From the very beginning: I need advice!

[Murray of New Brunswick]

Thanks for your help, here's what we have:

The well-dressed grrom come to the ceremony loaded with:

1. Prince Charlie jacket
2. and vest;
3. fly plaid
4. with a brooch over the left shoulder;
5. tux shirt (whteher with winged collar or not may be a matter of taste )
6. with bowtie,
7. studs and cufflinks;
8. dress sporran (white rabbit fur ?);
9. kilt
10. white hose (only for a wedding - off white or darker for anything else); 11. sgian dubh in the right sock (unless you're left-handed):
12. flashes in either matching tartan or a color that compliments your kilt; 13. ghillie brogues.
14. kilt belt and buckle (?)
15. Buy your bride a matching sash and place it over her right shoulder as part of the ceremony.


OK, so now I have this much knowledge.
Q2: Let's draw out number 10 - the white hose. I understand there' some controversy about this. White hose would be appropraite for the groom to wear, is that correct? But not appropriate for other settings? What other settings, what would be appropriate and why?

Q3: I notice nobody in their list is mentioning any form of undergarment. Is that because they are presuming that such a garment would be worn, or insiting that such a garment should NOT be worn?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Juvenile references to pre-nups and contraceptives aside, let me actually say congradulations to you on your nuptuals. You are doing well to be planning in advance for your wedding -- you would not believe how many people call me up saying "I need 5 kilts in such-and-such tartan... can they be ready by Friday, I'm getting married this weekend?"

Kilts, from most places, will take a minimum of two months to have made and delivered. Depending on the availability of your tartan, and what other accessories you want, it may take longer. So give yourself plenty of time.

To answer your question, what should you be wearing -- there really isn't one singel answer to this question. Just as there are many different options for the gentleman getting married in pants, there are many different options for the gentleman getting marries in a kilt. The first step, of course, is to decide on the level of formality. This is going to greatly affect the outfit you wear. I know people who get married in very informal outfits -- just a kilt with a "Jacobite" style shirt and no jacket, for instance -- but for the sake of this post, I'll assume you want to go with a formal to semi-formal attire.

So, from head to toe:

Head: Most people choose not to wear a bonnet or any type of head covering for an indoor ceremony, especially a religious ceremony like a wedding. So no bonnet for this occasion.

Torso: For a full formal occasion the Prince Charlie jacket is fairly standard. This is typically black (though you will sometimes see other colors such as dark green, navy blue -- I've even seen white) and is the Scottish equivalent of the tuxedo jacket. It's worn with a 3-button vest, and a bow tie, with a formal shirt (pleated or unpleated front, up to you). The bow tie normally is in the same color to match the jacket, but if you want to wear a tartan bow tie to match the kilt, that would be ok. Sometimes you see people wear a black cummerbund instead of the vest.

For a semi-formal look, a black Argyle jacket will work. This is what I got married in. To dress it up you can wear a tux shirt with a bow tie (this is what we did), or you can wear a nice white dress shirt with a neck tie, to dress it down a bit. You can add a five-button vest (either in black to match the jacket, or tartan to match the kilt) if you like. Argyle jackets are also available in other colors (including many tweed lovat mixtures) but these are generally considered casual day-wear. It would be like getting married in a tweed sports jacket. But in black, they can be dressed up quite nicely.

There are other styles of formal jackets, including Sherffimuir doublets, Montrose doublets, etc., which are not seen with as much frequency as the two I mentioned before, but would be very nice for a formal wedding. Do an on-line search for the above two terms and you should find plenty of images.

Moving down, we'll come to the kilt. Any tartan you choose will work. Just make sure you get a hand-tailored kilt made from a worsted, twill weave kilting cloth. This is not the place to try and save money. Pay for the real thing -- you'll look great and never regret it.

If you wear a vest or a cummerbund, you won't need a belt. Otherwise, you'll want a black leather kilt belt, with a silver or nickel buckle. There are many styles, just pick one you like.

Same thing with sporran. You'll want either a semi-formal or formal sporran. There are countless varieties of these. Get something you like.

The style of kilt pin, like the sporran, is completely up to you.

On your feet, we'll talk about hose first. Diced hose or Argyle hose look fantastic with formal wear. Solid color hose are also ok, cost less money, and are easier to come by. I had a recent post in my blog about kilt hose:
http://blog.albanach.org/2005/07/on-kilt-hose.html

Read that for some advice on picking colors, etc. You'll want to select a color of flashes based on the tones in your kilt and the color hose you pick. Again, there is advice in the above article about that.

As far as shoes go, you can wear a pair of the "ghillie brouges" that you see for sale in Highland Dress shops. These are the patent leather dress shoes with the extra long laces. They are nice looking and certainly add a bit of extra pizzazz. But don't feel limited to them. Any black dress shoe like you would wear with a tux or a dark suit will work with a kilt as well.

Oh, last thing would be a sgian dubh. Again, there are countless styles of these and it is purely a matter of personal choice as to what style you wear.

If you have any questions along the way, please don't hesitate to ask!
Aye,
Matt

[Dreadbelly]

Q3: I notice nobody in their list is mentioning any form of undergarment. Is that because they are presuming that such a garment would be worn, or insiting that such a garment should NOT be worn?

Oh yes, those.

A kilted man to be wed should be wearing a wee lacy garter under his kilt. The bride is to remove this, with her teeth if she is a brave lass, and then launch it in to the cheering crowd as if she was shooting a rubber band.

[Bob C]

Q2: Let's draw out number 10 - the white hose. I understand there' some controversy about this. White hose would be appropraite for the groom to wear, is that correct? But not appropriate for other settings? What other settings, what would be appropriate and why?

Q3: I notice nobody in their list is mentioning any form of undergarment. Is that because they are presuming that such a garment would be worn, or insiting that such a garment should NOT be worn?

Q2 - Controversy is too strong a word. It's really just a matter of taste. As for "what other settings," once you have a kilt, you'll want to wear it for all sorts of things! I have not worn my tux since I got my kilt. If it's a formal occasion, Bob will be kilted. There are also Burns Nights, Kirkin' o' the Tartan, Scottish games and more. Those are the things I typically wear mine for. Some guys on this board wear kilts every day. Of course, you need a whole different set of accessories for different occasions. Shopping for that stuff is part ofthe fun.

Q3: No one will insist that you wear undergarments or not. Take my choice not to list them for what you will. If you DO choose to wear something beneath, wear something dark, so it won't show so badly when you do the Highland Fling at your wedding! :grin:

[Shay]

Juvenile? I thought that was some good advice! Congrats as well to youself and good luck to your bride! Also look into renting, if that hasn't been mentioned, before purchasing, the more formal things you probably won't get much use from. (The jacket, the frilly shirt, etc won't come in as handy down the line as the kilt itself and hose if you don't attend any formal do's.)

I would wear underwear on your wedding day- especially if your altar is any steps up above the crowd- and since you're not a usual kilt-wearer. There's a whole thread on underwear choices here if you want more help on that. I'm sure folks will disagree, but having been to a few wedding receptions, the crowd can get kind of raucous.

[LordDamax]

No dice. I have offered my hair up to God. No razors, no combs. I gave it to Him, hoping that He will see fit to let me live till it touches the ground and then some.

Lets hope you don't trip and fall then... ;)

[Bob C]

D'oh! I forgot about the kilt pin. Thanks, Matt, for the reminder.

I wear a pewter one, most of the time. It goes through the outer apron ONLY, about three inches up from the hem and three inches in from the edge of the apron.

There are endless varieties of kilt pins. Pick a nice one for your wedding.

I assume you've lined up a piper!

[Freelander Sporrano]

Congrat's on the up and comming wedding.

Matt is correct in every detail. You don't have to have a white rabbit Dress sporran Grey seal or some other type of fur is nice there are many to choose from (How I envy you) They are however expensive so start saving.
I wouls drop the belt if wearing a Prince Charlie.

You can use an evening belt I just think they don't look right .
As for underwear I use it under the kilt only if there are children around.

[davedove]

Also look into renting, if that hasn't been mentioned, before purchasing, the more formal things you probably won't get much use from.

This is really good advice, especially if you are short of funds, unless of course you want to go ahead and buy the whole outfit. Definitely in vest in the hand tailored kilt, as you will get the most use from that. Unless you plan on attending many formal events, you would probably be better off renting a Prince Charlie jacket, waistcoat, and formal sporran, but again, that's up to you.

As far as underwear, you'll get arguments for and against here on the boards. In my mind, that's a personal choice that only you can make.

[Bob C]

You don't have to have a white rabbit Dress sporran

That is certainly true. That's just what mine happens to be. I thought it would offset my wife's dress nicely, and it did. Sporrans come in all sorts of wonderful varieties.