Quote Originally Posted by OC Richard View Post
The most suitable outfit for me to wear at that event would have been this:



It's 17th century, far later than the Renaissance, however it's the earliest clear image we have of Highland Dress, and thus the only responsible starting-point for a Highland outfit of any earlier period.
Thanks for that And, I'll submit that to a great extent, much of this debate is a tempest in a teapot. I wear a kilt and other elements of highland dress because they're comfortable, look much better in public than an irreverent teenager broadcasting his stupidity wearing a T-shirt saying "I'm so horny, not even the crack of dawn is safe," and pay respects to my parents' origins. I cannot imagine ANYWHERE one would wear what's in OC Richard's picture except for some sort of re-enactment, without a theatrical or film costumer doing better fact checking than they often do first. And, even the backwards picture of the Royal Family displaying their various badges and awards doesn't provide much insight on what might be "appropriate" to wear today in public for ordinary life.

Certainly I for one can learn a great deal from the collective wisdom of this group about how people dress today and did in the past, but when the issue is "what looks good and wouldn't insult anyone on the street today," I agree with Jock that rules are to be considered but need not be slavishly obeyed to the extent of the "accuracy" of the hemline of one's underwear. (No, I haven't read that from Jock, but claiming that one should NEVER wear a flat cap with a kilt is no more helpful than saying one's socks can never be black or white but otherwise their color should look like you got dressed in the dark!