Wedding sporran time!

[gremio]

Hi all

Getting hitched in July in Spain in the full regalia. Thanks to all who have advised me already - I have a pretty good kit all sorted out. Dark kilt from Houston in Paisley in their St Mirren tartan (the saint, not the football team), nice square toed ghillies, and a prince charlie, bow tie and shirt.

SO

Just the final touches! I was looking at a more interesting sporran to offset the more restrained look and although initially thinking of a white rabbit one at a good price from ebay, Im having second thoughts. First, because the stock images don't exactly scream quality (though it may be just a bad picture – many seem made without much care though), and secondly because I'm quite keen on the white persian a lamb ones I've seen cropping up.

Can anyone advise if the persian lamb sporran seen as a bit informal for a wedding?

AND

An age old question - black or ecru hose! I have a feeling that question has been asked many times before! If black, is a black shirt a bit of a no-no?

All the best and thanks all for previous advice - much appreciated

Steve

[knotty]

I have one of those white rabbit dress sporrans from a e bay dealer. Im very happy with the quality.
Im not sure if I found the correct tartan. The St Mirren tartan I found is black & grey with red lines.
A white sporran would look great with that. The color pallette I would look at would include black, grey, white (ecru), red, green (opposite to red), orange (adjacent to red) &/or blue (adjacent to red).
I wouldnt use black any where else because your kilt, pc & shoes are already black. I think I would go white, ecru, grey or claret hose. I think white or claret would be strikingly good.

Craig

[xman]

Beware eBay deals. Go for diced or tartan hose if you can and consider a hair sporran. http://www.blacktieguide.com/Supplemental/Scottish.htm

[Blupiper]

Gremio:

Congrats on your impending wedding. There are some nice bovine and faux fur sporrans out there that would fit the bill. Look at USA Kilts website. As far as the hose, ask your bride-to-be. And remember the wedding mantra: whatever the bride wants, she gets.

JMB

[LitTrog]

As hose go, I'd recommend going with something other than black or white. However, if you're set on using those colors, why not go with some black/white diced hose? They will go with any tartan but be much more visually interesting than solid white or black. I have a pair and they look pretty fantastic.

[thescot]

I disagree with the bride thing. You are not a bride's escort; you're a groom. A man. Wear what you want and don't go down that everyone-looks-alike path. It's rather . . . je ne sais quoi. . . plebean!

Wear what you like. I prefer tartan hose to diced--not so gaudy. And I personally like the white rabbit sporrans if well made. I have one--I think it's probably rabbit but not sure-- I haven't worn since I bought the hair sporran, but it's a great contrast to all that black. I bought mine from the Scottish shop at the base of Grandfather Mountain about 15 years ago and paid well over $100.

I think picking something fairly innocuous is your best choice. Do not be garish. Good taste is expressed by modest, low-key clothing, even in Scottish attire. And if you want, you can get a fairly inexpensive hunting dress sporran that looks just fine, even if it's cheap! Ha. I prefer quality to quantity, but if you're not likely to wear a dress sporran again anytime in the foreseeable future, then go cheap! It's not really a good plan to buy good stuff you never wear.

[unclevenus]

Just got mine delivered (via Paisley) to me this morning. Houston's is a legitimate operation

[RockyR]

White Persian Lamb sporrans are pretty great looking IMHO. I had this one made for me and had so many comments on it, we started carrying it as "stock" in the shop:



For the hose, I PERSONALLY prefer the Cable Knit hose. For your tartan, I'd say Charcoal or grey hose would work well:



The grey ones are the ones I got married in (please excuse the advert... this image was nicked from the homepage of our site):

[Tobus]

I was looking at a more interesting sporran to offset the more restrained look and although initially thinking of a white rabbit one at a good price from ebay, Im having second thoughts. First, because the stock images don't exactly scream quality (though it may be just a bad picture – many seem made without much care though)

Your gut reaction is probably correct. If it's a "good price from ebay" and it looks cheap, it probably is. And if you're having doubts about the quality from their sales photo, I don't hold out much hope that you'll be pleasantly surprised when you get it. In all likelihood, you'll be disappointed.

This is your wedding! You will be looking at these photos for the rest of your life. Your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren will end up with those photos as part of their family history. Do you want to look back on it and think gosh, I really wish I had bought a better sporran that didn't look so cheap? I'm not suggesting that you blow your budget or put yourself in debt over a silly sporran, but go with the best quality one you can afford. You can always sell it later and get most of your money back, if not all of it. But the photos you take at your wedding will be preserved for posterity, so make sure it meets your standards!

I second LitTrog's suggestion on diced hose.

[John McQuillen]

I've just compiled my bits and pieces for my wedding in October.

My suggestion, based only on personal opinion and looking at a bucketload of options for wedding attire, is to get what you really want! I think the persian sporrans look fantastic if thats the look you like, personally I went for white arctic fox but that did cost me a bit of money, but then my wedding is black tie and I just really loved the sporran.

When it comes to sock and shirt colour...... black shirt and socks is very striking but it is very dark particularly if your tartan is darker colours. I've worn it as a guest to a wedding, but I think its a very modern look so it depends on the style of the wedding you are having - when I wore it it was because the wedding in question was a very ultra-modern affair and traditional may have looked a little out of place amongst a sea of people in very modern cut suits and black shirts. I also wore a brighter coloured tartan and tie so it contrasted with the black shirt, socks and jacket. A white shirt is more traditional, it is the default for most occasions particularly weddings. I think another great look is to match sock and tie colour that contrast with the tartan, then the white or black shirt become almost inconsequential and don't forget you have flashes to add colour too - theres a lot of options when wearing highland dress.

At the end of the day you are the groom, I doubt anyone is going to be critical of your clothing on your wedding day, and lets face it the bride gets most of the attention in any case. Wear something you love, be happy and have an amazing day!!!