Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

General discussion of skirt and kilt-based fashion for men, and stuff that goes with skirts and kilts.
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mugman
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by mugman »

I have just one utilikilt and never wear it as it's able to almost stand up on its own. I found it very uncomfortable and the look isn't, in my opinion, favourable as pensioner clothing. My favourite kilts are, I'm sorry, black and simply purchased from eBay sellers as lightweight. They are fine for me and I tend to jazz things up with a colourful shirt.
Of course the usual deep pockets which come with utility kilts, once loaded, make them even more cumbersome.
I've spotted a skirt in Sainsburys supermarket which has a wide pleated front similar to utilikilt apronage and am tempted. Unfortunately it's in denim though and I think I have enough of that.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by hairy »

mugman wrote:I have just one utilikilt and never wear it as it's able to almost stand up on its own. I found it very uncomfortable and the look isn't, in my opinion, favourable as pensioner clothing. My favourite kilts are, I'm sorry, black and simply purchased from eBay sellers as lightweight. They are fine for me and I tend to jazz things up with a colourful shirt.
Of course the usual deep pockets which come with utility kilts, once loaded, make them even more cumbersome.
I've spotted a skirt in Sainsburys supermarket which has a wide pleated front similar to utilikilt apronage and am tempted. Unfortunately it's in denim though and I think I have enough of that.
Pete
You feel same as me mugman, kilts are cumbersome, and denim is much the same as boring jeans. I have got a couple of skirts from Sainsburys at a decent price.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by mugman »

Much of 'Tu' female clothing at Sainsbury's is pretty much on the femininely detailed side - obviously - with decorative nonsense added of non functional brass buttons and trim which always disinterests me. I like plain straight up and down, which I think is why the simplicity of kilts, even with tartan, will always be a macho image. Any decoration, which I don't bother with as I'm not Scottish, comes with all the accessories. Even my kilt pins are just the large safety pin type, apart from my musical golden treble cleff pin. I used to wear a bumbag in place of a sporren, but have now done away with that. I wear kilts like a skirt and use a more handy black canvas shoulder bag for tablet, wallet, phone, loose change, headset and extra strong peppermints. Sporrans are useless for all that luggage.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Gordon »

I own two kilts. And I've worn one of them twice (avatar picture), and the other just once. I find them to be too heavy and bothersome. I paid about $125 for the one and $70 for the other. A waste of good money to me.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Blackpassage »

I recently picked up a utility kilt. I find it a great way to be out skirted without having to directly face that women's clothing question. It seems silly , but I am still taking small steps with this. A few of my early forays were in denim or whatever, but at the time I didn't actually run into anyone major in my life. My utility kilt is twenty one inches long with regular waist. I've been wearing it everywhere. Parents and friends are accustomed to seeing me in it now. It is a little heavier than my denim mini, but it's masculine flavor gives me the confidence I need right now.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

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Blackpassage wrote:I recently picked up a utility kilt. I find it a great way to be out skirted without having to directly face that women's clothing question. It seems silly , but I am still taking small steps with this. A few of my early forays were in denim or whatever, but at the time I didn't actually run into anyone major in my life. My utility kilt is twenty one inches long with regular waist. I've been wearing it everywhere. Parents and friends are accustomed to seeing me in it now. It is a little heavier than my denim mini, but it's masculine flavor gives me the confidence I need right now.
No problem with that. Small steps are certainly better than retreat or frustration.

I wore utility kilts in public for about two years before venturing forth in an actual skirt.
Courage, conviction, nerve, verve, dash, panache, guts, nuts, balls, gall, élan, stones, whatever. Get some and get skirted.

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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by hairy »

I just don't see how a mans kilt of ANY type can be called a skirt. A thick heavy tartan or plain black utility kilt is a kilt and a skirt is a skirt. I have both kilts and skirts, I prefer my light weight skirts by far.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Caultron »

hairy wrote:I just don't see how a mans kilt of ANY type can be called a skirt. A thick heavy tartan or plain black utility kilt is a kilt and a skirt is a skirt. I have both kilts and skirts, I prefer my light weight skirts by far.
To me, at least, anything unbifurcated that goes no higher than the waist is a skirt.

Or, from another perspective, what is a kilt but a pleated wrap-around skirt?
Courage, conviction, nerve, verve, dash, panache, guts, nuts, balls, gall, élan, stones, whatever. Get some and get skirted.

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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Happy-N-Skirts »

It's funny, when I have shopped for a skirt I tell the sales associate I am looking for a "masculine" skirt. That means something in a solid color that would not be out of place. I bought a suede one recently with no pleats. It helps the sales person when selecting something to show me rather than bright colors, flowers, etc. If you want to wear a skirt and not be stared or laughed at or made rude comments about, I choose stealth shapes and styles and enjoy the comfort and self confidence.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Ray »

I don't have a problem at all with kilts looking masculine. It's nice having the option of a clearly masculine skirted garment. If someone finds a kilt too masculine, there are many pleated skirts to choose from. However if someone finds so-called women's' skirts too feminine, then kilts (and utilikilts etc) give them that option.

I've got three kilts - all proper ones made in Scotland. One is traditional 8 yard 16 oz tartan (so weighs 8lb); the second is grey tweed, 22" not 24", and has about 6 yards of material. It's funky ( but itchy; I use a plain slip) and the last is in 11oz fine woolmaterial - my stunning 21st Century Kilts kilt suit. They are all different, all masculine, and I wouldn't have it any other way. People absolutely love them. I've got the short etc skirts too - and I like having that wide range of clothing options.

All hail the kilt!

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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by PatJ »

In my opinion, skirts are articles of clothing that hangs from the waist and surrounds one’s lower extremities with a single tube (or barrow) of cloth.

“Pants” are also articles of clothing that hangs from the waist but surrounds one’s lower extremities with multiple tubes (or barrows) of cloth.

Therefore, pants are nothing more than a double barrowed skirt.

My questions are, "Can a one legged man wear pants if his lower extremities are in a single tube or barrow of cloth? Wouldn’t that constitute wearing a skirt?"
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by denimini »

PatJ wrote:In my opinion, skirts are articles of clothing that hangs from the waist and surrounds one’s lower extremities with a single tube (or barrow) of cloth.

“Pants” are also articles of clothing that hangs from the waist but surrounds one’s lower extremities with multiple tubes (or barrows) of cloth.

Therefore, pants are nothing more than a double barrowed skirt.

My questions are, "Can a one legged man wear pants if his lower extremities are in a single tube or barrow of cloth? Wouldn’t that constitute wearing a skirt?"
No, just one pantaloon, instead of a pair.
Anthony, a denim miniskirt wearer in Outback Australia
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by moonshadow »

You know what, upon further consideration on this question "Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine?", I'd like to offer up a different perspective you all may not be accustomed to hearing from me...

You know, I've got a closet full of skirts ranging from man like conservative to downright flamboyantly femme, and everything in between. I always like the feeling of wearing something unbifurcated, and I enjoy the style, however some days I feel like dressing more masculine like, and others I want to be like a delicate flower and pretty. I think it comes down to my mood....

Some men, for whatever reason (and it's their right), don't want to look like a delicate flower, yet they desire something with one tube instead of two, and there's nothing wrong with that. I think kilts look masculine because that's just the way a kilt is. It's a garment for the man who wants to have that masculine persona all the while wearing a "skirt". Not everyone's into lacey floral patterns and petticoats, and that's okay. We're all a little different and we all have our preferences in style. [0]

A similar question might be "why does a prom dress have to look so feminine?", it really comes down to the same root reason, "because that's what it's supposed to look like". If you don't want to wear a feminine prom dress to the prom (for the young ladies, or trans-ladies reading this...) then wear something else! It's your right.

So in conclusion, if one doesn't want to wear a "masculine kilt", then slip on a regular "women's" skirt. It doesn't have to have lace and floral patterns, in fact, I have a few skirts that from a distance look almost like a kilt (and have been mistaken for one a few times by onlookers). I personally choose this route, even on my "manly days". Personally, I'm comfortable enough with my masculine/feminine sides to wear what I want, I don't need to spend $100 extra dollars just to prove I'm a man, and if I ever wear a kilt, you can bet your bottom dollar, it's because I WANTED TO, not because I had something to prove!

By the way, I don't wear prom dresses for the same reason I don't wear kilts... because I just haven't an interest, both are just out of the scope of what my personal style is.

[0] I have omitted "tradition" as a possible reason some men wear kilts, as this is the U.S., not Scotland. Lets face it, most U.S. men wear kilts because they think they're bad ass, not necessarily due to heritage.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by Happy-N-Skirts »

I am wearing a tee shirt that says, "Real Men Wear Kilts." Maybe that's why kilts look so masculine.
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Re: Why do mens kilts have to look so masculine

Post by crfriend »

Happy-N-Skirts wrote:I am wearing a tee shirt that says, "Real Men Wear Kilts." Maybe that's why kilts look so masculine.
Or, "I kilt the last person that called this a skirt."

It's all part of swagger.
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