Hi BBQ

The swing of a kilt is largely controlled by how far down the fell is stitched. If the fell is too short, the pleats wobble around kind of chaotically. If the fell is too long, the pleats won't swing. The rule of thumb of a fell stitched down 1/3 of the total finished length of the kilt (including the rise but not the hem) produces a great swing. It doesn't matter at all where that falls relative to a prominent stripe. So, just measure the distance, and start stitching there.

This also means that, if you lengthen a kilt very much, you really need to lengthen the fell as well by stitching each pleat down farther, if you want to have the best swing and not have wobbly pleats. If you have to shorten a kilt, there's nothing you can do except live with a reduced swing. You can't shorten the fell both because of the steeking and because the pleats are cut out.

Cheers!

Barb