Wrinkled pleats

[seanachie]

I put them towards the edge of the knife pleat. (Caveat: I know that learned folks here say wool will stretch if you hang it wet. I do this with SKs and they are made from a man made fabric) I then hang from the shower rod in my bathroom and rarely need more than that. I do have an SK Commando in AF Digi Camo and a little steaming works great on that, but not often necessary on the tartan material.

[wildrover]

Is your kilt wool, or synthetic (or other)?

I've yet to need to iron my wool kilt...just lay it out, give it a shake, and put it back on...pleats come out fine every time.

Steam really does help...done that trick with various garments over the years.

[ThinBlueLine]

wildrover,

It is, I believe, polyvicose.

[MacFett]

It is, I believe, polyvicose.

My sportkilt says acrylic on the tag even though their website stated polyviscose. The material feels like something you'd make a child's PJs.

I have yet been able to get pleats (the few that it has) to stay in mine, ironing, steaming. I've resigned to the fact that I wasted 100 bucks on my SK and just wear it around the house.

[ThinBlueLine]

MacFett,

It does feel rather slick so it probably is acrylic instead of proper polyviscose. The pleats do look rather weak compared to my Thrifty-Kilt. I will see if I can take it to a dry cleaner and have them baste down and re-press it. If that does not work then I may just get my wife to stitch the edge of the pleats.

[highland mafia]

The army way was to simply spray the pleats with water and hang the kilt out to dry outside...Worked every time.

[wildrover]

The army way was to simply spray the pleats with water and hang the kilt out to dry outside...Worked every time.

That would undoubtedly be a wool kilt...totally different from PVC and so forth.

What you describe is about what I do, but without the water and the hanging.

My method of keeping the pleats clean and crisp in a wool kilt is to toss it haphazardly in a corner, then realize later that I need to air it out, and lay it over a chair/dresser/bed/floor until dry, then roll it up and stick it back in the cedar chest. Next time I wear it, pleats are fine . Don't believe me? I'll get a pleat shot this weekend, as proof that "jocking" one's wool kilt does not result in carnage and disarray.

YMMV with other materials. I would not do any of the above with anything other than a wool kilt.

[xena]

I wholeheartedly agree with Wildrover. Wool kilts are amazingly durable:

Click here to see the recommendations of a friend of mine.

Of course, all this does NOT apply to non-wool kilts.

And for what it's worth, he has some good stories of what he's done in a kilt, and how they've held up.

[Zardoz]

Sportkilts are supposed to be a "polyester viscose blend" fabric, I always thought the ones I got a few years back were a poly cotton fabric, but they might have changed.

As far as keeping the pleats smooth; The issue with the SK, even with the sewn down pleat model, is the elastic waistband, it bunches up the back of the kilt and hanging it up etc. likely won't really sort them out. On the other hand, I think getting into basting and going to the drycleaner may be a little overboard for a kilt with 10 or 11 pleats in it. I would just stretch the thing out to smooth out the waistband area and clamp it down long enough to smooth out and press the pleats with a medium steam iron.

(and consider a Stillwater Thrifty or USA Casual the next time)

[Zardoz]

I've resigned to the fact that I wasted 100 bucks on my SK and just wear it around the house.

I feel ya' here, and I have two! They are fine for sports and working around the house or yard etc.. But honestly, I wish I'd have found this site and got some advice before I ordered them. I could have bought 2 or 3 Stillwaters for the money.