"Flash of color" in pleating to the stripe

[Jon Lilley]

Hi Barb,

Thanks so much for sharing this neat trick! But, but, but, I thought we were supposed to avoid the dreaded lawn chair effect at all cost . . . Or, did I just miss the next memo? Is this something you do for dancers? Or, is this just another choice we get to make as kiltmakers?

Slàinte,

Jon

[Pleater]

You can still get a flash of colour with a fairly strong vertical element in the visible pleat - the trick is in chosing which part of the tartan to hide and which to show.

I have a kilt with the visible pleat grey and black, but the folded under fabric is red, white and black, with the red most likely to show.

That flashes.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Barb T]

But, but, but, I thought we were supposed to avoid the dreaded lawn chair effect at all cost . . . Or, did I just miss the next memo? Is this something you do for dancers? Or, is this just another choice we get to make as kiltmakers?

Absolutely it's a choice you can make. A kilt pleated to the stripe will always have some element of horizontality to it. Whether you like it or not depends on your taste. To me, the "lawn chair" starts to show up when there are wide bands with lots of different colored stripes, and I don't like the look of that. But, it's all a matter of personal taste.

[Jon Lilley]

Hi Barb,

Thank you very much for the insight. This memo's coming in loud & clear! I guess I really wasn't that far out of the loop after all. I know that there'll always be a horizontal aspect to every tartan, but downplaying it has always been a mental mission. It's nice to know there is a bit more freedom there after all.

Mòran, mòran taing,

Jon

[Barb T]

Just to give you an example, the photo below of the Antarctica tartan pleated to the stripe has a very prominent horizontal striping. Some might view it as too much; personally I love it. So, it's really a matter of taste.

[Jon Lilley]

This is stunning work, Barb! Your daughter's a very very lucky girl. This example is really eye catching! I'm going to play around with my next tartan to see what I can come up with . . . if it ever arrives. Wish me luck, OK!

Cheers,

Jon

[madmacs]

Hoping it works well for mine...



Pinning and picture courtesy of Bonnie Heather

[crash]

Wow Barb,
That's a really cool thread. Until now I thought I preferred pleated to the sett but now I'm not so sure. thanks

[MT4Runner]

Hoping it works well for mine...



Pinning and picture courtesy of Bonnie Heather

It will work very well. The way you've pleated it, you may see just a tiny sliver of red when you're standing and the kilt drapes normally.

If you "roll" the fabric just a bit more into the pleat, you wouldn't see any of the bright red band when the kilt wearer is standing normally. The appearance of the "flash of color" would be more surprising/dramatic when the kilt swishes.

Even 1/4"-1/2" difference in pleat location makes a difference!

If you have a fabric that doesn't take a permanent crease, you can test-pleat a few pleats with an iron to see how it will look.