Chesterfield Coat?

[CeilidhDoc]

That is a very impressive cape you made. Thank you for sharing the photos and your thoughts.

Slainte

[Highlander31]

Here's a photo of Xmarks member SFCRick wearing an Inverness cape made by another of our Xmarks members, vmac3205.

SFCRick Inverness Cape by vmac3205.jpg

[TheOfficialBren]

I *occasionally* wear a pea coat but with that said if it's cold enough for a serious overcoat it is usually too cold for a kilt. Your mileage may vary depending on circumstances.

[MacLowlife]

That is a very impressive cape you made. Thank you for sharing the photos and your thoughts.

Slainte

INDEED, BP-

I think the tech membrane sandwiched between the wool layers is brilliant. thanks for showing it.

[Jock Scot]

In Scotland if the weather is bad enough to need to wear an overcoat, then more often than not a Barbour coat would probably be a common choice. The view here is, that fashion and style take second place to common sense. In fact we do not wear an over covering that often and apart from pipe band use, even an Inverness of any sort is rarely seen.

An interesting point is raised in the first post of this thread that puzzles me and has often puzzled me in the seven or so years that I have been connected to this website. It is this, if wearing the kilt outwith Scotland instantly raises the profile of the wearer and many have commented that it does-------- many have ventured an educated guess in a recent thread where it seems, at best, kilts are scarce outwith Scotland-------, so there you are already stood out like a sore thumb in your kilt attire in a "kilt desert", but then you feel that wearing an Inverness, for example, makes you stand out in a crowd! That I do not understand. Why go to all the trouble to aquire your kilt attire and then wear it in this apparent "kilt desert" and then worry about what overcoat you are going to wear?

[creagdhubh]

In Scotland if the weather is bad enough to need to wear an overcoat, then more often than not a Barbour coat would probably be a common choice. The view here is, that fashion and style take second place to common sense. In fact we do not wear an over covering that often and apart from pipe band use, even an Inverness of any sort is rarely seen.

Barbour indeed, Jock.

I wear the Barbour items shown below (certainly not all at the same time!) with and without Highland Dress in all sorts of weather (mainly cold or rainy days). For me, functionality and adequate protection from the elements is key. I do not wear any sort of overcoat when dressed in Highland evening attire, to me, it's quite superfluous since I'm rarely outside in the elements for an extended length of time anyway. If it's cold, I'll hurry up and get indoors; if it's rainy and wet, then a smart, black umbrella will do just fine.







Here's a couple of photos of my Chief, Sir William Alan Macpherson of Cluny and Blairgowrie, TD, wearing Barbour with his Highland Dress. Cluny is wearing a lightweight, quilted jacket (Barbour Liddesdale - same as mine above) with a corduroy collar and hits about mid-thigh, because it was a wee bit chilly outside (I had a heavy tweed jacket on, so I was fine!) and not to necessarily make a fashion statement. Although, I have always thought that Barbour not only produces fine products that will last a lifetime, but also looks quite smart at the same time.

[Calgacus]

Another thumbs-up for Barbour.

I own the same jacket (top pic) and gilet (bottom pic) as Kyle, but in black. I wear them for walking the dog, and have a more 'trendy' Barbour for going to work or heading in to town.

[S Mitchell]

. . . An interesting point is raised in the first post of this thread that puzzles me and has often puzzled me in the seven or so years that I have been connected to this website. It is this, if wearing the kilt outwith Scotland instantly raises the profile of the wearer and many have commented that it does-------- many have ventured an educated guess in a recent thread where it seems, at best, kilts are scarce outwith Scotland-------, so there you are already stood out like a sore thumb in your kilt attire in a "kilt desert", but then you feel that wearing an Inverness, for example, makes you stand out in a crowd! That I do not understand. Why go to all the trouble to aquire your kilt attire and then wear it in this apparent "kilt desert" and then worry about what overcoat you are going to wear?

I can't speak for all Americans (I'd certainly consider wearing an Inverness cape if I needed too) but I can see his point.

It's true, wearing a kilt instantly raises your profile here, but, by and large, Americans respect the choice to wear one. There can be a fine, fine line, though, between carrying the look and not, between legitimacy and affectation. And if you cross the line, you risk going from eliciting admiration and respect to eliciting derision and even anger. Any addition which seems too 'costumey' to American eyes makes the whole look that much harder to pull off.

For all of our talk of "I'll wear whatever I want any d*&n way I please," there's still conventions and most Americans are sensitive to them.

[TheOfficialBren]

Here in warm Southern California the Inverness cape is generally thrown into the costume category (wrongly, in my opinion). They scream Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes. Like it or not.
That is the truth.
I am careful when and how I wear my F&A hat for this reason (no, not a Deerstalker but it's close enough to the untrained eye). With the right outfit it is a smart finishing tough. With the wrong outfit it borders on caricature.

Just my tuppence but Jock's and Kyle's suggestions are spot on.

BP, you did make one sharp cape, sir. It suits you very well.

[CeilidhDoc]

I can't speak for all Americans (I'd certainly consider wearing an Inverness cape if I needed too) but I can see his point.

It's true, wearing a kilt instantly raises your profile here, but, by and large, Americans respect the choice to wear one. There can be a fine, fine line, though, between carrying the look and not, between legitimacy and affectation. And if you cross the line, you risk going from eliciting admiration and respect to eliciting derision and even anger. Any addition which seems too 'costumey' to American eyes makes the whole look that much harder to pull off.

For all of our talk of "I'll wear whatever I want any d*&n way I please," there's still conventions and most Americans are sensitive to them.

Jock--

This sums it up pretty well. There is a difference in being noticed for looking different and doing it well, or being different and looking like a parody.

In the USA my experience with the kilt is that hats and capes are the items to be very careful when wearing because they can take a slick outfit and make it look like a costume to American eyes. The kilt itself, if worn well, does not have the same effect. It just stands out and becomes the start of a lot of conversation. If you add the Inverness Cape though, many will see it as dragging down the outfit to renaissance fair(e) or steampunk party attire, which is not appropriate at a black or white tie function (nothing against said styles, just the wrong venue).

I hope that helps explain it Jock. Maybe it's hard to get across unless you live in the USA but it seems many of us have exactly the same experience. It is also different when playing the pipes or not. When playing pipes you could get decked out in nearly anything and all is forgiven or adorable or quaint or however one wants to describe it through naive American eyes (I know none of these adjectives are at all correct but these are words I hear uttered to describe piper outfits over and over again here).

Wear the same outfit pipeless and walk into a white tie function and the reception would be pretty cold, I would suspect. It's odd how things just get that way.

But to steer the thread back to my point, it seems I am hearing that a person in Scotland at night in the dead of winter on Skye walking 20 minutes to a black tie event would most likely not be wearing an Inverness Cape OR a Chesterfield but rather just dealing with the cold or wearing a practical rather than formal coat because who cares what you were wearing before you arrived at the party. Is that an accurate summary or am I missing something here?

Slainte and thanks again all for the input!