Well I got my long-awaited Bear Kilt, formal cut in muted MacNaughton today.

First off, it was right on time. Bear promised six months turnaround, and I got it in six months and four days. It's in time for me mate Phil's wedding, and for that I'm really, really glad. THANKS, Bear! I'll be the MacNaughton in a sea of MacFarlanes!

No sooner did I get it out of the bag that I strapped it on and wore it for the rest of the day. Here's my review.

OK, the construction is substantial. This kilt is in-between in overall weight...between my USA Kilts Philabeg and my Stillwaters. The stitching is wonderful; even and solid. It has a more "constructed" waistband than the philabeg. The way the kilt is made in terms of taper from hips to waist is very well done, I am impressed. I appreciate the full-length front-apron-waistband velcro and the full-width apron.

The kilt is not "lined" like the Stillwaters, but has a layer of "same material" sewn in the inside which is very much like a lining. Since it's sewn down, it doesn't wander around and get scrunched up like the Stillwaters linings. This is a plus.

I wish it had a couple of belt loops in the back, but then I didn't ask for belt loops and I'm sure Bear would have stitched on a couple if I'd have asked for 'em, so no biggie.

The bottom edge isn't selvedge, it's fringed. Traditionalists will not like this, but then the Marton Mills PV doesn't come with the most perfect-looking selvedge, so this is a good way to do it. This is how Rocky does his USA kilts edges, too. I enjoy the fringed LEFT edge of the apron, too. It's a different touch unique to Bear, and I like it.

The kilt just FEELS substantial, but yet it's not *heavy* to wear. I have a 40 inch waist and 44 inch hips and this kilt has about 16 pleats. The pattern match in the pleats is good, not as good as it would probably be on an 8-yard kilt with a smaller revealed pleat area, but still good. The kilt just looks good 'round me butt. It has a good "swing" to it.

I wore the kilt for about 7 hours on a warm day today and it was very comfortable.

I might...*might* .... buy a nice pair of kilt straps/buckles and put them on the right side closure, for that more traditional look. I'll ask Bear what he thinks about that before I do it.

All things considered...NICE kilt. I'm up to four kilts now...One USA Kilts philabeg, two Stillwater Standards, and this Bear Kilt. Each of them has their strong points. The Stillwaters are *heavy* and hotter than blazes on a hot day. They sure are nice in the winter, though. They require a lot of care in terms of pressing pleats, de-fuzzing the aprons and so on. Yet they're the most traditional-looking ones. The Philabeg is great on a hot day, and I love the bright color. It's lightweight, and incredible though it sounds, the cut is actually "slimming" on me, probably because of the reduced bulk of the garment, and that it naturally rides a little bit lower than the Stillwaters. It has sewn-down pleats and is a breeze to take care of.

Bears formal cut lies somewhere in between. It doesn't have the bulk of the Stillwaters, and I like that. Yet there's more substance here than the summer - weight philabeg. The pleats aren't sewn down, so it looks a little more traditional, which is what I asked for. Time will tell if the pleats require a lot more care, but I don't mind ironing them now and again. The Poly-Viscose on my USA Kilt hasn't fuzzed or shown signs of wear under the sporran, and I don't expect Bears kilt to do that, either.

All in all, a nice kilt and it looks sharp. I'm really looking forward to showing up at the Clan tent at the next games with my MacNaughton, FINALLY!! I'm very glad I ordered it, and I promptly went down and bought a tie to go with it so I'll be dressed to the nines on Phils wedding day. I'll be sure to get pics as soon as I can.

THANKS, Bear!

BTW, I got a pair of Bears white rugby socks, too. I got bright white, which will annoy a lot of people (it already annoyed my wife) , but I thought I'd try it. This type of sock is MILES ahead of the other rugby socks that I tried a few months ago. Those are already gone in the trash. These will stick around for a while, as theres' a lot more cotton in these than the other ones. For what they are, they're pretty nice. Don't expect them to be $25 woolen imported kilt hose, 'cause they're not, but if you don't want to spend $20-$25 for Locharron Hose, these'll do. I wore them all day, too, rolled down to my boots. They're going to see a lot of use on my kilt-and-boots days.