Looking for the best casual kilt

[kilted2000]

I have several USA Casual Kilts. They are pretty good in the price category. They do not have 5 yards.

Clan.com also sells an essential 8 yard kilt. They have buckles, sit at natural waist, have canvas lining, etc. They are pretty much traditional kilts but made from Marton Mills Polyviscose material. They cost around $250 before using the xmarks the Scott discount.

They have a blind hem stitch at the bottom. Would I call them a bespoke kilt, no. They seem to have the interfacings that the 5 yard kilts usually do not have.

The only real issue with the Clan.com essential 8 yard kilt, is that it cost $150 more for the kilt not including the higher shipping from Scotland. All for roughly the same material. 8 yards is definitely better than 5 or fewer yards, but is it worth all the extra expense? It might be better just to save up for a traditional 8 yard wool kilt.

[AustinDiver]

The only real issue with the Clan.com essential 8 yard kilt, is that it cost $150 more for the kilt not including the higher shipping from Scotland. All for roughly the same material. 8 yards is definitely better than 5 or fewer yards, but is it worth all the extra expense? It might be better just to save up for a traditional 8 yard wool kilt.

Sorry for delayed response. I cannot speak about value. I could not speak about the clan.com 5 yard essential kilt.

I have quite a few essential 8 yarders. I ordered them in pairs and saved on the shipping.

The corresponding 8 yard kilt with the XMARKS discount is about the same price as the Semi-Trad from USA Kilts.

The 5 yard essential kilt from clan.com is about $150 or so without any discounting. Comparing the 5 yard clan.com to the semi-trad is a certain posiibility.

I have a 5 yard wool casual kilt that I got on clearance from clan.com. I will never go into that group again. It has no interfaceing, pleats are not cut out. It does has hidden stitches(Not top stiched).

I also had a casual kilt from a Canadian maker Burnet-Struths. Again, it had not interfacing, the belt loops did not pmatch the tartan, the buckles did not match the underlying tartan. I am unsure if it used 5 yards of material. It was very light weight. I liked the tartan which is was produced for an event.

11 0z wool casual kilts or even 16 oz casual kilts are off my list as marketed by most kilt makers.

I would be willing to go for the USA Casual Kilt. It is top stiched. The cloth is tough. They have 2-3 layers of pleats sewn together. The price is a little lower. They do not have the feel of traditional kilts.

My opinion is the poly viscose from martin mills is much tougher than some of the wool materials. It is very tighly woven and the pleats lie down very flat. If the pleats are not cut out, I am unsure if it would be a huge deal on a 5 yard kilt.

The wool can have more character.