Kilt Re-size?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Let me tag along on the question.....

I have lost five inches (# 6 appears to be comming fast).. ALL my kilts fit horribly. Will a simple buckle move take care of this?

My secret?
I've switched to ice water over sugared carbonated water (Even "diet")
I have quit drinking alcohol on "school" nights (work nights)
I now make certain to get 7.5 to 8 hours sleep every night.

Thats all I have done and have lost 30 pounds and four inches in the last 12 months.

I can now put an arm down the waistband of my "skinny" pants. When I remove my kilt belt the kilt hits the floor with no hinderance.

I have a small fortune invested in my kilts and would like to save them.

I gave up sodas a couple of months ago, as well, and have lost something like 8 pounds. Of course, I'm trying to make sure that all the kilts I have continue to fit me, so I don't end up having the opposite of your problem!

My personal rule of thumb is that I can do a "quick and easy" alteration by moving the straps and buckles if I am taking in a kilt by as much as 4". Don't ask me where I got the number 4 from, but I suppose I had to draw the line somewhere. :-)

The reality is that the number really depends on the size of the kilt itself to begin with. It's really about the ratio of the apron to the pleats. You don't want to end up with the flat apron overlapping too much of the pleated portion of the kilt when you wear it (in other words, you don't want the apron to wrap around too far around your hips). Ideally, for a slim-to-average man you'd want about a 50/50 split. For men of substance you also lean towards a 50/50 split, but many men who tend to carry more of their weight in the front, rather than towards the back, can actually get away with a much larger apron due to their carriage.

So when you are sizing down a kilt by a simple strap and buckle adjustment, you aren't actually making the apron any smaller -- you are just making it so that it covers up more of the pleats. And you have to use your best judgment as to when it hits that point where it will be covering up too much of the pleats to look good, given the size of that particular kilt.

For me, taking all kilts as a whole, my average number I use is 4". Any adustment beyond that, I generally recommend to my client that they consider having the kilt altered to take it in, making the aprons and the pleats respectively smaller. Of course this is much more labor intensive, will take longer, and cost more money. But you'll have a kilt that has actually be taken in to your size.

I believe Barb has said that she's moved the straps and buckles on band kilts by 7" or more and they have looked fine, so obviously there is room for other opinions on this. As I said above, part of it depends on the kilt itself and how large it is, and what the preexisting apron-to-pleat ration is. And how much time and money you have to invest in this.

You may decide to have the straps and buckles moved on your kilts now, so you will be able to wear them, and then over time, slowy invest in having them actually taken in.

[Chas]

I agree with Rocky that it's a simple thing and shouldn't break the bank.

I disagree that moving two buckles and one strap will only take 10 minutes! lol... I sew fast, but not that fast! :-)

I agree. I've done it three times and each time it takes just a touch under 1 hour.

Regards

Chas

[Sir William]

Let me tag along on the question.....

I have lost five inches (# 6 appears to be comming fast).. ALL my kilts fit horribly. Will a simple buckle move take care of this?

I have a small fortune invested in my kilts and would like to save them.

I'm pleased to report that I'm having the same "problem" though I'm not complaining. I've dropped about 5 inches on my waist.

The bad news is that two of my kilts are much too large, even on the tightest notch they slip right off my hips. The good news is that four other kilts that were tight fits on the last notch I now wear using the first notch (and I could probably go another inch). Perhaps the best news is that a kilt I got nearly 20 years ago from Geoffrey's I can now wear again.

Rather than get two new kilts to replace two relatively new kilts, I'd rather see about getting them adjusted so that I can continue wearing them.

[Fedgunner]

Thank you all for the helpfull advice.
I only have one kilt that I wouldn't move the buckles on. It is a Kathy Lare custom weave. That one I will either sell or have professionally altered by Ms. Lare.

Again, I thank you all for your help.

[LANCER1562]

A friend of mine has the oposite problem. He bought a Saffron kilt back when he had a 28" waist, now he has a 36" waist but doesn't want to buy another kilt mostly because at the moment he can't afford it. How would he go about letting out the waist so he can wear his kilt?