This is what we have learned,.....

[Big Homestead]

Sometime last weekend I ended up in my favorite pub and sat in my usual stool at the bar. A few seats away a woman I barely recognize says, "hey, you wearing your kilt?" and the guy next to her looks at me and says, "oh..you're THAT guy!".

hahahaha, now thats awesome!

[Nighthawk]

Yeah, I've learned a few things, myself. I've learned that there a lot of misconceptions about the kilt. The ones I understand are the obvious- that you have be "qualified" to wear one, that you can't wear your mothers tartan, that you have to wear only your family tartan, etc. The ones that I've learned a lot of people have that are baffling to me are the ones that make the least sense. There are people who actually believe that the kilt represents a desire to cross dress, or that it represents a sexual preference. And then there are people who firmly believe it to be womens clothing and refuse to see it as anything else, regardless of how much history and how many facts you have on hand. When I started wearing my kilt full time, outside of formal functions, I had no clue- NONE- that there would be any kind of resistance to it. It never even occured to me that employers might take issue with it. Mine didn't, but I read about it all the time on these boards. What I have learned is very simply, people as a whole are very closed off to anything different or unusual, and while some appreciate the diversity and recognize the class and sophistication that a kilt represents, and some are curious, there are those who simply want to attack everything that's new and different to them. That was my first real "lesson" in kilt wearing.

[Jack Daw]

I'm nearly 50 and am currently single. Although I consider myself too old to be dating women younger than 35, I still get plenty of compliments from ladies of all ages....and, I LOVE IT!!

[Alan H]

I'm 50 and bald. I have a significant spare tire and crows feet. But I still get flirted with, when I have a kilt on.

I'm also "the guy in the kilt" at work.

I don't get annoyed at folks who use the word "skirt" by accident or out of ignorance. Certainly if I'm wearing a contemporary, non-tartan garment, it's not a problem. It's not the word that can be the issue, it's the attitude.

I can count the number of times I've been confronted with a problematic attitude on one hand and still have fingers left over. I can't count the number of times I've had positive experiences regarding kilts and kilt-wearing, they are beyond number...to cop a term.

In time, people who see you a lot don't care if you're wearing your kilt. It's just another article of clothing.

Oh, and...


the F-H.C.A.G looks hot in a Lindsay tartan mini skirt.

[Yaish]

Some personal observations of my own.

Everyone knows someone else who wears a kilt, and they'll cross the street or walk across a parking lot to tell you about them.

Ladies, women, and girls all love a guy in a kilt. (and each of the three is different IMO)

Kilts are like idiot detectors. If there is an idiot in the room when you walk in wearing a kilt, he can't help but expose himself.

Terms like "expose himself" when talking about kilts can be taken more than one way.

Kilted paintball, kilted skiing, kilted hiking and kilted swimming all work very well. Kilted handstands not so much.

A guy who looks sloppy in shorts and a t-shirt looks good in a kilt and a t-shirt.

Word of mouth is a powerful business model. Just ask any of our vendors.

You might beat Jerry at SWK for quality, value, and service but only by trying really hard.

[Nick the DSM]

i've learned that you can do anything in a kilt, make more friends, have fun and be a kiltie.

[Big Homestead]

I have also learned enough about kilt history to give a 2 minute tutorial to those who think Scots are the only unbirfurcated people around. YAY History!

[James MacMillan]

Wow is that ever true, and the vast majority of my otherwise useless Scottish and kilted history has come right from or been directed from this board.

Monkey@Arms and I discovered that we were very critical of other's mode of dress when we were walking around at the Queen Mary Games. We could recognize a SportKilt, SWK, USA, handmade tank, various pleating patterns etc, etc, just at a glance. We also could tell the first time wearers from the more accustomed; the old-timers from the newbees, the posers from the wannabees. And we owed the awareness to X-Marks.

[Big Homestead]

Yes, sir. Much knowledge has I picked up from this forum.

Also, searching kilt history, via links from the site, have led to a much appreciated history to the kilt. I find it a great resource to know that I can come here, talk kilt, learn kilt, and not get told off by a 14 year old. Sounds funny, but thats how it is. Thanks xmarks!

[Coemgen]

Kilts are in fact the male version of lingerie and battle garment combined.

I think almost every reason to wear a kilt is summarised in that sentence.