A proper Scotish kilt

In the summer of 2013 we did a two week trip to Britain. Starting in the south with Brighton and then finishing off in Edinburgh. But the absolute highlight of the trip was hiring a narrow boat for a week which is an adventure I will save for another blog post.

In Edinburgh I visited The Tartan Weaving Mill which is huge tourist trap with a strange combination of a working tartan mill, a fabric and garment shop and a trinket souvenir place. The selection of tartan fabrics is HUGE – really a fabric lovers dream. I spent ages picking out the perfect one – I wanted a tartan pattern that felt contemporary and more fashion forward – some of the tartan colour patterns looks almost costumey. In the end I picked this blue greenish one, though don’t remember it’s heritage, this was two plus years ago after all. But I fell hard for the colour of this fabric and have not regretted my purchase.

I used an old pattern from a Burda magazine from 2004 or 2005. Glad I kept the magazine! This was the first time I did permanent pleats in wool and I am happy to report that the fabric has kept it’s shape pretty well, though the pleats are not as razor sharp as in ready to wear kilts. Maybe I was too careful when pressing, there seems to be fine line between getting the temperature hot enough yet avoiding getting the alarming smell of burnt hair!