I've been wanting a kilt in weathered/muted colours for quite some time now, but it just hasn't been in the cards up to this point. Finally, though, I'm putting my foot down and declaring that I will move on this project within the next month or so.

Here's the deal. My clan tartan is Colquhoun. There are only two standard tartan colour schemes: modern and ancient. They are pretty much what you'd expect. Modern is darker and richer in colour, while ancient is lighter. So, as a starting point, here are the standard tartan choices:

Colquhoun Modern:


Colquhoun Ancient:



Now, I already have a kilt in Colquhoun Ancient. I love the colours, and they are very traditional. But what I want is to do my own custom weave that tones down the tartan to a more 'weathered' or 'muted' scheme (same exact sett size and pattern, just different colours). Think "earth tones". One of the mills used to offer a Colquhoun Weathered tartan, but it is not one that they keep in stock, and would cost me a pretty penny to have it woven. And I'm not sure it's what I'm really looking for anyway.

If I'm going to do a custom mill run, I'll probably get enough yardage to do a full 8-yard kilt, a tartan waistcoat, a day plaid, and perhaps 6-8 extra yards for future purposes (maybe a shawl or a dress for the wife?).

I know that DC Dalgliesh does custom mill runs in 16-ounce wool. So I'm assuming it will come from them. But I have some questions for those who might know:

1. Does anyone know if they will do custom runs in 18-ounce?

2. What is their minimum length? I seem to recall 8 yards being required, which should be OK. Just want to make sure.

3. Any idea on the cost per yard/meter, or the wait time?

4. Can I deal with them directly, or is it better to have my kilt-maker order the cloth directly?

5. What's the best way to ensure the colours I get are the colours I want? Does DC Dalgliesh send out yarn samples so I can compare true colours, and if so, does it usually give you a good representation of the final product?



Anyway, here are some colour schemes I've been playing with, using Scotweb's tartan generator. I haven't quite made up my mind yet, as it's difficult to extrapolate an image like this into a full kilt, waistcoat, etc. But they are all variations on the same theme, by tweaking the green to tan, blue to grey, red to red/brown, and white to tan.

Colquhoun Muted no. 1:


Colquhoun Muted no. 2:


Colquhoun Muted no. 3:


Colquhoun Hunting no. 1:


Colquhoun Hunting no. 2:



Does any one of these strike you as being better suited to a kilt/waistcoat/plaid? If so, why?