Need Help With My Outfit.

[McCowboy]

Thanks everyone. another question, what do you think about these PV kilts?
here's the link http://buyakilt.com/kilts

[Mirthlesstroll]

Those look pretty good for an entry level kilt, and can be your hiking/mowing the lawn/pub hopping kilt when you can afford a super nice one.

Hot tip from the ladies - don't go for white/cream hose (outs you as a n00b) Get flashes that coordinate with your kilt colors as well, but not matching your hose color. You can get tartan flashes, but solid ones will go with all of your future kilts, saving you a little bit of $$$.

[Richrail]

I purchased my PV kilt kit from www.buyakilt.com I really enjoy it. Of course now the addiction, purchased a second belt and sporran from SWK. Now new hose from USAkilts. I next found a jacket at a thrift store and had converted to a kilt jacket. .

[sailortats]

I have to disagree with you here mirthlesstroll. I am not a new-b but I wear white hose fairly often. As far as I am concerned white hose look very sharp, especially in a formal setting. I have never worn anything except white hose when I wear my PC.

McCowboy, I have a PV kilt from USA Kilts and am more than pleased with it. They hang nicely, the pleats do not wrinkle much, if any, and are very comfortable. But then all kilts are very comfortable.
Also I have bought several items from Buyakilt.com and have always been completely satisfied with the product and the service. Don't forget pics when it is all said and done.

[Tobus]

I am mostly interested in bagpiping at funerals, weddings, etc, so i'd likely be the only feller in a kilt at all.

Hmm. Weddings and funerals will require a more 'dressy' approach. Honestly, I don't think you're going to be able to pull together a presentable outfit for these types of events without a significant investment. You don't necessarily have to go with top-quality items, but you will need to look respectable and professional. In my opinion, you'll need the following as a minimum for weddings and funerals:

Black dress shoes, polished
Decent quality kilt hose with flashes or garters
Kilt of 6+ yards material (casual kilts really aren't appropriate for this)
Sporran & sporran belt (it's probably best to stay away from 'Jacobite' style sporrans for this)
Kilt jacket (with matching waistcoat would be ideal) - probably a black Argyll jacket is best for weddings and funerals, though a charcoal tweed might work
Dress shirt and tie

There are other items you can add or swap out for, which would make your outfit more presentable, depending on the level of dressiness of the event, such as a nice dress sgian dubh, a kilt belt with waistplate, etc. Some weddings might request that you dress to a higher level, and that can get complicated, so I won't necessarily go there just yet.

OC Richard has some wonderful pictorial examples of what he wears for piping which would serve as an excellent guide.

[Mike_Oettle]

Hi, McCowboy –
as a piper you will probably do best wearing fairly formal outfits, at least to start with.
As your piping earns you payment, you may be able to branch out and kit yourself with a variety of outfits.
You may find inspiration from a man I know who goes by the handle Piperjames. His name is James MacGowan, and he now lives in Cape Town, where he plays the pipes for whoever will hire him, including the local kilted regiment, the Cape Town Highlanders. You will find him on Facebook.
He started his piping career with the Irish Guards (having been a fighting Guardsman to begin with), and naturally played the pipes in a range of uniforms, from undress to levee dress.
He has some very formal outfits that he wears on appropriate occasions.
But he also has a lot of fun with informal outfits – much to the chagrin of the Scottish outfitter in Cape Town, who is also with the Cape Town Highlanders.
For the Soccer World Cup in 2010 he played up the popularity of the vuvuzela by inventing a gadget he called the duduzela – bagpipes with vuvuzelas for drones.
(Bear in mind that the Afrikaans word for bagpipes is doedelsak.)
For the Rugby World Cup last year he devised what he called the doodlebokkie – the bag incorporates the head and body of the Springbok rugby mascot, Bokkie.
His wife also devised the Springbok Rugby tartan, and I believe he wore it when playing the doodlebokkie. He certainly wore Springbok Rugby T-shirts on those occasions.
When playing formal gigs he wears his “tanks” – eight-yard, 16oz kilts in clan or regimental tartans.
But he is not shy to wear four-yarders in 13oz PV or wool.
One of his favourite gigs is at a Christmas parade in Cape Town, at which he usually wears his Mighty Men kilt (he and I own the first two Mighty Men kilts in 13oz PV). Bear in mind that in South Africa, Christmas is in midsummer.
Earlier this year he undertook a long-distance walk across South Africa wearing his Mighty Men kilt, sandals and a variety of shirts and T-shirts.
He made many friends along the way, and used every opportunity he found to share the Gospel with the people he met.
With his “tanks” he naturally also wears formal headgear (a glengarry or something like it), but for his informal gigs he wears much more informal headgear. For his cross-country stint, he wore a Mighty Men tammie.
Even if you choose not to go very informal, you may well find that there is a demand for a cowboy piper – be prepared to turn out in a broad-brimmed hat and a cowboy shirt!
Regards,
Mike