semi-formal, what did it cost me?

[Alan H]

OK, when I got started in this I really wanted a semi-formal getup. You know, Argyll tweed jacket, wool kilt and so on. I can't afford that, seeing as I'm pretty much a newbie to kilt-wearing, so I did what I could with what I could afford. Last night I went to my wife's symphony (I used to play in it, too) in kilt, jacket and tie. The jacket is a Saint Vincent De Paul special that I spent 8 hours adapting to a kilt jacket. Someday I'll post a picture of this getup, but I thought folks would be interested in my "semi formal" getup and what it cost me.

Sporran off of ebay white hair, "leather cantle" (riiight) , three chrome-topped tassels:
$35
Stillwater Standard Black Watch Kilt
$75
Locharron hose, bought at Highland Games, full price from Kilt & Thistle
$20...(BTW, these are MUCH, much nicer than the "buget hose" I bought off of ebay; easily worth the few dollars difference in price)
Locharron Flashes, same as above
$11
Belt from neighborhood garage sale. It's a beauty, full leather, just gorgeous, though it's not a "real" kilt belt. I got it for
$1.00
Celtic Buckle, round, pewter, kilt-buckle sized, but not a normal rectangular-tyled formal kilt belt...off of ebay.
$13
Black Dress shoes...scored a deal at Big 5 sports. These are very nice Rockport dress shoes.
$25
Plain blue tie, a Mervyn's special.
$14
Jacket, a tweedy Woolrich sportcoat that I altered myself. This is a VERY nice, fully lined wool jacket.
$7.50... yes, you read that right $7.50
White shirt, I had already. Doesn't everyone? If you bought a new one at Mervyn's you could get it for around $25

TOTAL (not including the white shirt, since I had one already): $201.50

...plus some shipping from ebay sellers. Call it $215

I got a lot of compliments, many questions and two women who just HAD to talk to me at length about kilts, Scotland, exactly whether the kilt was too cold in the winter and so on. The Mrs. was witness to a lot of it and she thinks it's funny.

This getup won't cut the mustard on the Royal Mile, and even at a post-Games ceilidh here in the USA with a lot of knowledgeable folks it's just a bit "not quite right" . However, here on the San Francisco Peninsula, it does very well in semi-formal occasions with regular folks and I'm very comfortable in it.

And so is my pocketbook.

[billmcc]

Bravo Alan! You must take a picture of your modern semi-formal outfit!

[sav]

Well done Alan! I too, modified a regular tweed jacket that was gathering dust in my closet and made it into a serviceable kilt jacket.
~Sav

[billmcc]

Sav,

Pictures please! I've been thinking about doing the same thing and would like to see how others have done it.

[GMan]

True fugality, a man after my own heart!

[davedove]

Done like a true Scotsman.

[MacMullen]

Sporran off of ebay white hair, "leather cantle" (riiight) , three chrome-topped tassels:
$35

That's a very dapper outfit, rivaling Sean Connery for coolness! And the price was right! I don't see where you couldn't go wearing an outfit like that. I agree, though, a green tie would go well with it. Or, perhaps a wool tie in matching tartan?

Is the X-Marks kilt pin still available anywhere, or did I miss out as a latecomer?

[GMan]

That's a very dapper outfit, rivaling Sean Connery for coolness! And the price was right! I don't see where you couldn't go wearing an outfit like that. I agree, though, a green tie would go well with it. Or, perhaps a wool tie in matching tartan?

Is the X-Marks kilt pin still available anywhere, or did I miss out as a latecomer?

Someones got a sharp eye! I guess I am at present memory challenged.

Check with Hank about the Xmark Kilt pin, he may have a few left.

[Hamish]

That's a very dapper outfit, rivaling Sean Connery for coolness! And the price was right! I don't see where you couldn't go wearing an outfit like that. I agree, though, a green tie would go well with it. Or, perhaps a wool tie in matching tartan?

Is the X-Marks kilt pin still available anywhere, or did I miss out as a latecomer?

I am sorry, Joel, but I could never describe Sir Sean as having "coolness", at least, not where his dress sense is concerned! He actually makes more faux pas with his Highland garb than any other celebrity I can think of - especially Scottish ones who should know better! The most memorable of his bloomers involve his ties: he is often seen wearing an ordinary coloured neck-tie, usually woollen, with his Prince Charlie. That is mixing an informal day wear item with Evening Dress - ugggggh! Still worse, and I apologise to you because you have just suggested this, that woollen tie has known to be in a tartan matching his kilt! Sorry, but that is something no well-dressed Scot would ever do, not even with a day-wear tweed jacket. We all know that there are no 'Rules' as such, but a tartan tie worn with a tartan kilt (even the identical tartan) just offends the eye - it looks terrible. With a tartan kilt and tweed jacket for day-wear, the tie should be woollen not silk, and its colour should ideally match one of the minor colours in the tartan of the kilt - in Alan's case, a dark (bottle) green woollen tie would be ideal.

Silk, or shiny, neck-ties can be worn with a tartan kilt, but these should be limited to plain grey or silver ones when coupled with black barathea Argyll or Crail jackets for wear at a day-time wedding.

Tartan ties do, indeed, have their place too but, in the kilt-wearing world, are most effective when worn with a plain coloured kilt. I frequently wear my clan tartan tie (Gunn) when wearing a black kilt, or with one of my TFCK kilt suits. I would never wear it with any of my Gunn tartan kilts.

You don't have to take my word for any of this, but if you doubt me, just try it for yourself and look closely at the results. It's a visual thing!

[MacMullen]

But, Sean is cool, you can't deny that. Some people can carry off a faux pas with aplomb. It's more about attitude than the way you're dressed or what you're doing. Look at Tom Sawyer - how did he convince all of those kids to help him paint the fence? Because he acted like it was the coolest thing you could do.

My comment wasn't on the proper or improper dress of Mr. Connery - it was on his coolness factor.

I think the same would apply with the tie. If you follow the rules religiously, and get a reputation for that, then you can start to take liberties with the old standards, because people will assume that you know what you're doing. Again, IMO it's attitude.

Now, having said all of that, I'm so new to kilts, I can only claim ignorance if I don't follow the rules. I'll have to try the tartan tie combo and see what happens. Of course, I'd have to acquire a tartan tie first...so I'll probably just take your word for it. :mrgreen: