Kilt Me!

Merry Christmas!

Kilts and x-mas sweater

Last night we had a small office x-mas party down at the Blind Tiger Ale house.  I received a lovely sweater, shirt, and tie which I wore into work today.  With a kilt, of course.  I'm wearing my old UK workman's which now only has four working snaps on it.  It's still one of my favorite kilts though, and when I dress it up with a tie I feel like I can get away with it.

Here's a shot from this morning:

Cool shot, backwards kilt

I've been looking at kilt photos via Cooliris and Deviant Art.  CoolIris basically lets you easily browse photos via a firefox plug-in, and Deviant Art is one of the sites they search from. 

I found this photo this afternoon, and think it's a pretty cool shot.  I like the black and white photos with the color kilt.  The only problem is that the kilt fastens on the wrong side.  Alas.

Click on the photo to see if on Deviant Art and to find the credit.  The only name I see is ~cinges.

Elvis in a kilt!

Elvis in a kilt!
Originally uploaded by Amanda Bettam

Silver Kilt

Silver Kilt
Originally uploaded by Amanda Bettam

See Thru Plastic Kilt

See Thru Plastic Kilt
Originally uploaded by Amanda Bettam

Kilts on the catwalk

Kilts on the catwalk
Originally uploaded by Amanda Bettam

Stillwater Black kilt, and vintage leather

Here's what I'm wearing today.  It's my Stillwater solid black kilt, a wool sweater from Oakley, and a vintage leather jacket from my Father in Law. 

  

Sinful for men to wear kilts

This article came up in a google alert about kilts, and while I have mixed feelings about sending this guy any traffic, what the heck.  It's just too fun to pass up. 

It's a lovely article letting us all know just how wrong it is for men to wear kilts from a mostly old testament perspective.  A counter argument is really not needed, especially when it's more fun to wonder what is upsetting this guy so much.  I tend to think most responses like this are fear based, but the more specific someone gets the more interesting it becomes to me.  If this was just an article about "feminine" attire, that would be one thing, but it's about kilts.  And he posts pictures.  Which look pretty good!

The only slightly interesting conversation in this for me is really about the nature of gender and how it relates to fashion.  When I first start wearing kilts it was important to me that it felt masculine.  I liked my Utilikilt Workman the best because it felt tough and strong. As I've worn them more and more, the issue has become less relevant, and has become replaced by a combination of how comfortable the kilt is and what I wear it with.

What I do think is interesting to note, and this goes back to a previous thread in comments, is that I think kilt wearing necessitates a separation between sexual orientation and gender identity. In some ways fashion may have always done this, but kilts force the issue to a certain extent because they automatically question our traditions of gender identified clothing.  This is even more true with non-traditional kilts since they are not as instantly recognizable as cultural costume.  I'll most likely come back this conversation, as I've clearly just touched on it, but why not start with an offensive article? 

I'd love to hear comments about the article or anything to do with kilts and gender/orientation.

Click on the photo for a link to the "article".

  

From Kilts to Catwalks: Exhibit

There is an exhibit at the National Museum of Costume in Scottland called "From Kilts to Catwalks" and it explores the history of Tartan.  Click on the photo to read the article!

Juicy kilts on 5th Ave

I got an e-mail from Vaarun last week letting me know that Juicy Couture on 5th Ave had kilts in their window!  Since I was too lazy to go up to 5th Ave and take a look, I did a quick google search. I found an  article on Racked.com about the display, with comments from the X-marks rabble about how poorly the kilts were displayed.  

I haven't gone up to the store yet, but I think I probably will.  My first impression was that they looked pretty good.  I realize they are sideways, backwards, and not fitted correctly.  Normally this would drive me crazy, but for a window on 5th Ave it doesn't bother me at all.  

It may be that they don't actually sell kilts.  It may also be that the rest of the outfits look pretty damn good to me.  I like the Converse and sweaters and scarves.  The outfits in general look very cool and like something I'd wear.  

Anyway, check out the photo for yourself and if you want to read the article just click on it. 

Stillwater Solid Black Kilt

And finally, here are two photos of me in my new solid black Stillwater wool kilt.  As a brief review, I'll say that it's very comfortable, has a great weight, and fits well.  I like the look overall, especially the "shadow tartan" which is essentially the texture of the weave.  The two noticeable downsides are the shallow pleats and the front apron, which is a bit narrow and not quite shaped right.  Those are both very minor issues though and I'm very happy with it.  I think I'll get a lot of use out of it.

 

Punk Kilt on Etsy

And one more thing!  It's just that kind of kilt day.

Etsy is a cool site where people sell home made items.  I've posted some cuff links before that I very much like.  There is a ton of things on there that fit in with the steam-punk vibe.  I just did a search for kilts and found this custom punk-rock kilt.  It's very cool. Click on the image to see more views and the item on Etsy.

This is by the same maker and is really fantastic. I want one!

Kilts, kilts, and more kilts

Sometimes I get a google alert about kilts and there isn't much there to make a post from.  Other days I'm flooded with interesting items.  Today is one of those days.  The first two links I clicked on both had great material.  It's always great when I get a GungHaggisFatChoy alert, and a picture of kilted snowboarders is just icing on the cake.

I'm also wearing my new Stillwater solid black kilt, and as soon as I take a picture, I'll post it.  Should be soon.

(click on the images below to go to read the posts)

green hills and kilt

This photo from an old article in the Indepenent makes me happy.  And it makes me want to be there.  In that outfit. 

Enjoy.

storm troopers in kilts

storm troopers in kilts
Originally uploaded by eclecticlibrarian

This is definitely one of the geekiest kilt photos I've seen in a long time.

That said, I feel like I've posted photos of storm troopers in kilts before, but I'm too lazy to go back and look through my archives.  Or even do a google serach of the site.

Solid Black Stillwater kilt

I just ordered a solid black kilt from stillwater.  I've never ordered from the them before, but the rabble over at x-marks seems to think they do a good job for inexpensive off-the-rack kilts.  The kilt is wool and black with their "shadow tartan" design.  I'll post more once it arrives!

Here's a shot from their website:

Blacklader kilt finally makes it's debut

So, I finally wore my Blacklader kilt out of the house last week.  I only got this one crappy photo, but I did get a lot of compliments on it.  I think I'm getting over my reservations about it now that I've worn it out. It's heavy, comfortable, and the pockets are really fantastic.  I also like that it is slightly skewed at the lower edge.  It hangs at a bit of an angle which I think works very well.

I'll get a better photo next time I wear it out.

Happy Scotchtoberfest!

Stone Brewing Utilikilt

Let me start by saying that I don't really like most of the beers Stone makes and I especially don't like the Arrogant Bastard.  I find it...well, to be honest arrogant. It's strong, bitter, and I find generally unbalanced. 

But since I wasn't blogging four years ago, and since I just saw this today for the first time, I'll post a photo of the Stone Brewing custom Utilikilt.  I don't think you can get them anymore, which is fine by me.  If you really desperately want one, I would check e-bay or xMarks to see if someone has one lying around.

Now, is they made a Troegs kilt I'd be all over it.  ;-)