Here is a shot of the front of our museum tent. We had some shirt and hat racks out front. At certain times during the day the crowd was so thick I could barely see these racks from the tent! Right inside we showcased some lovely sporrans from the Ferguson Britt collection (including a Japanese Fallow deer, and several skunk, beaver, and raccoon fur creations). These were very much admired. The left side of the tent was dedicated to free tartan searches and answering questions on Scottish history and Highland dress.
This photo of myself with my wife, Joannie, and son, Alister, was from Saturday. Alister was a big hit at the Games. Our other kids all stayed home with the grandparents, but Alister is too young yet to be that far from his mom (and main food source!). He was an angel all weekend.
Of course, as we know, it's all about the kilt. I'm wearing a four yard box pleated kilt in the Armstrong tartan, red kilt hose (I knew I'd be seeing Tom, who didn't disappoint by wearing his own red hose), matching red garters, my beaver fur sporran, one of the new crest shirts from the museum, and a hand knit broad bonnet.
I think red hose look nicest with tartans like the Armstrong, that are primarily blue & green, but with a minor red element that the hose can really pull out. I think with a predominantly red kilt, the red hose risk being too much.
This is Chuck Coburn (left) wearing the Cockburn tartan in a four yard box pleated kilt, and Jim Akins (right) wearing his brand new Confederate Memorial tartan, in an 8 yard knife pleated kilt made by Barb Tewksbury, author of The Art of Kiltmaking.
Here are Chuck and myself on Sunday. My wife, who didn't tell me my tie was crooked, took the picture. I'm in another four yard box pleated kilt, in the St. Columba tartan. I'm wearing it with a light weigh Lochcarron Argyle jacket, tattersal shirt, blue tie (notice the matching garters), and my brand new shepherd's check hose that my wife just finished knitting for me. (The medal I'm wearing is my Guild of Tartan Scholars medal, in case you are wondering).
Chuck is in a blue Harris Tweed kilt that I made for him (also a four yard box pleat). Here's a rear shot to show the pleats.
I'm really thrilled with these hose! They took my wife quite some time to knit, and she was using a new pattern from a book she recently acquired. She finished them just in time for the Games (literally on the drive down). I'm quite pleased with the color and design (I chose a natural cream shade and a dark brown). I had several compliments on them throughout the day, and not a few enquiries about where one could get a pair, or how much my wife would charge to make them (I had to marry her -- get your own talented wife!). :-) Joking aside, she made these for me as a labor of love. When asked how much she would charge to make a pair for someone else, her price quote was "a million bajillion dollars." So start saving your coin -- or learn to knit!
Sunday is always the hardest day, just in terms of stress. We are exhausted from Saturday to begin with. My wife and I got up early to make it to a 7:00 am Mass before heading back onto the field. Then it is all day at the Games, just like on Saturday. Only instead of heading out to dinner after the field closes, we must pack up our tent and drive three hours home. Someone suggested I could retire from this line of work and find another job -- not on your life! :-)
The museum was closed today, as well, for unpacking, re-stocking, and inventory. Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will resume normal hours of operation (10 to 5, Mon-Sat). For those of you who may have come by to see us in Franklin over the weekend, we are sorry we missed you. And for those of you who saw us at the Games, we'll see you next year!
Also, recently, some Balmoral kilt hose I ordered came in from Hawick. These hose are fantastic! The sock itself is made the same was as our Lewis kilt hose (follow the above link), from a Merino Wool / Acrylic blend. Very soft, very comfortable, very high quality (and easy to care for). But the upper is completely hand knit in the colors of your choosing, to tone with your tartan. You design your own look. Below is a pair I designed for wear with my Carolina tartan kilt. I chose the brown hose to tie in with my brown leather accessories, and I think the effect is quite pleasing.
Lastly, below I am pictured with my partner-in-crime at the Museum, Ronan MacGregor. My hose were designed to match my Mull kilt, and Ronan selected his colors to wear with his Black MacGregor tartan (a personal variation of the MacGregor sett that he had woven for his kilt).
Ok, I admit it. I used to really not be fan of what I call the "contemporary" style of wearing your kilt hose. By that I mean what you typically see on runway kilt models these days, the kilt hose worn pushed down, usually with boots, such as Doc Martins.
In fact, it would be quite fair to say I hated it. Why? Well, I suppose it was because I first noticed that particular look on people wearing what you might call "urban chic" Highland wear. For an example of what I mean, you can look at the "21st Century Kilts" web site.
http://www.21stcenturykilts.co.uk/celebrityclients.htm
Kilted or not, the style of dress exhibited in these photos -- hip, in your face, me-against-society kind of style -- simply does not appeal to me. You also see this style a lot on people wearing Utilikilts, and that's also not a style of dress I am particularly fond of.
I also didn't like it because it seemed to be mostly a "young" style. (Despite the fact that I am turning 29 just this month, I tend to have the mentality of an old geezer).
Anyway, I also have what I consider a healthy skepticism about anything that resembles a fad. So for all of the above reasons I steered clear of the "socks-pushed-down" style.
Well, then what on earth am I doing in the above photo wearing my hose in this heretical manner?
What can I say, I'm a convert. It started by reading some of the postings in the X Marks the Scot kilt wearers' forum. I would read these guys discussing their kilt hose, the proper way to roll or fold them down, and what kind of boots and shoes to wear with them. Hey, I thought, these guys obviously are giving a great deal of thought to how they dress and present themselves. They didn't seem to fall into the "young and against the world" category, an attitude worn on the faces (and clothing) of so many of the fashion models. Maybe there is something to this style...
I began to look though some of the posters' photo galleries, to see how they were wearing their hose. For instance, here is David Freelander's gallery:
http://home.c2i.net/kilted_1/public_html/gallery.html
He's wearing his hose in this style in what I would consider fine casual kilt wear fashion. Take, for example, the picture in the upper left of that page, of him and his family. He's wearing a golf shirt, hiking boots, and a simple leather sporran and belt. Make the sporran and belt brown, and that's what I typically wear most days -- only his socks are pushed down.
Well, in the name of science, I thought, why not give it a go. So a few weeks back, I went "contemporary." I think the exact outfit I wore was my brown Donegal tweed kilt, a solid green pullover shirt, cream colored hose, and Colombia hiking boots. I folded the tops of the hose down (like I normally would if wearing them with garters) and then just gently pushed them down to where they rested comfortably on my lower calf.
The verdict? First off all, I have to say it was very comfortable. I hate to say it, but the only part of wearing a kilt that I ever find uncomfortable are high woolen hose in the summer time, held up by garters. This contemporary style was a breeze.
Second, I actually liked the look. The style seemed more to me like something I'd wear on a hike or other casual affair, than the urban look I had feared. I think that is a result of the accessories -- namely hiking boots rather than Doc Martins, and my kilt wasn't made out of pleather or anything like that.
Thirdly (and this was the cincher), my wife thought I looked sexy, and really, guys, what other fashion critic counts besides your wife? I was sold.
So now, on occasion, I leave the house dressed like I am above, my calves bared in all their glory. Long before knee-high hose became the fashion, the Highlanders were reknowned for going "bare-legged," after all. (Look at the MacQuarrie figure painted by R. R. McIan that I use in the lower left of my kiltmaking page).
Here are some thoughts I have on this style so far:
1. This is a casual style. I would never dream of appearing at a formal occasion with hose pushed down. It would be like showing up with your shirt untucked. Fine for casual wear, but just sloppy when jacket and tie are in order.
2. Some kind of very heavy shoe is needed. I think a boot is in order here, either a hiking boot, Doc Marten, or some similar style. You need something "chunky" on your foot to pull the look off. Otherwise it just looks like your hose are slipping.
3. Contrary to my usual preference for darker colored hose, I actually think lighter colored hose work better here. I usually wear cream hose when I opt for this style. In fact, since I generally don't like the cream or off-white hose, this is now the only way I wear them. In the above picture, I have oatmeal hose, which also work great. I couldn't tell you why I don't think darker hose work with this style. I guess it depends on the outfit -- I could easily envision an outfit with a dark tartan kilt where black hose would work. I'm still working out my thoughts on this one.
4. You really need to wear kilt hose, or some other high sock, like an over-the-calf hiking sock, to pull this off. The point is to have the bulk there, only pushed down. Face it, wearing a kilt with athletic socks just looks goofy.
So there you have it. Not all dyed-in-the-wool traditionalists like myself are too stubborn to try something new. My thought when it comes to this is to try it at least once to see what it's about. You just might like it. If not, well at least then you can say with experience why you don't like it.
Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, the kilt I'm wearing in the above pic is the latest one I have made for myself. It's made from a beautiful heavy weight Harris Tweed. Lucky for me there was enough cloth left over for a vest, which my lovely wife has promised to make for me. In my arms is my youngest son, Malcolm.
(And before I hear it from anyone, yes I know my belt is a much darker brown than my sporran. Sheesh, some people are soooooo picky!)
Many people have heard me recommend getting an inexpensive men's jacket (from a thrift store, or a charity organization such as Goodwill or Salvation Army) and shortening it to wear with a kilt. I've had several people ask me about my experiences with this, and how the finished jackets actually look, so I thought I'd share my most recent acquisition with you.
