Help, pockets, molle, sizing

[DRipper]

Alright, my situation is at I just started dieting, doing weight watchers with the missus, and making an X-kilt as well, As my goal is re-enlistment into the Army
http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...-please-66276/
First

Now I want to have the kilt adjustable, as I plan on going from a 43" belly line, to a 36" and I need some help (with pics please) as to how I go about this.

I was interested in how kiltthis.com does a kilt that can resize, and if there were other ways to do it that I am unaware.
Second
I want to have removable pockets and if possible a molle system, I would like to know how I go about this, as well as any tips, patterns, ect. That anyone would feel comfortable providing to me, either through pms of forum posts.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I cannot comment on pockets, et al, but I will comment about the size change.

You would be surprised at how often it happens that I am measuring someone for a new kilt and they ask me something along the lines of your question. "I plan on losing weight and going from a 43" to a 36" waist. Will the kilt still fit?" Or alternately, "What if I gain weight and go from a 36" to a 43" waist? Will it still fit then?"

Short answer is "no."

A kilt made for a 43" waist will fit perfectly a 43" waist. Now, most kilts do allow for some minor fluctuations in weight, and by wearing the straps a bit tighter or looser, you might get a couple of inches in either direction. So depending on where the kiltmaker set the straps and buckles, that 43" kilt may still fit you at 45" or 41". But that's about as much adjustment as you can reasonably expect.

And really, that's more size range than you see in most types of clothing.

I get the same type of question often asked by parents buying a kilt for their 12 year old son. "Will this still fit when he's 18?"

Well, no. I don't remember wearing any item of clothing a 18 that I wore when I was 12.

So my advice to people, if they are actively losing or gaining weight is to wait until their weight has stabilized to be measured for their kilt. No sense in ordering a custom article of clothing that likely won't fit as soon as you get it.

However, if you are simply "planning on" a weight change, or are concerned about "possibly" gaining or losing weight, then I tell people to have the kilt made to the size you are currently, so the kilt will fit you now, and then worry about alterations down the road if you end up needing them.

As a kiltmaker, I can only guarantee that the kilt will fit the measurements it is made to, not any others. (In fact, I can guarantee that it won't fit!) My preference would always be to make the kilt to the size you are now, so I'll know it will fit you now. Any possible weight change in the future - unless you are actively losing weight - is just conjecture.

[DRipper]

Well that is what I thought about kilt sizing, but I was looking around before coming here, and at kiltthis.com they have kilts which vary by over 4" by design, and I was more than interested in how to achieve this,
And as to weight loss, yes it's active, lost ten lbs in the past month and a half, and going for lower n lower,
And as I am making my own, I wanted to figure out how to achieve this feature so that my hard work(for me anyhow) wasn't a total loss in another month. For that would be a bit saddening.
In addition I wanted to include a molle system as I saw some in google when browsing,

[Calico]

removed

[sydnie7]

You can make an "adjustable" XKilt a bit more easily than the traditional buckled kilts that Matt Newsome discusses. Here's a quick description of how I might do it.
* Make it to fit you today, but make the waistband a full 2 inches wide to accept 2-inch Velcro.
* Sew the Velcro on the waistband (instead of on the added flap/inner apron as described in XKilt manual). You'll want the stiff, hook segment to face your body and the softer, loop segment to face away from your body.
* Use 2 pieces of hook segment, about 2-3 inches long each, sewn at the left and right edges of the outer apron (sew to the inner side of waistband, so they face your body).
* Use one long strip of loop segment, long enough to reach from the left-hand edge of inner apron to about 7 inches past the right-hand edge of outer apron (this will accommodate your anticipated change in waist). The loop segment will "show" but is typically covered by a belt.
* As you shrink, you'll have some excess inner apron that isn't caught at the left-hand side. You'll want to trim that edge off when it gets long enough to dangle below the kilt hem. You'll also have pleats that are now hidden by the outer apron, but on a casual kilt that isn't a big deal.

I don't deal with Molle systems but it sounds like the perfect solution to adjusting the pocket position so that your pockets stay on your hips as the kilt size decreases.

I hope this makes sense (and that I haven't reversed my lefts/rights somehow) -- feel free to PM if you have questions although my time is a bit tight just now as my mother is in the hospital -- temporarily, we hope.

[mykeyfinn]

Well what you do is make several xkilts and give/sell the other one when you lose weight. As for the molle system, get some web strapping, and those quick release buckles with the extender system. sew some strapping and the female end of the QR buckle to an anchor point (best done by sewing first a box then an X in the box for strength, look at any backpack strap for an example) to the waist band or other strong anchor point on the xkilt. Then construct your pockets/bags/holsters and sew straps with the male end of the QR buckle to them to match up to the permanent buckles on the kilt. Alternately you can sew or rivet horizontal belt loops to your anchor points and then loop the buckle straps thru them. Ive had LBE and LBV that worked both ways. If you got to a local Surplus store you could probably find a LBV or LBE strap system to deconstruct and recycle or use as an example.

[DRipper]

Well what you do is make several xkilts and give/sell the other one when you lose weight.

And who would bother buying them from an amateur like myself, Mind you I'm in college and just $75-100 over material costs and I'd be thrilled, plus it would make my girl happy.......hehe, but I guess that's a shot in the dark

[mykeyfinn]

Aslo depending on your waist size things might not change all that drastically when you drop weight, might just have to notch the belt in a little or rip out the bar tacking at the top and re-taper it. This is how I adjusted my non-trad Hakama when I dropped 20lb.

[Pleater]

I started to make my own kilts so I could adjust them as I reduced in circumference - I lost 12 inches from my waist.

I found that the only way to reduce the size of the kilts completely to my satisfaction was to take them apart, wash and iron the fabric and start again almost from scratch.

Some I kept the folds in the same place and reduced the size of the visible portion of the pleats, others I moved the folds to another part of the pattern, particularly where there were signs of wear, a tear or fading - I wear my kilts out of doors quite a bit.

To save time on the construction, rather than sew down the pleats I just pressed the outer folds before I sewed on the waistband, then to keep them straight, as I pinned the top edge for sewing I moved the inner fold edge upwards on any pleats that tended to open out - so making a thin triangle of fabric raised up above the straight edge of the waist. I used safety pins so I could try on the kilt without getting punctured.

Once sewn I baste and press the kilt, so shaping the fell as required, and hand washing, careful hanging and light pressing after that seems to be all that is required.

On a couple of kilts I made the aprons larger in proportion, then when the kilt became loose I undid the waistband and moved the extra fabric into the under apron pleats. This did save a bit of time, but I had to remember to sew the small pleats separately, so they remained intact when I removed the waistband.

On a patterned kilt the apron and waistband are usually lined up so the pattern matches, but it is not lined up for the rest of the waistline, which is something to take into account in the original construction method.

Anne the pleater :ootd:

[DRipper]

Well Anne, and everyone else, thanks for the comments, and help,
I decided to go for a inelegant route, True, but hopefully effective,

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...72/#post982967

I used nylon webbing sewn in, and with the ability to shrink about 5-7 inches without sewing modifications,
I plan to add normal belt loops, as well as pockets that I have been struggling with,





Some advice with pockets would be most appreciated,
I am using black elastic to keep the top half compressed, Just a thought that I had to keep it a bit more closed,
But I am unsure about how to go about it fully, so advice would be great

And Me wearing it and my storm trooper shirt,


Thanks