Wearing the Kilt Pin

[Jock Scot]

I'm sure the kilt pin serves a purpose.
Someone makes money if you buy one.

But if there were a functional purpose, someone of those who have worn kilts for 20, 30, 40 and more years would have found it by now.
In my opinion.

It does happen! In my rather long time of kilt wearing, some 70 plus years and some of that time wearing the kilt in fairly wild and rugged conditions I have suffered the " Marilyn Monroe" experience twice.

The front apron moving in the breeze is a fairly regular event and as long as one understands that the inner apron cannot move much there is nothing to worry about. In time you learn to walk with your hands at your sides in breezy conditions. In truth, from my experience it's not the aprons you need to worry about it's the pleats at the back that can threaten to take off!

The first of my " Marilyn " moments was at a wedding in Oban with a full blown Atlantic storm in full swing and upon leaving the church the eddying wind caught several of us kilt wearers off guard and it must have been an amusing sight for the onlookers as we wrestled our kilts back into shape. It's a bit like being attacked by some sort of irate octopus!

The second time was when my brother and I were on top of Bein Bhan shooting ptarmigan, the weather as it does, suddenly changed and we found ourselves blown to the ground by tremendous winds, actually on the deck was the safest place! But as we crawled to the nearest large boulder for shelter the pleats of our kilts were over our shoulders. That was a very frightening few hours.

So yes the wind can cause the kilt to move, but rarely to any ill effect and frankly the kilt pin in those rare severe conditions is no damn use at all.