Kilt Kamp 2015 - who's up for it?

[Barb T]

You don't have to be ambidextrous to stitch mirror image pleats. The thread that I mentioned above at

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...d-works-83767/

shows a very simple method for stitching the opposite-facing pleats while still stitching with the same hand and maintaining tension on the pleats.

[Pleater]

Oh yes - I just find it easier, being to some extent ambidextrous already to practise working right handed rather than to try to adapt everything to the left handed way I tend to work - if that makes sense.

Having seen people rendered almost helpless when they lost the use of their preferred hand it is something I have done for decades now.

Handedness is weird. In my twenties I was forced, by the design of the desk to work intensively on a keyboard putting in numbers, and I developed a stammer. It runs in the family - my grandfather was a natural lefthander forced into using his right hand and he had a speech impediment until wounded in the Great War, was taught to use his left hand and the stammer vanished. He was entirely ambidextrous after that.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[suzicooks]

Hi Barb,
As a newbie to this site, my head is fairly spinning at all the info! I'm very interested in attending Kilt Kamp, but not until 2016. That said, would it help my mathematically challenged brain to buy your book now, so that just maybe, in a year and a half's time, something might have sunk in? I have also heard that there are some tartans a beginner doesn't want to tackle, the Robertson Red Modern coming to mind. I want to make a kilt for a cousin who's a McNutt (Clan MacNaughton). Are the tartans for that clan as tricky at the Robertson Red? My friends Sydnie and Mary took your 2014 course, and both are thrilled with what they've learned, and their enthusiasm bubbled over and landed on me, so I'm hoping that there will be room in the class for me.

[Barb T]

Hi Suzi

MacNaughton is a very straightforward tartan to pleat. The only wrinkle is that it's a pretty big sett. The easiest way around the problem is to pleat to a stripe that occurs twice per sett. I made a kilt for a customer a bit ago done that way:

[sydnie7]

Suzi: buy the book now, and dive right in! I made a kilt "by the book" long before attending Kamp, and the pre-experience allowed me to get much more benefit from Barb's tips and tricks. That is, I had the basics already and could pay attention to her fine details vs just trying to grasp the overall concepts. Get some fabric and take a first shot at it, Mary and I can help you through any rough patches! I used a length of Pendleton for my first or we can talk about other possibilities. See you at the Scotsman's Ball or shoot me an email in the meantime.

[suzicooks]

It's beautiful. I hope I can make one that's even moderately good, comparatively speaking. I also know that there is a relatively new "dress modern" tartan for the MacNaughtons. It's a white background w/dark blue and, I believe, green. I've never seen more than a 6" square sample of it, so I have no idea how large the sett is. Any idea how I might find out?

[Barb T]

The tartan is woven by D C Dalgliesh in 11 oz weight, and you can see the tartan at http://www.dcdalgliesh.co.uk/fabric/603078. Click the "Specifications" tab, and you'll see that the sett size is 17.9 cm, which is 7".

[suzicooks]

Thanks so much! I see that it says it's a "mirrored" symmetry. I'm guessing that's good? And, if my cousin decides to go with this instead of the traditional MacNaughton, is it something I can get through Freedom Kilts, or do I need to get it from Dalgliesh?

[KiltedKnome]

Thanks so much! I see that it says it's a "mirrored" symmetry. I'm guessing that's good? And, if my cousin decides to go with this instead of the traditional MacNaughton, is it something I can get through Freedom Kilts, or do I need to get it from Dalgliesh?

You should be able to order it through Freedom Kilts. Send Steve an e-mail at steve@freedomkilts.com (although he might see this note and chime in). Welcome to the addiction of kiltmaking.

[Hawk]

Sorry to pop in on the thread, but Suzie, we'd all love an introduction post in the Newbie section of the forum so we could extend a formal welcome to you being a new member here on XMTS....

Hawk