Kilted in York and on the train

General discussion of skirt and kilt-based fashion for men, and stuff that goes with skirts and kilts.
Post Reply
User avatar
cessna152towser
Member Extraordinaire
Posts: 664
Joined: Sat Jan 21, 2006 12:14 am
Location: Scottish Borders
Contact:

Kilted in York and on the train

Post by cessna152towser »

When I first started posting on these forums I had expressed my reluctance to wear kilts outwith my native Scotland and Hamish and others assured me nothing drastic would happen to me. So today I decided to wear the lightweight polyester black goth kilt by Mercy Clothing for a pre-planned outing. I teamed the kilt with a goth teeshirt, plain leather sporran with silver coloured chain and black kilt hose with trainers, with a fleece on top for the outdoor parts of the trip. The Mercy kilt being made in standard sizes is slightly longer on me than my Scottish kilts, hitting to the bottom of the knee and leaving just the slightest flash of leg between top of hose and hem of kilt. I drove from home in southern Scotland over the border to Callerton to join the Tyne & Wear metro - this first bit I have done kilted before en route to take part in the Great North Run, but today there was no one else there in "costume". The train gradually got busier towards Newcastle Central where I changed to a GNER main line service. As soon as I had sat down another guy in a kilt walked along the passageway which was most re-assuring. I arrived in York some two and a half hours early for my booked excursion so had a good walk round the shops and market, the wall, and coffee in Starbucks and despite being seen by thousands of people got exactly the reaction I wanted - none. Somehow the longer length and the all black colour of this kilt makes me inconspicuous compared to wearing my Scottish kilts. I met another guy in York also wearing a black goth kilt who gave a friendly nod, but he also appeared to be wearing it over some sort of leggings, either skin-hugging jeans or thick ribbed tights. Later on I was pre-booked onto an excursion train to Wensleydale which had originated at Cardiff, the last pick up point being York, so immediately on boarding I was mingling with people from Wales and the West Midlands - again no reaction. Once up in the dale, we had time off at Leyburn where I thought perhaps in a small country town some of the local youngsters might find me amusing, but they are used to tourists so once again no reaction. Back to York station for a bite to eat, Virgin Voyager train back to Newcastle, Tyne & Wear Metro back to Callerton and drove home. No reaction from anyone. For any man thinking of trying out an unbifurcated garment for the first time I could recommend the Mercy kilt - costs under £25 and is in my opinion far lighter and more comfortable than wearing a traditional Scottish kilt. There are only about half the pleats compared to a traditional kilt and because of the light weight you need to use the kilt pin to hold both parts of the apron together. This and the lack of weight means it doesn't swing the same when you walk. Without accessories I'd have to admit it could look rather like an old fashioned schoolgirls pleated skirt, and indeed the texture of the material is similar, but remember schoolgirls wear black trousers nowadays and it can be accessorised to look very macho with a sporran and chain.
Please view my photos of kilts and skirts, old trains, vintage buses and classic aircraft on http://www.flickr.com/photos/cessna152towser/
Foppy
Active Member
Posts: 39
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 1:07 am

Post by Foppy »

Let me get this straight. When you went out, you saw not one, but two kilted men?! :O

That's awesome. Wasn't there something mentioned here about how "MUG"-wearing would become a lot more acceptable (reach "critical mass") if the average person saw around 3 kilted/skirted/etc. men daily? Myself, I've never met even one other man in any kind of unbifurcated garment whatsoever out over here. Then again, I'd assume the U.K. would have a lot more men in kilts than eastern Tennessee.

Congratulations on your outing.
hiker
Active Member
Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2006 4:23 am

Post by hiker »

On the topic of seeing men in skirts - I saw 2 other skirted men in the Detroit Airport on Tuesday of this week. They were talking and didn't see me and I chose to respect their privacy. No one seemed to care about them or me.
User avatar
Since1982
Member Extraordinaire
Posts: 3449
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 2:13 pm
Location: My BUTT is Living in the USA, and sitting on the tip of the Sky Needle, Ow Ow Ow!!. Get the POINT?

Hiker

Post by Since1982 »

Hey buddy, were they skirted or kilted? It does seem that if kilted, getting along with the few "big mouth dont make a big man" types is easier than if you're skirted. My heritage is part Scottish but I don't ever wear the kilt, too hot where I live for wool. Plus I need the straight skirts to help me with lower back and hip problems. When I sit with a straight skirt, I can tuck the minimal amount of extra material under me and it's pleasingly supportive while I am sitting. If sitting wearing a loose skirt or up to about 8 months ago while I still owned some trousers and wore them, my knees tend to separate and my panniculus tends to fall between my legs and pull at my lower back and hips. All but one pair of my trousers have been cut off and converted into skirts. I had about 10 pairs of cutoff and hemmed cutoff jeans which have all been converted along with 5 pairs of long denims. To give you some idea of how often I wear those trousers, they've not been washed in at least 6 months. Or worn in that time. :):cool: :shake:
I had to remove this signature as it was being used on Twitter. This is my OPINION, you NEEDN'T AGREE.

Story of Life, Perspire, Expire, Funeral Pyre!
I've been skirted part time since 1972 and full time since 2005. http://skirts4men.myfreeforum.org/
hiker
Active Member
Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2006 4:23 am

Post by hiker »

They were skirted. Ankle length, dark gray, full, comfortable skirts, maybe wool, well tailored appeared to be made to fit a man. They were also wearing solid color dress shirts, dark socks, dress shoes, one had a briefcase the other a book pack. They looked to be ~40 years old. When I first saw them I wondered if they were in a religious community because of the matching skirts, but I didn't see any other signs of religous intent. The only thing that made them different than the other business travelers was the skirts.

I thought about catching up and asking them where they got the skirts but I suspected that they were custom made by a seamstress, because they looked well made and expensive.
iain
Member Extraordinaire
Posts: 468
Joined: Sun Dec 21, 2003 6:29 pm
Location: UK
Contact:

Post by iain »

That's really something, seeing those other guys dressed in a similar way. I think you can put it all down to the efforts of the kind of people who attend this forum and who have put their courage to the test over the years.

Before I started wearing them, if I had seen a guy in a kilt looking relaxed and cheerful, I would have thought about it for a long time afterwards. I still remember the first time I wore one in public, sitting at a roadside cafe, and the stir it caused, mainly women trying to be subtle but frantically pointing me out to their boyfriends.

I guess everything we do makes a big difference because we're all individuals; people aren't all just a little different, they're hugely different. I think there's a big movement afoot and people like us somehow were very important for it!
The only thing man cannot endure is meaninglessness.
Departed Member

Post by Departed Member »

It would be relatively rare NOT to see at least one bloke in a Kilt on any GNER train to/from Scotland between Friday afternoon/Monday morning. Don't know about the West Coast route, these days, sadly. I NEVER travel that way anymore as I cannot stomach 'Pendolinos'!
iain
Member Extraordinaire
Posts: 468
Joined: Sun Dec 21, 2003 6:29 pm
Location: UK
Contact:

Post by iain »

what are pendolinos? some kind of crisps?
The only thing man cannot endure is meaninglessness.
Departed Member

Post by Departed Member »

iain wrote:what are pendolinos? some kind of crisps?
See Virgin Trains' adverts! Funnily, they do sell crisps on them (so I'm reliably informed!:rolleyes: )
User avatar
Since1982
Member Extraordinaire
Posts: 3449
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 2:13 pm
Location: My BUTT is Living in the USA, and sitting on the tip of the Sky Needle, Ow Ow Ow!!. Get the POINT?

Pendolinos

Post by Since1982 »

I'm sure glad you all explained that, I was starting to think Pendolinos were some sort of Hispanic street gang with tattoos of pits and pendulums on their chests and nether regions.

How about this term? Y'all better hurry if you're going to catch the train!!? :):clap: :p ;) ~pray~
I had to remove this signature as it was being used on Twitter. This is my OPINION, you NEEDN'T AGREE.

Story of Life, Perspire, Expire, Funeral Pyre!
I've been skirted part time since 1972 and full time since 2005. http://skirts4men.myfreeforum.org/
Post Reply