Apron opening to the left? Can it be reversed?

[The Wizard of BC]

This can be, and is, done quite often. The usual reason for a kilt having the apron open on the left is because it was made for a women. There is a school of thought that if it is made for a woman it should be fastened opposite of something made for a man.

Please don't tell female members of pipe bands this though, they wear the exact same kilts as the guys do.

The problem you will face is dealing with the strap hole if there is one. The quick fix is to sew the strap hole closed and when installing the new strap on the left side to put it inside the kilt.

Can you tell us if the pleats are opposite too? Normally the pleats would face toward the wearers right side. We have at least two men here who prefer to make their kilts with left facing pleats. They both live in N. America and find getting into a car with left facing pleats much easier.

If you understand the internal construction of a kilt you should have no problem reversing the apron. If not any kiltmaker could do it for you. I will caution however, this would take at least a few hours to complete and the labor rate could exceed what you paid for this kilt.

[Jock Scot]

Reversing the apron was a fairly common event, to get another "life" out of an old kilt, in my younger days and was considered as an event that needed no comment. I have not seen it that often recently, perhaps I just have not noticed, but I did see a reversed apron at Moy Show last month.

[CDNSushi]

Aaaaaand then there's advice from people like me who would say... Meh! Just wear the kilt as-is with the opposite apron opening. (Especially if it really does fit you to a "T".) 99% of the general public have no clue how a kilt apron is supposed to open anyway. And if anyone (e.g. the kilt police) gives you any grief about wearing a woman's skirt, or that the kilt should open on the opposite side, just give them a "history" lesson.

Tell them that you are the direct descendent of the famous Gregory MacQuarrie of the Clan MacQuarrie, in which the brave solider got his right arm blown off by a cannon in the Battle of Inverkeithing on July 20, 1651. When he returned to his home, he was no longer able to don the kilt. His wife, Bonnie, feeling sorry for her poor husband, she commissioned a kiltmaker to create a garment with the buckles on the opposite side and that opened on the left instead of the right. She presented her gift to Gregory, who got furious at the suggestion that he wear such a thing because he did not wish to stand out from his clansmen. Upon hearing of this, all of his immediate relatives and many friends immediately commissioned kilts of their own to be sewn with an opposite opening, in solidarity with Gregory. On his birthday in 1652, over 100 people showed up at his household, each and every one of them wearing their left-handed kilts. Gregory's wife called for her husband to quickly come outside, as the entire clan was there to give their birthday wishes and prayers. Upon looking out the window and seeing every man and boy wearing left-handed kilts, Gregory was so moved by their devotion, that he dug out the garment he had discarded before, put it on proudly and went out to meet his kin. From that day forth he was proud to wear his left-handed kilt, and did so daily until the day he died, and no one within a hundred miles of them ever dared to speak a single ill word or make fun of this brave war hero and his left-handed kilt.

From that day forth, it has been a tradition in your family for all male members to have kilts sewn with the opposite apron opening, out of respect for the great, brave Gregory MacQuarrie.

That'll shut 'em up real good.

(It's a made-up story, but with juuuuuust enough true and verifiable elements to make fact-checking rather difficult)...

[Kinetikat]

I love the tale of brave Gregory McQuarrie!
On the practical side, I wondered if you had just seen photos of this kilt, or have you seen it 'in the flesh'? Because a possible explanation for the reversed apron could be that the photo has been 'flopped'. It's worth checking with the vendor if that's the case.

[Spartan Tartan]

Aaaaaand then there's advice from people like me who would say... Meh! Just wear the kilt as-is with the opposite apron opening. (Especially if it really does fit you to a "T".) 99% of the general public have no clue how a kilt apron is supposed to open anyway. And if anyone (e.g. the kilt police) gives you any grief about wearing a woman's skirt, or that the kilt should open on the opposite side, just give them a "history" lesson.

Tell them that you are the direct descendent of the famous Gregory MacQuarrie of the Clan MacQuarrie, in which the brave solider got his right arm blown off by a cannon in the Battle of Inverkeithing on July 20, 1651. When he returned to his home, he was no longer able to don the kilt. His wife, Bonnie, feeling sorry for her poor husband, she commissioned a kiltmaker to create a garment with the buckles on the opposite side and that opened on the left instead of the right. She presented her gift to Gregory, who got furious at the suggestion that he wear such a thing because he did not wish to stand out from his clansmen. Upon hearing of this, all of his immediate relatives and many friends immediately commissioned kilts of their own to be sewn with an opposite opening, in solidarity with Gregory. On his birthday in 1652, over 100 people showed up at his household, each and every one of them wearing their left-handed kilts. Gregory's wife called for her husband to quickly come outside, as the entire clan was there to give their birthday wishes and prayers. Upon looking out the window and seeing every man and boy wearing left-handed kilts, Gregory was so moved by their devotion, that he dug out the garment he had discarded before, put it on proudly and went out to meet his kin. From that day forth he was proud to wear his left-handed kilt, and did so daily until the day he died, and no one within a hundred miles of them ever dared to speak a single ill word or make fun of this brave war hero and his left-handed kilt.

From that day forth, it has been a tradition in your family for all male members to have kilts sewn with the opposite apron opening, out of respect for the great, brave Gregory MacQuarrie.

That'll shut 'em up real good.

(It's a made-up story, but with juuuuuust enough true and verifiable elements to make fact-checking rather difficult)...

Brilliant!

[M. A. C. Newsome]

The OP nowhere said the pleats were reversed. To all those who are saying it can't be done, the kilt will never look right, or it's just not worth the effort, I am forced to disagree. It would actually be quite simple to do. If you don't care whether the exposed apron edge has a fringe, or if the internal strap passes through a "button" hole, then you could almost do it in your sleep. I make most all of my kilts with no apron fringe, and with an internal fastening on the left hip, which does not require a hole. If you do this kilt that way, it's just a simple matter of taking off the straps and buckles and reattaching them so that the kilt closes the opposite way.

[gwynng]

Great advice from all! Thanks.

BTW the pleats do go the right direction, which would lead me to believe the only construction change is in the apron overlap. The center stripe on the under apron, though not the same as the over apron, looks as if it is a better, more dominant choice for a center stripe. Go figure!

I did a little more research into the kilt brand itself and it is made by Kiltpin, which on their site has no women's wear at all; and prices are, well, alarming (£518 to 600+ for a med. weight kilt). The kilt is being sold as unworn, which I believe since it looks really new and fresh and the only thing missing is the basting to hold the pleats together; it seems that it is worth the $80 asking price.

I think my favorite reason for the apron switch is the MacQuarrie story provided by CDNSushi. I can hear it now, "Left handed opening? Oh no, not a woman's kilt, it's 'MacQuarrie Style'. Never heard of it? Well in 1651..."

It may remain a mystery, but if I can pick up a kilt that looks good and is selling for a tenth of its retail price, I can afford to either try switching the aprons or living with it as is and proudly wearing it "MacQuarrie Style".

I'm gonna buy it.

I make most all of my kilts with no apron fringe, and with an internal fastening on the left hip, which does not require a hole.

M. A. C. Do you have a photo or example of the internal fastening strap? This sounds interesting and would certainly make the process of reversing the aprons pretty easy.

[CDNSushi]

I can afford to either try switching the aprons or living with it as is and proudly wearing it "MacQuarrie Style".

I'm gonna buy it.

GO for it! Who knows? Maybe we are witness to a new trend that will come to be generically known as MacQuarrie style kilts... You know, a bit like Kingussie pleats.

[Friday]

I would tend to say that 99 out of 100 people will never notice the left hand opening. Of those that notice 99 out of 100 will not say anything. Those that do say anything, just ignore.

[gwynng]

A point well ta'en.

My observation of women's kilted skirts is that: 1. Waistbands tend to be wider 2. Buckles tend to be narrower 3. Pleats are less distinct and there are a lot fewer of them with much less fabric 4. Overall length is much longer (like 28 inches or so) or shorter 5. They are often unlined

This kilt has none of those attributes. Not to say you women don't wear true kilts (differentiating from kilted skirts), but this is definitely a kilt rather than a skirt. I'm gonna try it as is for a while, and can always try the apron switch if is feels weird wearing on the on the left. (is that the same as "dressing to the left"? with kilts a moot point) I am not a huge fan of kilt pins, largely because I don't like putting holes in my apron. So if I am not wearing a kilt pin on the left, it will be all the less noticeable.

I am for starting a new trend...MacQuarrie Style all the way!