Oops - marking pleats is hard!

**OC Richard** · 18th February 14, 06:50 AM

Originally Posted by Barb T

In the interest of full disclosure and confession, I pin the dickens out of each and every pleat!

Ha! Elsie wouldn't let us do!

It was the scariest part.

**Barb T** · 18th February 14, 07:39 AM

If you read my post, you'll see that I make the analytical point that, even if you pin incredibly slowly, adding 4-5 pins to each pleat adds, at the very outside, 30 minutes to the time it takes you to make a kilt (which is about 40 hours for a beginner and 20 hours for a pro). And that's assuming that it takes you a full minute to add a few pins once you've already gotten the waist and the hip properly sized and pinned - I timed it, and, for me, it adds less than 30 seconds to each pleat.

It takes _a lot_ of practice to make a perfect pleat without pinning. If you have to take out and re-do even one pleat, you lose the time advantage that you gained by not pinning. And, I don't know about all y'all, but I HATE taking out pleats.

Anyway, back to the analysis. It takes me about 20 hours to make a kilt. If I didn't pin the pleats, _and if I didn't have to take out and re-do any of them_, I could make a kilt in 19 hours and 45 minutes (30 pleats times 30 seconds is 15 minutes). If I genuinely saved 15 minutes on each kilt (i.e., no re-done pleats), I could make 81 kilts in the time it would take me to make 80 kilts without pinning. Wow...I'd rather pin and not have to take out any pleats.

Sorry - I'm a scientist - I'd rather analyze it than to blindly accept an assertion.

**unixken** · 18th February 14, 10:54 AM

Originally Posted by Barb T

And, I don't know about all y'all, but I HATE taking out pleats.

Hmmm... Is the plural of "y'all" really "all y'all"?

**Barb T** · 18th February 14, 10:57 AM

yes, yes it is...

**Deesquared** · 18th February 14, 10:39 PM

I am quite enjoying the turn this thread has taken...
Meanwhile, I'm happy to say that I have passed the center back pleat mark! Yay! Only 9 more pleats to go! Hooray!

**Steve Ashton** · 18th February 14, 10:49 PM

Originally Posted by unixken

Hmmm... Is the plural of "y'all" really "all y'all"?

Back in the '50's before the Interstate highway system there was a major highway that crossed the Mason-Dixon line right about the corner of Maryland, W. Virginia and Virginia.

There was a big sign marking the "Mason-Dixon Line" at an intersection. On one side of the line there was a sign that said "No U-Turn" and on the other side of the intersection the other sign said "No U-All-Turn".

**RockyR** · 27th February 14, 06:11 AM

Originally Posted by Barb T

If you read my post, you'll see that I make the analytical point that, even if you pin incredibly slowly, adding 4-5 pins to each pleat adds, at the very outside, 30 minutes to the time it takes you to make a kilt (which is about 40 hours for a beginner and 20 hours for a pro). And that's assuming that it takes you a full minute to add a few pins once you've already gotten the waist and the hip properly sized and pinned - I timed it, and, for me, it adds less than 30 seconds to each pleat.

It takes _a lot_ of practice to make a perfect pleat without pinning. If you have to take out and re-do even one pleat, you lose the time advantage that you gained by not pinning. And, I don't know about all y'all, but I HATE taking out pleats.

Anyway, back to the analysis. It takes me about 20 hours to make a kilt. If I didn't pin the pleats, _and if I didn't have to take out and re-do any of them_, I could make a kilt in 19 hours and 45 minutes (30 pleats times 30 seconds is 15 minutes). If I genuinely saved 15 minutes on each kilt (i.e., no re-done pleats), I could make 81 kilts in the time it would take me to make 80 kilts without pinning. Wow...I'd rather pin and not have to take out any pleats.

Sorry - I'm a scientist - I'd rather analyze it than to blindly accept an assertion.

You're lucky you hand sew and can pin from the TOP of the pleat. When I (machine) sew an 8 Yarder, I have to sew it inside out, so I have to pin from the inside. This means using my tiny ruler and measuring to the thread (warp and weft) and pinning, then flipping over the pleat to the other side and making sure it comes OUT at exactly the same spot (again, measuring to the thread).

It takes me about 4 minutes to pin each pleat, but only about 30 seconds to SEW the pleat.

**Deesquared** · 29th March 14, 10:54 AM

kilt progress 29-03-2014 10-40-38 AM.jpg pleats 29-03-2014 10-41-09 AM.jpg
Making progress!
I've finished all the pleats, and sewn the hem. Yay!
Trying to baste the pleats was giving me trouble last night. I tried about 4 times, but had to keep taking it out.
There is just so much fabric, I'm having a hard time keeping it under control!
I'm going to give it another try today.

**chasem** · 29th March 14, 02:12 PM

It's looking quite good!

I don't know what the pros do, but when I baste, I pin the pleats again - 3 or so pins per pleat from bottom of feel to selvedge.

**Barb T** · 29th March 14, 02:33 PM

Originally Posted by Deesquared

There is just so much fabric, I'm having a hard time keeping it under control!

If you just baste one pleat at a time, it's much easier to control all that fabric! Just baste one pleat to the next one, then pick up the next and baste, then the next, and so on. It's not so bad!!!