Rank Insignia Pins on Flashes

[Father Bill]

(((((shudder))))

[Geoff Withnell]

As to the rest, I'm a Chief Petty Officer with 20 years in the USCG and and while I'm proud of my service, my branch, and my anchors, I wouldn't wear official uniform items such as rank insignia while in civilian clothes. There are plenty of service related items I'll wear out of uniform, but anything that actually goes on my uniform has no place on my civilian stuff.

Just my $0.02. As has been stated, you do as you please, but you might check the USMC uniform regs, they might have something to say about mixing uniform items with civilian attire.

Indeed they do, and have been discussed on prior threads. I like the position that the Scottish American Military Society takes. We wear our service awards (ribbons/medals/badges, etc) on the SAMS uniform, but we don't wear any rank.

[Hiburnicus]

The Marines are hardly going to throw you in the brig for wearing your chevrons, and you earned them...I say wear them any old way you want to.

[TheOfficialBren]

Quite right, David. I threw my copy out whilst I was in high school. It was was given to me from a mate of mine as sort of a joke, since I had already been an avid wearer of Highland Dress for quite some time.

Haha. I keep a copy around for a good chuckle once-in-a-while.

[David Thorpe]

The book "So You're Going to Wear the Kilt" has steered many people wrong...

Curious... What specifically do you find objectionable in Mr. Thompson's advice?

[TheOfficialBren]

David: He emphatically states that white hose is the only correct hose for formal wear in my copy.

[ASinclair]

David: He emphatically states that white hose is the only correct hose for formal wear in my copy.

I have a 2012 printing in paperback of the Third revised edition 1989. The following is on page 83 (in the Footwear chapter).

"Remember, too, that tartan hose are for evening only!...Diced hose...have always been an alternative choice for evening wear, and since even these are hard to come by, you will see many men in evening attire with solid color stockings. The purists have given in on this point, but they insist that the only correct color is white."

I understand Thompson to be saying that evening hose, in order of preference, is tartan, then diced, then solid color. He says that the purists insist that if solid color hose are worn with evening attire, they should be white. He has earlier in the book stated that he does not consider himself a purist.

[ASinclair]

The book "So You're Going to Wear the Kilt" has steered many people wrong...

I have a 2012 printing in paperback of the Third revised edition 1989.
In the chapter The Bonnet, on page 5, he says "I have even heard the romantic notion that...." He does not say this is a fact.

[Sean D]

Interesting viewpoints as always and if I may add mine , if you are attending a vet or military function then sir , wear what you wish or obtain advice from your fellow marines on a marine forum , however if you intend to dress in accordance with convention then I would suggest that less is more and therefor your rank pins should not be attached to your highland attire as it will be seen as bieng "over the top" service decorations , and awards etc usually mounted in full have always been accepted as correct , rank insingnia are not usually accepted whether it is retired Black Watch Regiment or United States Marine Corps . Only my humble Non Marine Corps view which in Donald's view doesn't count .

[Nathan]

I'm not a US Marine, but I am former military and, more importantly, I'm the Commissioner of Clan Donald Southern Ontario and so while I have no concern about how Marines kit themselves out in their civvies, I feel some duty to help ensure that my fellow clansmen know how to respect our cultural traditions while kilted.

Here's my advice, cousin, whether it matters to you or not. People wear one clansman badge on their bonnet and a pin on their kilt apron. That's pretty much the norm. I sometimes wear a single small pin on the left lapel of my kilt jacket and this has never raised an eyebrow because, given the widespread practice of doing this with saxon attire, I think people are used to it. I would not wear more than one of these lapel pins.

So, to answer your OP - pins on flashes are a strange idea.
Rank insignia on civilian attire, especially Highland attire, is a bad idea.
If you must wear a pin that you think is too small for a kilt pin, wear it on your lapel and please limit this to one small pin on the left lapel.

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