Kilts For Men | Scottish Kilt |
Posted: December 26, 2017 |
Kilts For Men | Scottish Kilt
Perhaps nothing is more closely associated with Scotland than the kilt. Now part of the national costume, you will find kilts being worn at everything from weddings to international sports matches. Either worn casually or as part of a full outfit, this recognizable garment is the best way to show off your Scottish heritage. It has been my observation that there are various reasons why someone may decide to wear the kilt, and those reasons will affect our habits and attitudes towards Highland dress. I normally try to avoid sweeping generalizations, but there are some major categories that I believe most kilt wearers fall into. People tend to wear the kilt as a uniform, as heritage dress, as a costume, or as clothing. Most kilt wearers I have met fall into at least one category, and some will identify with more than one. The first category is that of uniform. These people wear the kilt because it is part of the uniform of a group or activity in which they are involved. The most obvious example would be the military uniform of a Highland regiment. Another would be a pipe band. But the kilt could also be a uniform in a less structured sense. If one is involved in Scottish Country Dancing, the kilt is part of the outfit that men are expected to wear. The reason that people in this category wear the kilt is because it is part and parcel of the activity they participate in, be it dancing, piping, or some other endeavor. If you wear the kilt as a uniform you are more than likely going to have a more rigid attitude towards Highland dress. This may actually be imposed upon you by certain dress requirements for competition and performance. This tends to limit the extent of your Highland wardrobe. If the kilt is part of a uniform that you put on while participating in a certain activity, you only need to be flexible within the confines of your uniform requirements. The second category I have named is that of “heritage clothing.” By this I mean those who wear the kilt first and foremost as a mark of their Scottish ethnicity. The attitude here is that I come from a Scottish background, I am proud of my heritage, and I am going to showcase and celebrate that heritage by wearing the Scottish national dress. People in this category will tend to wear the kilt mainly within the context of Scottish cultural events. They will wear the kilt when they attend the Highland Games, or St. Andrews Society functions, Robert Burns dinners, and the like. They may wear the kilt as formal wear for special events such as weddings, but by and large it is reserved for cultural events. If you wear the kilt as heritage clothing, then you are likely to wear your clan tartan almost exclusively. Your attitude towards the kilt will be very respectful, as you are wearing it to honor your ancestors. The extent of your Highland wardrobe will depend greatly upon the number of cultural events you attend during the year. If you only attend one or two local Highland Games, then all you need is a casual daywear outfit. If you only attend formal Burns suppers, then you likely only have one formal evening outfit. If you are heavily involved in cultural activities, attending many different functions throughout the year, you may have acquired quite an extensive range of Highland wear.
Then there are those who wear the kilt as a costume. By this I don’t necessarily mean as “dress-up” clothes at costume parties (though that would certainly apply), but “costume” in a looser sense. You wear the kilt to get “dressed up as a Scotsman.” Maybe you are a college student who thinks it might be fun to wear a kilt on your next pub crawl. Maybe you enjoy wearing the kilt at Renaissance Fairs. But you wear the kilt because you think it is fun, attention getting, and different. Folks in this category might lean more towards the less expensive off-the-peg options for their kilts. Since they are mainly wearing the kilt for fun, they are less likely to invest the money in a hand tailored custom kilt. They might be inspired to wear the kilt while attending a local Scottish festival and decide to get a cheap acrylic kilt from one of the vendors just to have something fun to wear while there that afternoon. People who wear the kilt as a costume will have a very different attitude towards the garment than those who are wearing it as a means to show their cultural pride. Lastly, there are those for whom the kilt is simply an article of clothing. It is recognized as a garment of rich cultural significance and with much history, but it is treated primarily as a mode of dress, not a uniform or a folk costume. People in this category are more likely to wear the kilt on a regular basis?—?frequently, if not daily. Their Highland dress wardrobe will be very extensive, as they tend to wear the kilt often in both casual and formal settings, and not necessarily within a Scottish cultural context. People in this latter category are much less inclined to have a rigorist attitude towards the kilt. They likely have several kilts, in many different tartans, not all of which relate directly to their heritage. They are not as concerned with doing things “properly” (according to the purists) as they are with doing things reasonably. Common sense is the order of the day. They do not scoff at wearing the kilt with sandals in the summer time, or with a heavy coat in the winter (even if it is not a “proper kilt cut”). Modern Kilts are designed and adapted to 21st century trends, styles and fashion. These kilts are very fashionable for men can make you different from others in all ceremonies, parties or events. I found complete collection of Scottish Kilts and Kilts for Men at Scottish Kilt, Scottish Kilt online Kilt selling company and deliver its product worldwide.Scottish Kilt offers Custom made Kilts for Men and Women. Of course, as I said at the opening, these are generalizations and many kilt wearers will fall into more than one category. For instance, the Neo-Jacobite style that I described in last month’s column tends to appeal to those who wear the kilt as heritage clothing, but who think of it more as a costume. I know several people who wear the kilt primarily as clothing, but who also happen to belong to a pipe band or dance group that requires them to wear the kilt as a uniform. Their attitude towards wearing the kilt will be different depending on whether they are “in uniform” or not. Why outline these categories, then? It is commonplace for some kilt wearers to look down upon those who don’t necessarily share their point of view when it comes to Highland dress. It is good to remember that not all of us wear the kilt for the same reasons. A gentleman who wears the kilt only when he takes his wife to the opera is going to have a different attitude towards the kilt than the man who wears his to hike in. We shouldn’t expect otherwise.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|