skirtcafe.org

I'm not sure at all about the effect of left or right wrap. People first see a tartan design, then that's it a kilt, with buckles and maybe a decorative pin, then in the few seconds they have before I pass by, they notice jacket, boots, shirt, etc. If they're female they might look also at the legs and for any anatomical signs.

I think a person would need to be fully clued up and already in a state of hyper alertness to notice left or right wrap in the few moments of me walking by. And if you're in a kilt, are people going to say: it would look fine if not for the buckle on the wrong side?

I tend to agree with Iain, most people would see the lad pictured, notice a tartan and decide it's a kilt. If they noticed the wrap direction I'd be very surprised. As for the length, if they thought it too long they'd probably decide that his parents had gone a size large because kids that age grow like weeds. I very much doubt that more than a tiny fraction of people would think he was wearing "a lassie's kilted skirt".

Have fun,


Ian (who just bought a skirt from Fat Face that wraps left over right but was intended for the lassies....)

AMM wrote:...
It just goes to show that there's no logic in how people classify things as "girls'" vs. "boys'".
...

Yesterday I was to get new eyeglasses. I was taken to the 'guys' rack, passing the 'girls' rack. Not seeing anything on the guys rack, I asked what the difference was, maybe size? 'Just style -- the girls get a lot more choices'.

Milfmog wrote:I tend to agree with Iain, most people would see the lad pictured, notice a tartan and decide it's a kilt. If they noticed the wrap direction I'd be very surprised. As for the length, if they thought it too long they'd probably decide that his parents had gone a size large because kids that age grow like weeds. I very much doubt that more than a tiny fraction of people would think he was wearing "a lassie's kilted skirt".

It must be an 'age', or, 'culture' thing, then! Or, does society these days, really go around with 'closed eyes'? I really think, for once(!!), you are doing Joe/Jane Public a dis-service!

I don't 'buy' the argument that 'tartan = Kilt', I have to say, although I can see that where Kilts are not commonplace, this could be so. I've always found that most Scots, on the other hand, whether Kilt-wearers or no, are extremely 'perceptive' where Kilts are concerned, and inclined to be 'hyper-critical' (as far as most non-Scots would see it :rolleyes: ) on the subject!

It reminds me of a couple of years ago, when one of my wife's friend's lads had been given a part in a school play which required a Kilt to be worn (Parents were responsible for their own kids' costumes). She picked up a girl's 'kilted skirt' at a charity shop and was really pleased with the bargain. However, the young lad, only 7 years old, point blank refused to wear it. When she asked "Why?", "Because it 'fastens the girl's way'!" A half hour later, after a session on the sewing machine, the 'kilted skirt' became a 'Kilt' (even though the pleats still ran 'the wrong way'!). Result: One happy chappy (especially when he won the prize for best costume! :cheer: )! The point being, of course, that he was just a little kid, living in deepest England with scant 'exposure' to Kilts, but only too well aware of what a 'Kilt' should look like!

merlin wrote:...does society these days, really go around with 'closed eyes'?

Not with their eyes closed but we all tend to see what we expect to see, hence the oft reported invisibility of denim skirts.

If people see someone who is obviously male in a tartan wrap they think kilt and will rarely look any closer, just like the many experiments done with models walking along beach promenades in body paint, most people just see a girl in a swimming costume. If expectation viewing did not work conjurers would all be out of business (as would most doorstep conmen)

merlin wrote:I've always found that most Scots, on the other hand, whether Kilt-wearers or no, are extremely 'perceptive' where Kilts are concerned, and inclined to be 'hyper-critical' (as far as most non-Scots would see it :rolleyes: ) on the subject!

Agreed, though I would tend to refer to them as far too "precious" about their garment (the design of which is generally accredited to an Englishman).

merlin wrote:...the young lad, only 7 years old, point blank refused to wear it. When she asked "Why?", "Because it 'fastens the girl's way'!"

To me that's a kid who has been taught too many stereotypes Just a matter of perspective I guess, but if we want men to be able to wear anything they choose we should not go getting too precious about what constitutes a kilt; after all in the UK that is probably the first (only?) "bloke skirt" most people would think of.

Have fun,


Ian.

Milfmog wrote:Not with their eyes closed but we all tend to see what we expect to see, hence the oft reported invisibility of denim skirts.

Yes! Been there, done that, as they say (the denim skirt, not the closed eyes!)! :cheer:

Milfmog wrote:If people see someone who is obviously male in a tartan wrap they think kilt and will rarely look any closer....

Agreed, though I would tend to refer to them as far too "precious" about their garment (the design of which is generally accredited to an Englishman).

I think you have hit the 'nail on the head' about certain Scots' attitudes to Kilts, usu. as part of the (to me) stuffy 'formal costume', that appears also to have originally emanated from 'South of the Border'. I'm certain that 'day to day' Kilting in Scotland declined sharply (during the '80s, '90s) due to the 'holier than thou' "Trad Squad" repressing the growth of 'modern' Kilts. These folk still exist today, and I assure you, could out-do a Golden Eagle when it comes to spotting "Kilt Anomolies" at distance! They're the ones who wail about 'entitlement' & 'heritage' in a bid to actually squash the growth (I was going to say resurgence, but that limits it to Scotland) in Kilt wearing.

Milfmog wrote:To me that's a kid who has been taught too many stereotypes

The lad's mother was taken aback, when she finally got the 'reason' out of him. She has three lads, no girls, so was astonished he'd even knew there was a difference!

Milfmog wrote:........ we should not go getting too precious about what constitutes a kilt; after all in the UK that is probably the first (only?) "bloke skirt" most people would think of.

I agree, in principle. I'd like to see some of those 'strange' (North) American Kilts, 'in the flesh' so to speak, in the UK. OK, I do have a 'camo' Sportkilt, but I'm thinking of the more 'rugged' (mustn't say 'macho' otherwise the PC Brigade will start twittering! ) variants.