What kind of Jacket/Waistcoat needed?

[ChubRock]

Friends,

My wife has won the state-wide award for Educational Support Professionals. She will be presented at the state level as well as the national level later this winter. I need to be the arm-candy or trophy husband, if you will. She has encouraged me to go kilted to the ceremonies. They are not formal, nor even considered semi, but a suit would be expected I'm sure.

That means I need more stuff :-)

I have the imperial black wingtips, the buffalo sporran, proper hose, MacLellan ancient tank and MacLellan flashes. I am saving pennies for scarlet flashes at the moment.

My questions is, can I get by with a dress shirt with red tie or MacLellan tie, or do I need a nice waist coat and jacket. Can I look as good with just a waistcoat and tie?

Or is this the look I need?



BYW, here is the kilt...

[Jock Scot]

Well I don't know what sort of weather you have at that time of year,but if you consider a suit would be appropriate for the occasion then a tweed kilt jacket(if warm) really ought to be worn and a waistcoat too if it is going to be on the cool side. A waistcoat on its own,in my view, would be just that bit too casual. Don't forget that a tweed kilt jacket is roughly equivalent to a suit.

[ChattanCat]

I agree with Jock, you should wear a kilt jacket either Crail, Braemar, or similar style with or without a vest (preferably matching). Go with a plain tie or bow tie, don't want too much tartan. You can even put plain flashes on instead of the tartan flashes.

[dfmacliam]

A jacket and tie will be your suit equivelent.. but you wear what you have and dress it the best you can, if you are unable to get a jacket.

[OC Richard]

I would definately invest in an Argyll/Crail/Braemar style jacket.

They're amazingly versatile. I've seen them worn with a black crewneck shirt for a Hollywood-like semi-casual look, a turtleneck, with an oxford button-down shirt both with and without tie, with dress shirt and long necktie to match in with men in suits, with Churchill collar shirt and black bowtie to match in with men in tuxedos.

They can be dressed up with shoulder plaid as seen in my avatar (though technically speaking such a plaid should be worn with one of the more formal Highland jacket styles).

Anyhow, with an Argyll jacket you'll be perfect for any of the appearances you'll be making with your wonderful wife! Congratulations to you all!

PS black kilt hose are becoming quite the fashion recently and will give a nice dignified formal look. I would avoid cream/offwhite kilt hose myself.

[JSFMACLJR]

PS black kilt hose are becoming quite the fashion recently and will give a nice dignified formal look. I would avoid cream/offwhite kilt hose myself.

And I would stay away from black hose, as well. IMHO they just don't look "right" with the kilt. There are many nice colours you can choose from. What's "fashion" today will be old news in no time. Stick with the classics.

[Nighthawk]

And I would stay away from black hose, as well. IMHO they just don't look "right" with the kilt. There are many nice colours you can choose from. What's "fashion" today will be old news in no time. Stick with the classics.

On the one hand, I agree. But on the other, black matches everything! So I don't see it going out of fashion any time soon. So onto the question... I would think that you should go with what Jock says- Jock is good, Jock is wise. I defer to him in all things traditional.

[Jock Scot]

On the one hand, I agree. But on the other, black matches everything! So I don't see it going out of fashion any time soon. So onto the question... I would think that you should go with what Jock says- Jock is good, Jock is wise. I defer to him in all things traditional.

Gosh! Steady on!

[BobsYourUncle]

On the one hand, I agree. But on the other, black matches everything! So I don't see it going out of fashion any time soon. So onto the question... I would think that you should go with what Jock says- Jock is good, Jock is wise. I defer to him in all things traditional.

Hear, Hear, Nighthawk! All hail Jock! I agree with finding a jacket that fits, and having it cut out to accommodate a sporran. Here in NY, while winters can be quite cold, most of the time it is too warm for a tweed jacket, so I had a black linen jacket cut into a kilt jacket. It has worked out great, and cost a fraction of the price of any of the jackets quoted to you heretofore. Just my two cents--good luck. Nice kilt, by the way...

[OC Richard]

And I would stay away from black hose, as well. IMHO they just don't look "right" with the kilt. There are many nice colours you can choose from. What's "fashion" today will be old news in no time. Stick with the classics.

No solid colored/self-coloured hose are classic, in the sense that traditionally in Highland dress hose were always patterned, either in a pattern we call "diced" or in some sort of simplified tartan.

Cream/offwhite hose are definately not "classic" but themselves are a relatively recent innovation, one I don't really care for.

About black hose, the first time I saw a pipe band wearing them I didn't like it at all! All their legs, with the black hose and shoes, from a distance, looked like burnt twigs sticking out from under their kilts. And, the distinctive look of the Ghillie brogues was lost. The lighter the hose, the better the Ghillies show up, which is one reason I think pure white hose have been so popular with pipe bands over the last decade or so. With black hose the bands might as well just wear ordinary shoes.

But... at the 2008 World Pipe Band Championships the Spirit of Scotland pipe band showed up beautifully kitted out with their Isle Of Skye kilts and black hose...and now more and more bands are following suit. White and black are no-brainers for bands because they go with any tartan.



I should add that I actually didn't say that I liked black hose in my earlier post; I just observed that they're becoming very popular now. Fashion changes; cream hose are out of fashion and black hose are in fashion. Fashion has nothing to do with any inherent or objective superiority or inferiority, it's just fashion.