from a soon to be kilt owner

[outpost_2]

I'm a soldier in iraq planning to buy my first kilt when I return from this deployment. what should I/need to know about kilts when ordering one. I also am having a hard time finding my kirk family tartan. where should I look?

[Chas]

Hi outpost_2,

Welcome to XMarks from Norfolk in England. The Scottish Register of Tartans has this entry for Kirk:

http://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tar....aspx?ref=2003



You will find that there is a wealth of information on this board - keep asking the questions and the answers will flow back to you.

Keep safe till you come home.

Regards

Chas

[McClef]

from South Wales UK!

[Oddern]

Welcome from Norway!

[KFCarter]

First, thank you for your service and come home safely.
I'm a relative "newbie" on this board but have found lots of excellent advice.

I think the two biggest factors in choosing your first kilt are:
1) budget... there is a wide range of costs that hinge on factors like the type and weight of the cloth used and method of construction, i.e. hand stitched vs. machine stitched
2) how and where do you want to wear your kilt? Do you want kilts for daily use, knocking around the house, going to a ball game, hanging out at the local pub; or are you primarily interested in a kilt for formal occasions?

My first kilt is what is called a "tank". It's made of heavy (16 oz.) wool cloth woven with kilts in mind and used 8 yards of fabric. It's an expensive garment but it will last literally generations. It has the sharp pleats and classic "swing" associated with traditional kilts and I'll use it for formal occasions, and for work (my job requires suits, so it's a still a fairly formal use). First thing I realized after falling in love with my tank, was that I wouldn't want to wear it to the ballpark, or for running errands or for lounging about the house. For that, I was going to want something less expensive, lighter weight and easier to care for. For a really great discussion on the various choices for a "casual kilt" try the following link. It's a thread containing all the great advice I got when I asked a question about the best choice for casual use.

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/w...642/index.html

The "Kilt Advice" forum will be a great place for you to post your specific questions. Happy Kilt Hunting!

And once again, thank you, bless you and stay safe,

Slainte

[MartinW]

Welcome to the board...and yeah! come back safely!
A kilted Welshman in England!

[JolyStNicholas]

First welcome to the board.

May the lord walk with you and bring you home safely.

As to your first kilt, there is an unending supply of information on this site that
should fill your mind with wonder. Wondering why you should wait til you get home. If you are going to purchase and off the rack kilt it won't take that long, but if your thinking of having one made it could take up to 8 weeks for it
to be completed, or longer depending on the kilt maker and their schedual.
Your tartan is grand, I'm sure you will be very happy with it.

Again welcome, be careful, take care and return safely. Thank you!

[IRISH]

welcome, outpost and thanks for your service.
here is a link to faq page at usa kilts. it is a good comparison of the different price ranges of kilts available. regardless of what kiltmaker you ultimately choose, the lower range kilts don't have nearly the variety of tartan choices as a higher priced wool tartans, and in your case if you're going for the kirk tartan, you will probably need to aim a bit high as i'm doubtful that that tartan is available in less expensive fabric such as polyviscose. best wishes.

http://www.usakilts.com/store/cart.php?m=content&page=6

[Sionnach]

aboard, I echo the sentiments of the others

[Jock Scot]

Welcome, from Inverness-shire. Come home safely.