Third Buckle/Strap

[CDNSushi]

3rd strap: serves no purpose; makes kilt hang poorly; makes kilt take longer to put on.

Belt loops: serve no purpose; if used eventually makes kilt look bad in back.

Dirk belt: I don't wear a dirk, so it serves no purpose; another useless thing which takes time to put on.

Kilt pin: serves no purpose; makes holes in my nice kilts; potentially tears a big hole in my kilts if I snag it on something while marching through some crowded room while piping.

As a gigging piper, oftentimes I have to get dressed in a hurry (the 'hurry up and wait' thing) and oftentimes I have to get dressed in cramped places, so the less stuff I have to put on and the quicker it is to put on, the better.

This is a good case for form following function. I would agree that for such specific situations, there would be good reason to omit or adopt certain elements of Highland attire.

In my own situation, I always use belt loops with a belt because it makes everything stay together better. I've tried using a belt without the belt loops many times, and each and every time, inevitably, I find myself constantly having to adjust and put things back where they should be -- a royal PITA.

3rd strap: I adjust the tightness based on how the kilt is hanging, but I find that 1 to 2 notches looser than the top buckle is best, making it more decorative than useful, most likely. I have no compulsion to remove it though.

Dirk belt: Pretty much as quoted. I don't think very many people wear these regularly anyway. If I wore a dirk in Japan, I'd probably be arrested by the first xenophobic, bully cop that saw me (a lot of them wondering around... )

Kilt pin: I love my kilt pins. I think they add charm to an outfit -- a nice touch, if you will. I generally have 1 pin per kilt, and the pin stays on all the time, so I'm not constantly poking my kilts full of holes. 2 small holes -- that's it. But I do agree about the snagging thing. But that's something I'm willing to live with.

Different horses for different courses.