Find out which clan you belong to. As long as you know your surname or a surname connected to Scottish ancestors, you can search online for your clan name. You can search for your clan name here: http://www. scotclans. com/scottish-clans/clans-a-z/ Locate information about your clan. Once you know your clan name, you can look up more information about your clan in order to find out the tartan pattern or patterns associated with it. Look up your clan here: http://www. scotclans. com/scottish-clans/
Look up Scottish districts here: https://www. scotclans. com/pages/scottish-district-tartans Look up other British districts here: https://www. scotclans. com/pages/district-tartans-of-the-british-isles Look up American districts here: https://www. scotclans. com/pages/american-district-tartans Look up Canadian districts here: https://www. scotclans. com/pages/canadian-district-tartans Look up any other district here: https://www. scotclans. com/pages/other-world-district-tartans
Older, more traditional options include Hunting Stewart, Black Watch, Caledonian, and Jacobite. Modern universal options include Scottish National, Brave Heart Warrior, Flower of Scotland and Pride of Scotland.
For women, measure around the thinnest part of your waist and the widest part of your hips. For men, measure around the upper edge of your hip bones and the widest part of your buttocks. When taking measurements, make sure that the tape measure is taut and parallel to the ground.
If you plan to wear a wide kilt belt over your kilt, you should add 2 inches (5 cm) to this measurement for a high-rise waist.
Measure the width of the “sett” or pattern on the plaid or tartan material. Each pleat will consist of a full sett with 1 inch (2. 5 cm) of exposed pleat. In other words, if the setts on your material are 6 inches (15. 25 cm) wide, each pleat will use 7 inches (17. 75 cm). Calculate the amount of material you need by multiplying half of your hip measurement by the amount of material needed for each pleat, and add this value to your full hip measurement. Add an additional 20 percent for additional pleating and centering to get your total number of inches needed. Divide this value by 72 to determine how many yards you need at double width. [3] X Research source
This will not be necessary if the material has a finished edge at the top and bottom.
Fold roughly 6 inches (15. 25 cm) of material underneath itself at the right side of the material. Pin in place at the waist. On the left side of the material, make a pleat that encompasses two setts. Secure with a safety pin at the waist.
Use your best judgment to determine how many parts to divide the pattern into. The center section will peek through the pleat, so your center section should include an appealing part of the pattern.
The cardboard guide should give you an idea of where to fold your first few pleats. After you begin folding, however, you may find that you do not need the guide since it should become a simple matter of matching the patterns together.
You should do two rows of basting. The first running stitch should be about 1/4 of the length up from the bottom of the material, and the second should be about 1/2 of the length of from the bottom.
If your iron does not use steam, you can moisten a thin pressing cloth and place it over the pleats. Place this pressing cloth in between the iron and the material of your kilt and steam-press the pleats this way.
Sew a straight stitch with your sewing machine across the top of your pleats, roughly 1 inch (2. 5 cm) from the upper edge. [4] X Research source Sew a straight stitch with your sewing machine across the folded, ironed vertical edge of each pleat. Only sew about 4 inches (10 cm) of material. Do not sew all the way down each pleat.
Cut away excess material from the section starting 1 inch (2. 5 cm) above the hipline and ending at the waist. Do not cut away material from the first and last pleats.
This should be just slightly longer than your initial waist measurement.
The remaining width of the waistband should be folded over the top of the kilt. You do not need to finish it since the lining will cover the raw edges.
Wrap the first section along the wearer’s back. Attach two additional sections to the first at the spots on the right and left where a side seam would usually appear. Bring these two side sections together, bringing them around the front until each piece meets the side seam on the opposing side. Pin everything in place.
Do an overlap stitch along the top inside of the apron to tack the lining to the kilt apron. Only the top needs to be attached. You do not need to sew the bottom of the lining to the outer apron. Note that the inside of the waistband will also be sewn under the lining, securing it in place.
You could also use anti-fraying adhesive liquid if you do not want to stitch the hem closed.
The first leather belt should go just below the waistband, on the underside of the kilt. The second leather belt should go just above the bottom part of the sewn-down portion of your pleats. Again, it should be on the underside of the kilt. Sew the belts in place. The leather portion of the belts should be attached to the lining while the buckle portions should be attached to the pleats.
One half of the Velcro should be sewn across the top right of the front flap while the other half should be sewn to the top wrong-side of the left.
