Day and evening sporrans

[Jock Scot]

In the circumstances you suggest then your day sporran will do nicely and is perfectly acceptable.

This day/evening attire thing can be a tad misleading. For example it is perfectly acceptable( correct even) to wear a tweed day kilt jacket, day sporran, etc., when taking the wife out for a quiet informal dinner in the evening, or an informal evening drinks do and so on. I know that I keep banging on about context------formal/informal( beware! The UK definitions are not the same as North America)------, but once that(context) is understood it does make ones clothing decisions so much easier.

[Downunder Kilt]

A full mask sporran is also suitable for daywear, informal nightwear, as you you describe James. It is one sporran that bridges the gap, being acceptable for casual right through to black tie.

[OC Richard]

In the circumstances you suggest then your day sporran will do nicely and is perfectly acceptable.

This day/evening attire thing can be a tad misleading. For example it is perfectly acceptable( correct even) to wear a tweed day kilt jacket, day sporran, etc., when taking the wife out for a quiet informal dinner in the evening, or an informal evening drinks do and so on.

Thanks for that Jock. As always it's valuable to get your perspective.

It's interesting to note differences between American and Scottish levels of formality. I've seen a large number of vintage (c1920-c1960) photos taken in Scotland of weddings in which the men present are wearing 'day dress' (Lovat tweed jackets etc). Here, regardless of whether the wedding is held during the morning, afternoon, or evening the men nearly always wear black tuxedos if in 'Saxon' dress or full Evening Dress (black Prince Charlies, fur sporrans, plaids, etc) if in Highland dress.

The brides in the vintage photos showing men in Highland Day Dress are wearing what appear to be ordinary dresses rather than bridal dresses. Here full white bridal dresses are worn at any time of day or night.

Interesting that my in-laws' wedding photos show the groom in an ordinary suit and bride in an ordinary (for the time) dress.

Here, men will wear full Highland Evening Dress for morning church services (such as at a Kirking of the Tartan service) which has always struck me as overdoing it.

However as I've said before I've been hired to pipe at daytime weddings here in which one entire side of the family has flown over from Scotland for the event and the Scotsmen are all in black Prince Charlies or black Argylls with fur sporrans, leaving myself, if wearing Day Dress, somewhat out of step.

[Jock Scot]

Thanks for that Jock. As always it's valuable to get your perspective.

It's interesting to note differences between American and Scottish levels of formality. I've seen a large number of vintage (c1920-c1960) photos taken in Scotland of weddings in which the men present are wearing 'day dress' (Lovat tweed jackets etc). Here, regardless of whether the wedding is held during the morning, afternoon, or evening the men nearly always wear black tuxedos if in 'Saxon' dress or full Evening Dress (black Prince Charlies, fur sporrans, plaids, etc) if in Highland dress.

The brides in the vintage photos showing men in Highland Day Dress are wearing what appear to be ordinary dresses rather than bridal dresses. Here full white bridal dresses are worn at any time of day or night.

Interesting that my in-laws' wedding photos show the groom in an ordinary suit and bride in an ordinary (for the time) dress.

Actually kilt dress daywear(morning suit equivalent) would be a black barathea, silver buttoned argyll with a four in hand(drop down) tie. The tweed day jacket is lounge/business suit equivalent.

[OC Richard]

Now here's an interesting photo, c1950 judging from the car, with the Bride in full array and the Groom (if that is the Groom) in Day Dress

[Jock Scot]

Now here's an interesting photo, from the 1950s judging from the car, with the Bride in full array and the Groom (if that is the Groom) in Day Dress

No, I am sorry, he is not in day dress kilt attire! He is wearing a suit equivalent, which is standared wedding attire for most kilted weddings in Scotland, in spite of kilt hire companies best efforts to change it. Kilt dress daywear(morning suit equivalent) is a black barathea, silver buttoned argyll with a four in hand(drop down tie).

[BadenochWolf]

So is the fur-and-leather Semi-Dress sporran ever appropriate? Or is it just another moneymaker for retailers?

[Father Bill]

Neither fish nor fowl (nor, I suppose "foul" either) it's a recent innovation, so there is no weight of either tradition or propriety behind it.

So is the fur-and-leather Semi-Dress sporran ever appropriate? Or is it just another moneymaker for retailers?

[OC Richard]

So is the fur-and-leather Semi-Dress sporran ever appropriate?

There was, in the modern traditional Highland Dress which has come down to us from the early 20th century, no such thing as "semi-dress" (at least not so named, see above).

From the very earliest appearance I can find of the modern small pocketlike sporrans, "day" sporrans were offered with fur fronts, here in 1936. So, fur-and-leather sporrans were deemed to be appropriate for all the same times as all-leather ones.



The man in the old wedding photo is wearing one of these "day" sporrans, leather with fur front; in fact, he seems to be wearing #11 above, perhaps purchased from Andersons!

[OC Richard]

No, I am sorry, he is not in day dress kilt attire! He is wearing a suit equivalent...

This seems to be one of those times when things which to a mere observer like myself appear to be one thing, but to others something else.

Certainly in outward appearance that man's dress conforms entirely to Day Dress as it is always described, with tweed jacket, leather sporran, lovat hose, etc. In all my vintage Highland Dress catalogues, contemporaneous with that photo in fact, that precise sporran is listed as a "Day" sporran, that precise jacket listed as a "Day" jacket (see below for that exact sporran being so listed).

Puzzling...

Anderson's in 1936 states what at that time was, to them, appropriate for weddings:



Note that they mention what we would call charcoal grey, and black, kilt jackets. They don't call it "semi-dress" but indeed they seem to be speaking of a category of Highland Dress in between formal/evening dress and tweed day dress.