Re-weaving to repair moth holes

**Jock Scot** · 24th August 12, 09:03 AM

Whilst having holes in your kilt is unfortunate to say the least, I should not loose too much sleep over them, if I were you, paticularly as they are out of sight. At the recent Moy show I saw two kilts, one a MacLeod and one a Macpherson, that had large(3 or 4 inches across) patches in their respective front aprons and their owners did not appear to bat an eye. I have seen bullet holes, rips, burn holes and yes moth holes in kilts and as long as the event is not too formal we just accept these things as "customising"!

**Tobus** · 24th August 12, 09:14 AM

Originally Posted by The Wizard of BC

Tobus,

Try opening up the apron facings. They are the turned over areas at your aprons outer edges. You should be able to scavenge enough yarns to do your job.

Ah, good idea! I'll take a look at that area and see whether it's something I have the fortitude to do. I'm assuming I'll have to cut out an entire line of stitching and then hand-sew it back after I've harvested the yarns I need?

Originally Posted by Jock Scot

Whilst having holes in your kilt is unfortunate to say the least, I should not loose too much sleep over them, if I were you, paticularly as they are out of sight. At the recent Moy show I saw two kilts, one a MacLeod and one a Macpherson, that had large(3 or 4 inches across) patches in their respective front aprons and their owners did not appear to bat an eye. I have seen bullet holes, rips, burn holes and yes moth holes in kilts and as long as the event is not too formal we just accept these things as "customising"!

Heh, yes, there's something to be said for "character". I just worry that because of the placement of these holes, they will start to open up or unravel over time. That's right where my sporran will rest, and the fabric will have to resist the jostling and friction of my sporran moving on the outside (transferred through the outer apron), as well as the rubbing on the inside against my shirt. Do you think this will become an issue over time? I'd hate for it to get to the point where it's a 3" patch that I have to do over it!

**The Wizard of BC** · 24th August 12, 09:22 AM

Tobus, You don't have to cut out a section. Simply unstitch the facings till you find the raw fabric edge. Then pull out the yarns you need. You don't need much and they don't need to be long. Use these yarns for your repair and then re-stitch your facing closed.

About the patch---This is the under apron. A patch would be unnoticable and I see patches all the time on the military kilts that come through the shop.

If the fabric itself is thin and you think may be weakened there is no reason you could not put a 6" or 8" square patch on both sides of the under apron. If you use a slippery fabric for your patch it would help with the chafe issue. The patch would strengthen the area and prevent further chafe.

**Tobus** · 24th August 12, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by The Wizard of BC

Tobus, You don't have to cut out a section. Simply unstitch the facings till you find the raw fabric edge. Then pull out the yarns you need. You don't need much and they don't need to be long. Use these yarns for your repair and then re-stitch your facing closed.

Right, I understand. When I said "cut out", I was talking about cutting the stitches to undo the apron facing, not actually cutting the cloth.

Thanks for the tips.

**MacSpadger** · 25th August 12, 02:50 AM

Tobus, I actually have a few left over meters of unused MOD no.2 QOH tartan from the 90's (I think) in a box, (somewhere??). If you are not in too much of a hurry, I could cut you off a small patch and just post it to you. That would confuse the customs men!

**Father Bill** · 25th August 12, 04:00 AM

Anything that confuses customs is good in my books. I love the look on their faces.

I know, nastiness is unbecoming a priest.

**Jock Scot** · 25th August 12, 04:05 AM

Originally Posted by Tobus

........

Heh, yes, there's something to be said for "character". I just worry that because of the placement of these holes, they will start to open up or unravel over time. That's right where my sporran will rest, and the fabric will have to resist the jostling and friction of my sporran moving on the outside (transferred through the outer apron), as well as the rubbing on the inside against my shirt. Do you think this will become an issue over time? I'd hate for it to get to the point where it's a 3" patch that I have to do over it!

As you are probably going to be the only one to see the patch and the only one who is worrying about it, it matters not what size the patch is, or what is made of. But it would be a wise precaution -----a stitch in time-----and all that. As Steve suggests a patch either side(front and back) should solve the problem for the forseeable future, like the next 20 years at least.

**Chas** · 25th August 12, 07:52 AM

The decision might already have been made, but I will add this, if I may. Tartan is, of course, a twill fabric. So it is not just an over under weave, but rather, over two, under two. As in -

Regards

Chas

**gwynng** · 7th September 12, 08:28 AM

Hi Tobus,

I saw kilt with a few moth holes that I was considering buying and before I did looked into reweaving to repair. I remembered years ago when I worked at a high end men's shop there was a tailor who did reweaving on pricey suits when they sustained a small tar or damage in the store. It was remarkable what they could do. So here is the link to the company. The main reason I am posting it is the little YouTube video in the corner that demos their work. Xmarkers seem to be a resourceful group of DYI ers so this might give you an idea of the process or a resource to send it out for repairs.

http://www.withoutatrace.com