenty years ago.

Neighbour bought the whole outfit to wear as best man at his cousin's wedding last week. He totalled it up, just over two thousand. His wife's frock, hat, bag and shoes set them back just under five hundred.....he said his wallet wished he could wear silk and stilettos

 

[Woody girl]

I got no change out of a thousand for kilt and jacket for my son twenty years ago.

Neighbour bought the whole outfit to wear as best man at his cousin's wedding last week. He totalled it up, just over two thousand. His wife's frock, hat, bag and shoes set them back just under five hundred.....he said his wallet wished he could wear silk and stilettos

Ooh Jeffrey! Suits you sir, especially the stilettos. May i suggest a subtle barbie pink to match your cheeks sir!

 

[Toddy]

I think it was the moths fleeing his sporran that worried him

 

[Sooty22]

Anyhow, someone got a Great Kilt they can bring to the Makers moot for me to try?

There isn't such a thing, it is just a length of fabric really. I was expected to wear a kilt at my wedding but could not be bothered waiting and paying for a tailored kilt, nor did I want to rent one for the occasion, so I bought 5m of really good tartan fabric, used a wide leather belt I had, bought a brooch with a stag on it and rocked the Great Kilt at a fraction of what I would have paid for an formal 'outfit'. It also folds much more nicely / compact and has many other uses, but it is essentially just a 5m piece of fabric or thereabouts.
If you just want to see what it would be like on you, get a 5m length of fabric with a slightly stiffer hand to simulate the wool, then put it on per the various youtube tutorials and secure it with a piece of rope as belt and a knot at the top.

 

[Sooty22]

The fabric was around £300 I think, as I went for a thick pure wool.
The pleats are not permanent, you fold them and then lay down on it and close it over you, it comes completely loose again once you take it off.
There is nothing permanent to do to the fabric, other than fray the end edges to your liking and maybe tussle it a bit, again to your liking.
I would be curious to see it in a tweed!

 

[Falstaff]

In that wedding picture, has the groom tied off his shoes around his socks?

 

[Sooty22]

In that wedding picture, has the groom tied off his shoes around his socks?

Indeed. Found the album.

 

[Falstaff]

Wonder why? so they're not lost if sucked off in a bog maybe? As woollen socks, maybe to stop them sliding down inside the shoe and bunching up in the toe - seems to be the most likely.

 

[Pattree]

…….. same idea as a paracord bracelet?

 

[Sooty22]

Wonder why? so they're not lost if sucked off in a bog maybe? As woollen socks, maybe to stop them sliding down inside the shoe and bunching up in the toe - seems to be the most likely.

Not sure, it's not something I've researched, and I am not Scottish myself. Not Scottish-born anyway, although I do play the pipes and folk have trouble understanding me south of the border! But, I can speculate like you.

In the old times, Scots wore leg-wraps. The laces possibly helped keep those secure. And the bog suction also makes sense, as anyone that went in a bog with wellies will testify!

As a side note, in the woods I go for army boots (norgie M77 are my firm favourite, got many pairs) with wool leg wraps from the ankles to about 4 inches above the boot. They keep all the crap off the boots/trousers, they give you some extra protection from water entry and mud if you quickly wade through something and -crucially- are heavily coated in permethrin treatment and I've never ever had a tick on me since I discovered that trick (along with some minor coating of my trousers and smock). Plus some extra ankle support if you wrap them right, and they are extra insulation in winter. Leg wraps rock, but most folk find them a bit weird

 

[Falstaff]

S'funny, I've been thinking along the same or similar lines - also thought I might try the foot wraps instead of socks. Both easier to wash and dry. and my calves/feet feel the cold more now. Where do you get yours from?
Maybe a synthetic fabric instead of woollen, as quicker and easier to wash and dry?

 

[Sooty22]

S'funny, I've been thinking along the same or similar lines - also thought I might try the foot wraps instead of socks. Both easier to wash and dry. and my calves/feet feel the cold more now. Where do you get yours from?
Maybe a synthetic fabric instead of woollen, as quicker and easier to wash and dry?

I use them on the outside of the boots, around the ankles. I copies the brit army putees; bought loden fabric to cut my strips from -you could equally use a blanket to cut it from, provided it is the right thickness/weave- and added cotton tape for the securing.
Or you can buy them ready made, new old stock or repros.
I would not skip the socks. I use minimum two pairs, one liner and one on the outside, but sometimes even three pairs, depending on season. In the winter I wear one size up on my boots, for thicker/more socks.
You'll find pure leather boots -like the older style army ones- don't make your socks feel so wet; it is the lining of the modern ones that does that, and all those 'membranes' which are actually not that breathable, especially after months of use. But it is still essential to have two changes of your sock set up and swap them daily.
I departed from the kilt here!