Freedom in Tradition

[davedove]

It's always good to know the conventions on how things are done. When dressing a certain way, I like to know how everyone else does it.

Of course, there is also that rebellious streak in me, like I imagine is in some of the others, that just wants to say "Nobody is going to tell me how to dress." Although, if that is how you feel most of the time, why are you on the traditional forum?

But, the best way I know how to put it is - if you are going to push the boundaries, you have to know where those boundaries are.

[wildrover]

Well first off, my bad above, nobody got the joke or it was misinterpreted, so never mind. It wasn't intended to be malicious. If anyone wants an explanation, I'm willing to talk about it, but it's not terribly important and I'd rather not trash the thread with a big discussion that's totally unrelated to the topic. Sorry, joke went flat, nobody got the reference, post was edited, end of story. Probably best to edit the quoted text as well, so it's not sitting around confusing people.

Back to the thread...

Of course, there is also that rebellious streak in me, like I imagine is in some of the others, that just wants to say "Nobody is going to tell me how to dress." Although, if that is how you feel most of the time, why are you on the traditional forum?

I think it's the distinction between "nobody is going to tell me I have to wear tweed" and "nobody is going to tell me I have to wear a jacket". Individualism within traditional guidelines is the first, the second is the modern forum.

if you are going to push the boundaries, you have to know where those boundaries are.

That, and good taste, plus personal taste.

For example, I don't think every tartan will look good as a kilt/vest combo...not just the classic Loud MacLeod look, either.

It's also easy to either start matching everything, or avoid matching anything. Balancing what you're wearing takes a lot more thought, when it's a kilt, socks, flashes, shoes, shirt, vest, tie, jacket, pocket square, and maybe even a flower in your lapel.

Here's an example I like...this is a tartan vest done right. The whole thing is done right...there isn't any one item that particularly stands out. It's balanced. Also, the tartan is bold, but doesn't (to my eye) require adjusting one's optical gain the way some examples do. Incidentally, one of Matt's photos in the TCHD example thread shows something similar, in red


Another tartan vest done right...it's bright, but it's well-balanced, and the extras break up the dominant red background. In my opinion, putting together a kit like this is risky...it'll either look great, or painful, since there's so much of such a dominant color. I'm guessing a lot of thought went in to this, because it looks awesome.


Here's another example. I don't know if that tartan would look good as a vest. To my eye, it wouldn't. The kit is balanced around the kilt, and note what doesn't match, but works perfectly well. Also note that the cut and style of vest and jacket are available, but not common.


What's the most common type of shirt worn with a kilt jacket and/or vest? I'm going to guess white or blue, button up, long sleeve. Second might go to windowpane. How about white collar, or collar and cuffs, with a solid color body? This could just be camera angle and flash, or some visual trick of the lanyard he's wearing, but whether it is or not, I see it working out.