Flat Caps. No no and thrice no! Suitable hats when wearing your kilt. Discuss

[Jock Scot]

Dave I have no problem with individual "flair and imagination" when it comes to any style of dress, kilted or not, but some things go together and it works well. Matt's picture above with his bucket hat and trousers is a fine example of that. Other things do not work together and never will , like flat caps and kilts.Oh and Jamie's bucket thing!

[Jock Scot]

Thanks Rex! I knew I could rely on you.

[Adam Pound]

I personally think a flat cap looks great with a kilt and have worn one often. And I don't agree that people will think you look eccentric, at least no more than they do when you wear a kilt. Many people have told me that the flat cap looks great with the kilt. I think this may be another of those across the pond cultural differences. But then, I'm not looking to wear a kilt exactly like someone else would. I look at the kilt as another article of clothing to blend into my wardrobe.

The tweed jacket isn't a good example either. The normal sports jacket isn't cut for a kilt; that's why it looks wrong. A nice tweed jacket cut in the right fashion looks great.

I guess I look like a lemon, as I wear my solid black ball cap with my Freedom kilt. I think nothing of it, because it's just another piece of clothing I wear. Of course I also wear an old beat up floppy hat when I'm hiking in my kilt, but that's because I'd rather not get a bad sunburn or have mosquitoes eat my scalp than look good.

Here in Canada, our extremes do affect what you wear. I think I posted a pic of me in a SWK Shadow while wearing a toque fer cryin' out loud. Ain't nobody going to think a toque looks good with a kilt!
Adam

[Nighthawk]

OK- this thread is too long for me to read the whole thing. So I'll just ask- what about a fedora? I've been thinking about getting myself a black one lately.

[RockyR]

I personally think a flat cap looks great with a kilt and have worn one often. And I don't agree that people will think you look eccentric, at least no more than they do when you wear a kilt.

I agree with this statement whole-heartidly. Most people who wear kilts already think 'bugger all' to anyone else's opinion of our choice of dress (no pun intended... ). People usually focus on the 'tartan skirt' much more than the headwear.

I love my flat caps. I have 6 or 8 of them in different tweeds and a black wool and a black linen one. When my grandfathers (either side of the family) died, I inherited all of their flat caps as somethnig to remember them by. I started wearing them and adopted that 'look' when I was 18 and continue to wear them today. Since I wear kilts every day, I end up wearing them with kilts.

My take on 'the look' is this: As long as the cap tones well with the colors in the kilt, it'll look fine. I have a tan tweed cap I'd never wear with a 'modern' tartan, but looks great with a Weathered tartan or a solid tan kilt like my FK or UK. If there's a good amount of black in the kilt, I'll wear a black flat cap. I have a lovat blue and a lovat green cap for my Ancient and Muted kilts.

I have never received a 'why are you wearing THAT hat' comment from any kilt wearer or non kilt wearer (and I often meet STAUNCH traditionalists in my line of work ). I was actually a little surprised to see people have such strong negative opinions on this matter.

Ron... this quote's for you...

'Different horses for different courses'.

BTW... IMHO, I think ANY hat in a formal situation looks a bit silly (a gentleman wouldn't wear a hat inside ANYWAY), so I don't wear flat caps or balmorals or cowboy hats or any hat with an Argyll or PC. Others disagree and I don't fault them for it.

My $.02... or in this case, it was probably more like $.06.

[Jock Scot]

Rocky, when all said and done whether we wear a flat cap with the kilt, or not, as the case may be, is hardly an earth shatteringly important matter. Perhaps the traditionalists you come across are too polite to comment,not bothered,or, don't want a black eye! Sorry ,only joking. Outside this website most of us would never dream of openly laughing, or, commenting on any one's style of dress. However that does not mean that I and others do not have a point of view.

This great website encourages friendly discussion and allows for honestly held opinions to be aired, robustly put sometimes maybe, these points of view may also not be voiced out load in public for reasons of tact and diplomacy. Providing these firmly held views are voiced courteously, we all get an opportunity to learn of other points of view. I suppose it can be a surprise to learn that what I/we thought was a non issue suddenly becomes one.

[siva011]

When my grandfathers (either side of the family) died, I inherited all of their flat caps as somethnig to remember them by. I started wearing them and adopted that 'look' when I was 18 and continue to wear them today.

This is how I got my first one. Of course, it was nylon I think... with a Seagram's logo on it.... but hey it works.


I love my flatcaps and do frequently wear them with my kilts. I dont' know why but I think it looks good. I did a "study" on this where I took cap off, then put back on, and asked the ladies what they liked better. Flatcap ON was the undisputed winner.

Sorry folks, but opinions of attractive ladies beat those of kilt police 10 times out of 10.

[Good Egg]

I personally think a flat cap looks great with a kilt and have worn one often. And I don't agree that people will think you look eccentric, at least no more than they do when you wear a kilt. Many people have told me that the flat cap looks great with the kilt. I think this may be another of those across the pond cultural differences. But then, I'm not looking to wear a kilt exactly like someone else would. I look at the kilt as another article of clothing to blend into my wardrobe.

The tweed jacket isn't a good example either. The normal sports jacket isn't cut for a kilt; that's why it looks wrong. A nice tweed jacket cut in the right fashion looks great.

Well quite: the flat cap isn't cut the right way for wearing with a kilt.

BTB I do not see a problem with the 'toque' (French for bon-homme de neige apparently) and a kilt in chillier climes.

When I say people will look and say oh dear you've got it wrong, I don't mean the trouser wearing masses, I mean other Scots (I include hyphen-Scots).

Maybe, and I'm speculating now, the problem is that the flat cap is thought to be more of an English piece of headgear which is why it jars so much when worn with a kilt.

ith:Smiley included because I have been know to wear a solar topee with a kilt: I was looking for something suitable for protection from the sun in Cyprus.

[davedove]

Maybe, and I'm speculating now, the problem is that the flat cap is thought to be more of an English piece of headgear which is why it jars so much when worn with a kilt.

You may have hit on it there and I can see that point of view. And, if I were trying to dress in a strictly Scottish fashion, I would follow that reasoning with my choices.

However, since in many cases I'm just using the kilt as another article of clothing, it doesn't really bother me. Maybe that's because, as a "new-worlder", I'm pretty well blended myself.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Maybe, and I'm speculating now, the problem is that the flat cap is thought to be more of an English piece of headgear which is why it jars so much when worn with a kilt.

If this was about bowlers rather than flat caps I'd agree... In my opinion flat caps (until 'ball caps swept o'r the land like a might plague) were the head gear of the working class. True, us toffs wore them shooting, bicycling, and motoring, but we took them off the moment sweaty pursuits were ended. So did working class blokes and jocks.

A Scot would no more wear a flat cap with his kilt than he would toss on a donkey jacket on his way to the Aboyne Games. It wasn't that he was embarrassed to be a working class Scot-- he wasn't, nothing shameful about an honest day's work-- it was showing the world that he knew and respected the traditions and social conventions as well as the next man. And it was this attitude that gained him the respect of the "next man" be that next man a duke or a dustman.