Weigh in on Weights

[Draelore]

Back to the topic at hand.

I personally perceive modern colored kilts as more formal than ancient or weathered kilts as the bolder colors make a nice contrast with the black jacket. I have also noticed that the heavier the material the nicer the kilt looks to others, so heavier kilts are perceived as more formal.

For a wedding you would probably want the heaviest full (8 yd) kilt that you can afford in the closest tartan to the Brides colors that you can stand after all you will have the kilt for a good long while.

Also, unless most of the bridal party is wearing highland dress, you can get away with being more formal than the occasion would normally allow (e.g. a prince charlie jacket at an afternoon wedding or a Montrose Doublet at an evening wedding). After all you are going to stand out like a peacock amongst the hens, enjoy yourself (just remember that pictures last for decades)

[MacLowlife]

DTP, while a pound of PV weighs the same as a pound of wool, the thickness of the fabric is likely to be entirely different. The weight of the whole kilt, while interesting, is really secondary. I assume you would want to compare fabric weight AND kilt length. As has already been said, the longer ( and I mean in circumference, not waistline to hemline) the greater the swing. Be sure you are comparing the same kind of fiber when you evaluate your choices. Let us know what you decide.

[ChattanCat]

16 oz = 1 lb
If you have material that is 16 oz and 60 in wide, it will weight 1 lb
For a kilt you rip the fabric down the middle to make 8 yards or 4 lbs for a kilt. This is an approximation as lengths of kilts vary.

Types of material:
Poly-Viscose (PV or Polyester Rayon) is usually 10 oz
Acrylic is fluffy and some call it wool weight (this is only in volume not weight)
Wool kilt material should be 13 oz or 16 oz

[fluter]

I just had a revelation though; does this feeling come more from the yardage of the kilt, or from the weight of the wool/cotton used in the making.

Thanks to Draelore for the reminder.

As MacLL suggests, both the fabric weight and the yardage play a part. The momentum (mass times velocity) of the swing is going to be directly proportional to the mass of the swinging fabric. An eight-yard kilt would have roughly twice the material in the pleats as a 5-yarder.

Comparing 13-ounce and 16-ounce fabric, simplistic reasoning says we'd get 30 percent more momentum.

...and the effect on the bridesmaids is probably a quadratic function, rather than linear. Hmmm, more research is definitely in order. Can anyone help us quantify the swagger term in the equation?

Er, ahem, where were we? The conventional wisdom seems to apply. Get the best kilt, most yardage, and heaviest fabric within the limits of your budget and the availability of your tartan.

[fluter]

to tidy up our digression, I wrote:

My approximation of a 13-ounce, roughly 24' x 25" kilt, is 3 pounds. The Wizard, besides being an engineer, probably has better a better scale than I. Come to think of it, I have a better scale than before, I should do it over.

The kilt is in fact 23 feet 3 inches including facings and such, and 45.9 ounces/1300g. So 3 pounds was a pretty good WAG. Like Steve's example, it's about 3.2 fabric yards. Actually weighing my remnant of 3,000 square inches, I make it to be nearly 14 ounce fabric. I had not remembered that it actually is 60 inches wide, I thought it was a few inches less.

A SWK standard, just about 6 yards (therefore 2.4 fabric yards), weighs in at a smidgen under 29 ounces: pretty respectable. It hasn't much internal construction, nor pleat cut-outs; that's basically the rectangle of fabric plus two straps, and the kilt pin I did not remove (blanket pin type from SWK). Two straps, because I removed one.

So to address the question of "delta swing" you'll see considerably more with 8 yards of 13 ounce, and with 16 ounce: just stand back.

[The Wizard of BC]

Let me add just a couple of comments here.

The Polyester/Rayon blend fabric woven by Marton Mills and known as P/V weighs in at 12oz per fabric yard.

The average Acrylic Kilt produced in the middle east averages between 6 and 9oz per fabric yard but is thicker by far than an equivalent weight wool or P/V. Think polar fleece. Light but poofy.




And a note to anyone thinking of a wedding where the Kilt may be worn.

There is one unbreakable, inviolatable rule when it comes to wearing Highland Attire at a wedding.

Never, and I mean never---outshine the bride!!!!

When you start with the Kilt,,add hose,, Ghillies,, Sgain,,Dress Sporran with Silver Cantle,,PC Jacket with Silver Buttons,,Bow Tie,,,Perhaps a Fly Plaid with Silver Brooch....It doesn't take long before the only thing anyone in the audience will notice is the glare off all the bling and the colors and splendor of the Kilt outfit.
And you will spend your honeymoon sleeping on the couch.

Remember, this is her day, not yours. Tone it down as much as possible and let her shine.

[DamnthePants]

Thank you for all the advise. I will not outshine the bride. She is my sister, and that would be impossible. I emailed the kilt makers and asked them how much yardage they used. The lighter kilt is a 13oz 5 yard The one that feel better on me is a 16oz 8 yard Quandry Solved