Here at ScotClans we have been very privileged to have worked with some great kilt makers, I have always been in complete awe of their skill, it’s almost super-human.   I’m a kilt lover and can sell kilts but making them is something I couldn’t imagine …. basically someone orders a kilt from us, I send the tartan out to our kilt maker living up in the Highlands. Then like magic a beautifully hand stitched kilt turns up a few weeks later.  I am sure Wizard magic has been involved in the making of it.

For as long as I have been involved with the tartan industry I have known three things:

• There are very few true kilt makers out there – they are as rare as hen’s teeth.
• The art of traditional kilt making is dying out, kilt makers aren’t taking on apprentices any more.
• Making a kilt is really really hard and takes a massive amount of training – in a way it is an un-touchable craft.

Conscious that our business was growing and there will soon come a time when our kilt maker will surely reach the limit of kilts she can make for us I embarked on the quest of trying to find more kilt makers.  Also I had been told that the art of traditional kilt making was probably going to die out in the next 20 years and really wanted to find new kilt makers to work with.  Very soon kilts will just be machine made and imported, this is just a heartbreaking idea.

A few google searches pulled up ‘The Edinburgh Kiltmakers Academy’, this quickly turned into a visit.  Both myself and Agnieszka (our very talented seamstress/crafts person) popped in to see what they were up to.   In a basement below Gordon Nicholsons Kilt Makers we met Nikki Laird, basically ‘The Kilt Guru’. Together with Gordon Nicholson she had created The Edinburgh Kiltmakers Academy. It took about 10 seconds and we were both totally sold on the idea of joining the course.   Thanks to CAPITB trust we were able to get funding to put both myself and Agnieszka through the kilt making course.

The Course

The course is an SVQ Level 3 in Kiltmaking.  To pass you need to make 6 kilts (all by hand) including:

• A Kids Kilt pleated to stripe.
• A Gents Mediumweight  8 yard Kilt pleated to sett
• A Heavyweight Gents 8 yard Kilt
• A Kingussie Kilt
• A Ladies Kilt
• A Military Box Pleated Kilt

Oh and I think it ends in a fashion show!

We also learn about the history of kilts, highland wear and tartan.

To find out more see: http://www.edinburghkiltmakersacademy.com/

Diary of kilt making

We are now on week 5 of the course and have completed our kids kilt and our first gents kilt.  To give you an idea of the stages of making  kilt:

1. Ripping the tartan
You rip the tartan to get the length of the kilt. Tartan has a selvage edge (doesn’t fray) this forms the bottom of the kilt. Ripping the tartan is fun, makes a great noise.

Agnieszka ripping the tartan!

2. Measuring and marking out

This I imagine is going to be the hardest bit of kilt making. Understanding the tartan, how to get the most amount of pleats out of a piece of tartan. A lot of modern tartans are not designed with kilt making in mind.
Setts (the repeating pattern in tartan) can be non-matching. Basically it’s a minefield of scary things.
You start by choosing a centre point of your apron. This will match the centre point of the back of the pleats. For our kids kilt we pleated to the stripe.  If you can make it out in the photo below, I picked the green stripe to pleat to.

pleating to the stripe

All of the shaping on a kilt is done in the pleats.  If you look at the top of the pleats, they should be tapered this is the waist to seat measurement.   We were taught the art of invisible stitching for the pleats – yes proper wizard magic!

3. Cutting the pleats then steeking the pleats

Me cutting the pleats – holding my breath

Then after spending hours doing your invisible stitching you turn over the kilt and cut big chunks out of it.  To stop the kilt collapsing the pleats need to be steeked (such a lovely word).

4.  Internal bits
Over the cut pleats a stabilising ribbon is put in.  Then the canvas is added.  The waistband is added next.  Then all of this inside workings is all neatly covered with a lining.  Kilts are often signed by their kilt maker on the canvas.  Maybe I should leave a note?

4. Finished
So thanks to ‘The Kilt Guru’  Nikki Laird I finished my kids kilt.  I’m amazed it actually looks like a kilt.

Kilt number 2 – The Gents Kilt
For my Gents kilt I chose an Irish Tartan – County Waterford, after deciding on this tartan purely because I liked the colours I found out Rodger’s (the husband)  grandmother was born in Country Waterford, so decided to make this kilt for my son.

This kilt was made to the sett.

Gents Kilt by Amanda – just need to press

What I’ve learnt

Kilt making is an incredible craft to learn – and I love it!.
The amount of work and skill that goes into a kilt is incredible and am amazed at how little kilts cost after all of this.   Kilts out there are not always made by one person, most kilts you buy are made by a group of people, each just doing one part of the kilt.  This isn’t good … no one is trained to fully make a kilt and bad companies out there can get away with paying kilt makers peanuts.
I am determined now to really promote that the kilts at ScotClans are and have always been made by one person and say who the kilt maker is.  Kilt makers need to be paid well for their work and given the acknowledgement and respect.  The Edinburgh Kiltmaking Academy has given hope that there is a future for traditional hand stitched kilts made by one person.

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The book, which is numbered 37 of 500 copies, is set to fetch between £500-800 in the sale. It also provides a historical observation on the literature, art, manufactures, and commerce of the Highlands and Western Isles during the middle ages, and on the influence of the sixteenth century, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries upon their present condition.

The books authors have been the subject of much controversy in recent years, and were recently the subject of the BBC documentary Spinning a Yarn: The Dubious History of Scottish Tartan.

Costume of the Clans was published by John and Charles Allen, the sons of a naval officer, who moved to Scotland from England and changed their name to Sobieski Stuart, claiming to be descended from Bonnie Prince Charlie.

When it was first published, the book was celebrated by the gentry, but experts now insist the brothers were fantasists or early marketing geniuses, who invented many of the tartans and traditions themselves.

They also claimed to have discovered a manuscript, Vestiarium Scoticum, or wardrobe of the Scots, which could be traced back to the 1580s.

Vestiarium Scoticum was published in 1842, followed in 1845 by The Costume of the Clans.

Brian Wilton, director of the Scottish Tartans Authority, said: “The Costume of the Clans is amazing, filled with fantastic illustrations. The problem is, one does not know what is fantasy and what might be based on fact.“The Sobieskis produced beautiful tartan designs, and even allocated tartans to families, who had never had a tartan before, particularly in the Lowlands.“Of course, they were only too happy to accept everything the Sobieskis said, because it made them the equal of those in society who were connected to the Highlands.“Much of it was pure fantasy, but they were hugely influential. Following the visit to Scotland of George IV in 1822, the Sobieskis helped establish the importance of tartan.“Most of these are the tartans we have today for the clans.”Henry Baggott of Bonhams said: “This particularly impressive book had an enormous impact when it was originally published in 1845, and lavishly reproduced nearly 50 years later in 1892. It is beautifully bound and the artwork is striking.

“There could be a large market for this book, including perhaps among clan chiefs. There is also a strong market in America for this kind of thing.”

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Cabin crew sport tartan scarves in front of easyJet’s new tartan-clad plane

A distinctive orange and black tartan-clad aircraft has been unveiled to mark a new early morning flight from Inverness to London Gatwick. Budget airline EasyJet launched the tartan today entitled “Highland aircraft” on its Airbus A319 aircraft, alongside a kilt and scarf sported by cabin crew on its inaugural 6:40am service.

However the kilt is not set to become part of regular cabin crew uniforms, and will only be used for special occasions. The design is the first tartan to be officially registered by the Scottish Register of Tartans since records began six years ago.

Reaction to the tartan has been mixed, with some design experts calling the launch an appropriate way for the airline to mark its commitment to Scotland. Design expert Susanna Freedman, head of brand at design firm Emperor said: “Tartan is such an iconic textile, and employed with consideration – as part of an overall design scheme – can add real impact and authenticity.

“I hope we see a ‘less is more’ approach – or innovative execution in its use – that fits with easyJet’s brand positioning, rather than it appearing as a superficial ‘bolt on’ to current easyJet apparel.”

Richard Havers, a former British Caledonian general manager for Europe, admires easyJet’s idea but not its design. Tartan-clad cabin crew is most famously associated with now-defunct British Caledonian and its predecessor Caledonia Airways. Staff wore a range of tartans from the 1960s until its takeover by British Airways in 1988.

He said: “It’s quite a clever idea, but a bit of a dubious tartan. Making up a tartan is a cheap trick. Sir Adam Thomson [British Caledonian’s founder and chairman] would be turning in his grave.

“British Caledonian used about 30 tartans, but none were designed for the airline, that would have been against its ethos. It would have felt it was not the right thing to do.”

Mr Havers said both cabin crew and check-in staff had chosen which tartan to wear.

He added: “Most based their choice on their hair colour, with blondes picking green tartans and those with dark hair going for red ones.”

The former airline executive said tartan had been part of British Caledonian’s brand image, which was the “total antithesis” to easyJet’s. He said: “It was an era when flying was more glamorous – passengers wore jackets and ties.”

Mr Havers said it was a “pity” easyJet appeared to be using the tartan as a publicity stunt.

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This isn’t the first time a Santa has appeared playing the pipes  – last Christmas in Portland, Oregon a kilted Santa playing the bagpipes and riding a unicycle was spotted on a number of occasions on the city’s streets. Unfortunately there have been no confirmed sightings of the bearded piper this year.

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The Pyramid of Khafre, Giza Necropolis, Cairo

It seems wherever you travel around the globe, you can’t miss signs of Scottish influence. From bagpipes being played in far off antipodean lands to Ceilidhs taking place in South America, the Scots have sure spread themselves far and wide. I recently traveled through Egypt, eyes peeled for any evidence of these great wanderers.

Today Egypt is sadly far down the list of travel destinations for holiday makers. The most recent revolution earlier this year (or coup, depending on who you’re speaking with), follows three years of life-changing political change that has turned the majority of travelers off the region, as the country remains stuck in a kind of political purgatory. I was a little nervous about visiting Egypt, but after conducting a large amount of research online, we discovered the situation on the ground was a lot calmer than what is shown on the evening news.

Revolution Graffiti, Luxor

The signs of revolution in Egypt are evident – curfews are still in place, political graffiti adorns city walls, and tanks and soldiers patrol the streets (mainly to keep the few visitors that are still visiting safe). But I have never been more blissfully overwhelmed in my life than when I first set eyes on the grandeur that is the Great Pyramids of Giza. I’ll also never forget my afternoon spent floating on a Felucca down the incredibly tranquil and soothing Nile. And just as in Scotland, every corner you turn you’ll find another historical gem sitting as it has for thousands of years, patiently awaiting you – from Mosques, Coptic Churches and the odd Synagogue, to the thousands of temples and monuments from ancient times.

So what are the ties between Egypt and Scotland? Well, it turns out they both wear.. kilts! Look at any statue of the great Pharaohs that adorn temples, and you’ll notice these titans of ancient times are wearing what my fantastic guide Mustafa refereed to as the ‘Royal Kilt’. My ears pricked up when he said this – as I had been searching far and wide for some way to tie the two countries together. Known also as the Shendyt, this kilt (generally made of linen) was the basic form of dress for Egyptian men of all social classes for thousands of years. And just like Scottish kilts, the Egyptian version is also pleated in the back.

Ramses II wearing the Royal Kilt, Ancient City of Memphis

The Shendyt is probably an adaptation of early hunting skirts which allowed freedom of movement for the wearer. Members of the military wore a version of the Shendyt, as they too would need freedom of movement for battle. A man’s status was also confirmed by how elaborate his kilt was, and how fine the linen used to make it. The kilts of the rich nobles and Pharaohs were often very intricately pleated, and must have been difficult to care for. By the Middle Kingdom, mens kilts had become longer and more complex and ornamental pendants were often attached to elaborate belts.

Upon further research I also discovered that another quintessential Scottish item can possibly trace its ancestry to the ancient Egyptians. The bagpipes roots lie in ancient Egypt and Babylonia, where early double-piped instruments probably sounded the melody and the bag as air supply played the accompaniment. Some sources say the pipes made their way to Scotland via Rome – Emperor Nero (37-68 A.C.) was apparently a keen player. During the Roman expansion into Europe and Britain, the bagpipes were used by soldiers during religious observances, and could have been appropriated then by the locals. Other sources say the bagpipes reached Scotland with immigrants from the Mediterranean by the way of the west coast between 2000 and 3000 B.C., or via Ireland with its close ties to Spain. Or of course it could be that the Highlanders invented their pipes completely independently in pre-Roman times.

If you’ve been thinking of going, Egypt needs you now more than ever as so much of the country relies on tourism. It broke my heart that the major sightseeing destinations had been reduced to ghost-towns. When I visited the Valley of the Kings with my dad, we were the only people there, and felt as if we were modern day explorers discovering the tombs for the first time.

I feel incredibly fortunate that I was able to spend time in Egypt, especially during such a pivotal moment in the country’s immense history. The Egyptians are a wonderfully friendly bunch who will go to all lengths to make you feel welcome in their country. If you’re considering making the trip – go! It’s definitely not your average holiday, but completely worth it for the sights, the people, the food, and even the heat.

I was looked after in Cairo and Luxor by the incredibly wonderful Memphis Tours – Cheers guys!

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Mr Lundgren channeling Scotland

A bus driver in the northern Swedish town of Umea has begun wearing a skirt to work as temperatures sore past 25C. Mats Lundgren decided to find a trouser alternative when his boss turned down his request to wear shorts to work, stating he was fed up of sitting in the drivers’ seat for hours at a time in dark uniform trousers.

“The Scottish are very lucky to be able to wear kilts all the time,” he said – adding he was not trying to imitate all of the traditions that come with wearing one. Mr Lundgren is exploiting a loophole in the firm’s dress code, which allows skirts to be worn but does not specify which sex should be wearing them.

“The reaction here has been nice – the passengers all smile and my workmates think it’s hilarious, but I don’t expect to set a trend among them,” he told BBC News Online. “I wore it all day yesterday. It was very nice to have a bit of a breeze.”

As Mr Lundgren settles into the driver’s seat, the navy blue skirt slides up his thighs just above his bony knees, revealing a pair of hairy white legs. “It’s even better than shorts. It’s unbearable driving a bus in long trousers when the sun is blazing through the windscreen, but with the skirt it feels just great,” he says.

“I am divorced, so I had to borrow the skirt from a friend. Unfortunately, she is a couple of sizes smaller than me, which means I have to squeeze into it,” he added.

Rolf Persson, managing director of Umea’s transport authority said he was surprised to see Mr Lundgren dressed this way. But his hands were tied, he said, as careful perusal of regulations produced no mention of rules about men in skirts.

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Peter Rabbit’s Tartan, created to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the first publication of The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter.

The Scottish Register of Tartans has been criticised for including designs in their repository by Disney, a German Pipe Smokers group and Peter Rabbit.

The Government register, which provides a definitive resource for protecting and promoting tartans, has come under fire by Scottish Members of Parliament, claiming the approval process needs to be changed to prevent “shallow and irreverent” tartans.

Alex Johnstone, Conservative MSP for north-east Scotland said regulation of tartan legislation ensures the protection of Scotland’s heritage so that Scottish culture continues to be held in high esteem. “The way the Register is behaving only serves to enhance the nonsense it was set up to prevent. There is an excellent case here for demanding that the SRT is overhauled to protect our heritage.”

While Johnstone fully supports ‘inclusive’ tartans such as those designed for Islamic societies and asylum-seekers in Scotland, Green MSP Patrick Harvie says he was puzzled by political designs such as the Occupy Movement’s tartan. “The issues such causes represent are important. But I’m struggling to see how having their own tartan would help defeat capitalism.”

Read the full story here, and check out Disney’s listing on the Scottish Register of Tartans here.

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The Occupy Wall Street Demos

Dr Giles Jackson an American based academic and long time supporter of the anti capitalist movements worldwide has come up with a novel way of uniting those who support this cause under a tartan banner. He has registered a tartan called ‘Liberty Square’ which he hopes those who support the cause will wear. The tartan has this gold lines which he says reflect the uneven distribution of wealth. The tartan is one of a series that his ‘Liberation Kilt Company’ have registered that support global causes such as climate change, water aid, and political freedom of expression.

Dr Jackson, an associate professor at Shenandoah University in Virginia was born in the UK and has Scottish roots, he was inspired to design a tartan for the movement after wearing a kilt to a protest in 2008. He said: “I’m tapping into a long and glorious tradition. Long before tartan became the garb of royal subjects it was a badge of dissent.” His first design was a tartan for the climate change movement but from there it expanded into many other causes. A percentage of the profits from the sale of products produced will go towards helping the relevant causes.

The notes on the Liberty Square tartan on the Public Register of Tartan’s website reads:

Image: Liberty Kilt Co

Liberty Square (fictitious name) symbolises the golden rule of capitalism: ‘Those with the Gold make the Rules’. In a throwback to the gilded age, the spoils increasingly go to a protected class of global profiteers (represented by the gold stripes), while the ordinary citizen (centre) is gradually stripped of their freedoms, money and dignity. In the US, real wages for average workers are slightly below their 1970 level, whereas the top 0.1 per cent has increased its share nearly fourfold, with the 400 richest people now having assets equal to the poorest 140 million. Many democracies are becoming virtual plutocracies designed to prolong, protect and intensify the wealth and influence of those who already have wealth and influence, sapping entire nations of their vitality. This tartan honours the Occupy protesters around the world who have recognised the danger and stepped up to demand transparency, reform and a return to democratic values.

The occupy movement has divided opinions and its foray into tartan is no exception. Many online discussions have become heated with some in support of the idea but just as many condemning it. We would love to hear your opinions on this.

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The manufacturers of highlandwear have realised that there is a demand for a look that ‘breaks the mould’. A few years ago the ‘black on black’ style of tartan became the vogue, closely followed by tweed kilts and even more outlandish colours (a look that has been given a shot in the arm by the rise in civil ceremonies or same sex marriages in the UK). Celtic designs that look more at home on a tattoo than on a sporran are becoming popular and with the demise of traditional sealskin alternative furs have led to an explosion of colours.

All of this looks very exciting and every time a new design comes out we are always keen to let our customers know about it. But what is funny is how our customers outside the UK react to them and in particular those in the USA and Canada. What we have come to realise is that while we are desperately trying to break traditions our friends over the ‘pond’ are just as desperate the recreate them. Tastes can sometimes seem to be stuck in some sort of Jacobite time warp, as if fashion stopped moving forward some time just after 1745 (about quarter to six in the evening). Where traditions don’t exist they are invented; the rise of ‘kirking of the tartan’ and hand fastening ceremonies are testament to this. And so there it is. It seems pretty clear cut, over here in Scotland we are doing all manner of whacky and unusual takes on the kilt and over in America the look is as traditional as tartan apple pie, right?

Err Wrong!

As if to through a big kilted spanner in the works along comes ‘dressed to kilt’

One of the signature events of New York’s Tartan Week this fashion show attracts some of the top celebrities from both sides of the Atlantic and also encourages some of the best fashion designers in the world to showcase just how far you can ‘push the envelope’. In recent years we have seen (or rather not seen) the see through kilt and a whole spectrum of other variations on a tartan theme that show just how limitless the imagination of top designers can be. And what is great is that many of these designers are from America and Canada, designers, for example like Veronica MacIssac who’s tartan dresses are breathtaking.

On the whole though the grass roots expat Scot wants to get that look exactly off the box lid. The look that demands that the sporran is EXACTLY 5 inches from the top of the kilt and the Belt is NEVER worn with the Prince Charlie jacket and that the shoes are tied in the proper way and so on and so on. There is no shame in this at all, get it right and its a stunning look. make a few subtle changes and it’s a show stopper look, just be sure you are stopping the show for all the right reasons though!

So come on lets celebrate our common differences! Lets take our hats off to our American, Canadian and Australian cousins for their faithful representation of Scottish tradition and lets encourage those who want to break the mould and innovate, after all if it hadn’t been for a little innovation the kilt we all wear today would not exist!

Just click on the following images to see larger versions.  At www.scotclans.com we are in the process of putting these all on our site.  If you are interested in any please just contact sales@scotclans.com or phone  (UK) 0131 208 1746  (USA) (707) 832 4082  or (WORLDWIDE) +44 131 208 1746 for prices

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Alistair Buchan, Lochcarron’s retiring chairman, said that he believes that “E-Land’s established presence in the global marketplace will enable Lochcarron to continue to develop and prosper supported by such a major force in the world of prestigious textiles”, and that the deal will secure the company’s long-term future.

Lochcarron of Scotland started off as a family business over 60 years ago and has created itself into a massive company, expanding into North America to keep up with the rapidly growing market over in Canada and the US. The company say they have a “full and extensive range of traditional Scottish Highland Wear and its world famous collection of over 700 stock supported authentic tartans allow our customers a wide and varied choice.”

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