Some Christmas Gifts

Well I decided to try on a few of my Christmas gifts and get a photo the hose are from the Hawick Hose Company I've got a pair in Bottle Green with Blue and Red Checks. The tie is from Lochcarron and is called lambswool with blue, I really like the colour, and I think it goes well with the Isle of Skye tartan. I thought the Brown Argyll was a good match for the checks in the hose

 

Wind gusts: 76km/h Toronto

Today in Toronto we have a wind warning with wind gusts of 76km/h, I therefore thought it was the perfect weather to go out in my Gordon Highlander. Although I love my 4 yard box pleated kilts from Matt, I don't think they would be a good choice for today, anyway I got some photos.

Christmas day

I went to my parent's house yesterday for Christmas, it was a wonderful day spent with the family, I ended up with a Billy Connolly 3 CD Set from my nephew who is a bigger Connolly fan than I am, but I'm sure I'll give it a listen, a Jacobite/Ghillie shirt and a few other little things. 

A snow storm today

I thought as we are having quite the snow storm today, that I'd get a photo or two, not ideal kilting weather but the Gordon Highlander helps, at 22oz's not much gets through it. The details of the outfit are my Gordon Highlander kilt, hose from What Price Glory, the sporran is an L&M the sweater is a Canadian Army Issue and was a gift from a friend, the jacket is a kilt cut shooting jacket from Empire Canvas Works and the boots that are covered by snow are Caterpillar boots.

Christmas party

So I'm going out to a friends Christmas party tonight and I'm thinking about wearing what I have in the photo here or something close to it, I may end up with more pictures tonight, if so I'll be sure to post them. The outfit is my Graham of Menteith kilt with a blue sweater that I got at the Fergus games this summer, my Freelander sporran, the hose are new I picked them up yesterday, I had to leave the appartment for a while so I went to my local tartan shop and they had these hose for sale at 50% off. The shoes are Kenneth Cole shoes that I got at the Source menswear.

Christmas party

So I'm going out to a friends Christmas party tonight and I'm thinking about wearinig

A wee bit of snow

I decided to go out today and play in the wee bit of snow we had, and get a few photos. It was  nice it's been lightly snowing all day. I was getting so warm under all this wool and tweed that I had to remove the jacket and bonnet.

Well I was going out to the December SCD monthly dance, it is not a ball, however it is usually a good night of fun, I got dressed and headed out. The Inverness Cape certainly came in handy tonight as it was snowing today, anyway I must admit I got my directions mixed up and I ended up at the wrong school. I turned around and came home, now that I know where the right school is I'll make it to the dance next month, but by the time I get there tonight it would be too late. Anyway here is the outfit I wore, I know some won't be fond of the diced hose but I think they are excellent.

SCD Christmas party tonight

I'm just getting ready for my SCD Christmas Party, tonight is the last class before the holidays. I decided to wear the Isle of Skye as my classmates have not seen this one yet, and a blue shirt with the Ancient Scot Argyll Top hose from Hawick, proving I think that the shirt and hose do not need to match. ZOh and can you see anything else different about my appearance? Here are some photos

Thompson Camel Tartan Hiker Kilt

A couple weeks ago Tartan Hiker put up a kilt for sale, the kilt happens to be a 4 yard box pleat with velcro fasteners in the Thompson Camel tartan, even though this tartan has been appropriated by Burburry I have always liked the way it looks. I decided that it would be the perfect kilt for air travel due to the velcro straps, it may even be good for car travel as it's a box pleat lightweight fabric. As well as all that I have been known to go for a hike and this kilt will work very well for summer hikes. I fear that it will not see the light of day for a while as we are into winter up here, however I was able to get a few pictures this morning when it came, this is straight out of the box so please excuse the wrinkles.

Maple Leaf Tartan Hose

Well the other day my Maple Leaf Tartan hose came came in from Scotchmaster, a member of xmarksthescot I must say I am very pleased with them, I of course had to change into them as soon as they arrived which also meant a change of outfit, I was going to put on the Montrose for these photos but as I had Doctor's appointment I thought a less formal look would be more appropriate, I've already had many compliments on the outfit and the hose.

Royal Cuff Kilt Hose Toppers

Yesterday I was lucky enough to receive a package from The Scottish Tartan Museum inside were my Royal Cuff Kilt Hose. I have wanted a pair as soon as Matt made them available. I got in touch with Matt and asked him his recommendations as to colour and design. It was decided to go with the Basket Weave and for the hose to go with the Carolina Tartan kilt that Matt had just completed for me. To make a long story short, I must say I could not be happier with them they are no doubt a luxury item that will not match every tartan but I'm very happy with the way they look paired with the Carolina and I'm sure I'll wear them with other tartans as well. The cuffs were made with bright red and cream basket weave, with black and mustard ribbing, on a loden green sock. Worn with tartan red garters

Here are some photos, thanks again Matt. 

Getting over a cold

I've not posted anything in a while as I had a bad cold that kept me on the sofa most of last week. Today as I'm feeling better I thought I'd finally take some pics of the Clan Graham shirt I ordered from the Scottish Tartan Museum. I think this shirt matched with the Graham of Menteith kilt will be perfect for Highland Games in the summer. I also decided to order the Graham, and Stewart RR McIan Prints, as my Mom is a Stewart and My Dad's Clan, and consequently my Clan is the Graham Clan

 

Stratford Ont, and the grand opening of RKilts

Here are my photos and report of the R-Kilts Grand Opening/Landing of the good ship Saltire. Linda and I went up to Brampton to collect David who had asked for a designated driver. Once we picked up Dave we made our way to that most Canadian of destinations Tim Horton's Coffee, it was here that I called Robert and was told it was snowing heavily in Stratford. I was also told that Hamish was attending via Skype and so shouted out my best to the Laird of Lochaber. After procuring the desired caffeine we were on the road to Stratford. 

The roads proved more treacherous with each passing kilometer with both lightning and snow at the same time, a phenomenon that I was blissfully unaware of until now. There were as we continued our arduous journey a few cars off in the ditch on either side of the highway. Steeling our resolve for what lay ahead we pressed on.

Once we were safely in the lovely town of Stratford we found that the Skype conversations were still going strong, this time it was Robert's father joining us from the computer screen, and inside the shop was filled with kilted gentlemen from as far away as New York State. Both the conversation and wine flowed freely as we met both old and new friends. It really is amazing this fraternity of the kilted. After a while it was decided that we should make our way to Foster's Inn. There the merriment continued until a stool fell over on top of my ill chosen footwear, yes I was wearing Ghillie Brogues, as the pain subsided I was finally able to enjoy the rest of the evening.

We decided after the trip up that a trip back that evening was ill advised and so we booked rooms in the Foster's Inn. In the morning it was back to R-Kilts HQ to bid our gracious host adieu. Then it was a hearty breakfast at the York Street Kitchen and the drive home, the roads were mercifully much better than they had been the day before and the trip home was both enjoyable and uneventful.

Thank you Robert for a wonderful evening, both Linda and myself had a great time, again a heartfelt congratulations on your Grand Opening, I wish you continued success.

A Night at Sneaky Dee's

Last night I went out with a couple of friends that I used to work with. We decided to meet at Sneaky Dee's a downtown southwest resturaunt/bar. I showed up early, to the strains of Old Johnny Cash. Once my two former co-workers showed up one of them noticed that Spenny from the TV show Kenny vs. Spenny was sitting at a table not to far away, when he was going out the door I was able to get a photo. His comment when he saw me was "Oh a Kilt" and he was only to happy to pose for us.

An Accessory for the kiltie who has almost everything

While this accessory is not for everyone, it is something that I've wanted for a little while, thanks to ebay I was able to get it at a reasonable price. I've also got a wall plaque so fear not you will not see me at your local Wal-mart walking down the isles brandishing this and wearing a Great Kilt. Now I need a drill to mount it on the wall.

Halloween and Kilts

Halloween has just passed, and on the forum that I frequent there has been much discussion regarding the validity of wearing a kilt for Halloween. For myself I see the kilt as another article of clothing, however it does have much more significant meaning than lets say a pair of jeans, so the question of wether or not to wear a kilt on halloween is a difficult one. Halloween night I got a phone call from my nephew asking if he could borrow a kilt, he came over and as he is much larger than I, we fashioned him a great kilt, I think this is one way a kilt can be worn for halloween.

Kilt pin for the Carolina

When I was on the waiting list for my Carolina Tartan I thought I would need to find the perfect kilt pin for the tartan as it is so unique. I was lucky enough to find a silver gecko pin on ebay from Jewelery Mart it is a wonderful looking pin and picks up almost all the colours of the tartan.

Went for a short hike today

I thought today I'd go for a short hike through Toronto Botanical Garden & Edwards Gardens, where the my SCD group dances in the summer. I thought it would be nice to get some photos of the local colour before it all hits the ground. Anyway I got there took a hiked a bit took a couple of photos, and thought oh I'll get a picture of myself now, it was at this point that I realized that the batteries in my camera had died. I finished the hike and came home. It started to rain and well Toronto in October can get a bit cool for a 4 yard box pleat when it's rainy and windy. Here are the photos I got.

First the outfit I wore, I also wore the Empire Canvas Works Shooting Jacket I got from Kevin, it worked perfectly, and I'm sure I'll wear it often as the weather cools down.

Back to SCD

Tonight it was back to Scottish Country Dancing, last week the church it's held at had someting else going on, it was nice to get back to it I wore a black shirt, Argyll Hose top hose from Hawick hose company my Carolina 4 yard Box Pleat from Matt Newsome and my new L&M Sporran which worked out wonderfully on it's first night dancing, I also wore the Dress belt withthe Graham belt buckle. I did get a photo earlier in the day whan I was wearing the Freelander Sporran and Casual belt. 

It was great to be back, next week I'm to bring the snacks for the break allong with some juice, I sure hope I remember. 

Election day in Canada

Today is election day in Canada, I went out to vote this morning and decided the perfect tartan to wear would be the Maple Leaf tartan. Funny thing was the guy behind the table who was an orrthodox jew and was wearing his yamulca says "You do know we're not in Scotland" to which I replied, that is why I'm wearing the Canadian tartan, I really thought they would be a bit more culturally aware behind the polling tables, ah well that is just the type of thing that happens wearing a kilt. Anyway the outfit for today was the Maple Leaf tartan kilt by Canadian Casual Kilts the Brown Harris Tweed Argyle, my tie is a tweed tie I found at Caringorm Scottish Imports, the sporran is from Thorfinn Sporrans withthe matching Maple Leaf flap, and the hose are Yellow/Gold Hawick Hose that I picked up at Cairngorm as well. 

Rise in Popularity of the Kilt

Recently there was a topic posted on xmarksthescot.com about the rise in the popularity of the kilt, I thought I'd share my response here as well, of course having read it over I've added to the last bit. 

I've been thinking about this one for a bit now, good topic by the way. I'm not sure I can touch on the rise in popularity, I can really only speak for myself. I started wearing the kilt as an expression of my heritage, it had for me anyway absolutely nothing to do with comfort or rebellion. The first time I wore one in my adult years was at my twin brothers wedding, at the time I commented that I should have done this a long time ago.

After that I was given my Dad's old kilt and wore it to a heritage night at work, I'm certain my outfit back then would have been added to the kilt don't thread, be that as it may, I learned what was correct. At the same time I had encouragement at work to wear it again and so started wearing my kilt 2 or 3 times a week, I bought more kilts and now I have enough that I can and do wear one every day.

I think in a larger sense the internet and in particular xmarksthescot.com has done much for the rise in the popularity of the kilt worldwide, it showed me anyway that I was not alone in my desire to wear the kilt, and to embrace that part of my heritage. 

As for cheap kilts helping I'm not completely sold on that idea, my reasons are that while there is no doubt they would be comfortable, they just do not look as good and do not last as long and therefore they may indeed be a hindrance. As I see it a traditional hand sewn kilt that looks great, that can be passed down to the next generation, a kilt that can look good with a t-shirt or with a doublet is the most economical way to go. Another thing that bothers me about the cheap knock off kilts is that this is my heritage being perverted, how do other groups feel when their symbols their national dress etc. are knocked off for the cheapest price and then marked up astronomically? 

Oh Carolina

I got home this afternoon to find one of those postal tags that tell you there is a package waiting for you. I had the idea that this was the Carolina Tartan from Matt Newsome that I had been waiting for, I was very glad that I was correct. Once I got home I tried it on and it fit wonderfully so then it was the careful removal of the basting stitches and outside to take a few photos. I am looking forward to my next package from the Scottish Tartan Museum as I ordered a pair of Royal Cuffs to go with this tartan, anyway for now I decided to pair it up with my Lovat Blue Argyll Jacket, Red tie, Blue shirt, Ferguson Britt Skunk Sporran, and Hawick Argyll Top Hose

Hunting McLeod at Clancy's

Real life has been getting in the way the past few days so it was good that I was able to get out last night. It was last show in Canada for Hunting McLeod with Cory Walden. It was a good night with lots of us kilted fans and of course the kilted band. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see the show. Some of the audience was up here from Alabama. I did get some photos from the night.

Red hose not an issue

Here is the outfit I wore to work today, I normally would wear Black hose and red garter ties or flashes, but thought today I'd switch it up a bit and went with red hose, surprisingly enough there were no comments whatever. One sort of expects comments when wearing red hose perhaps I've just been accepted for who I am.  I finally got around around to getting my hair cut I needed it, funny thing today I did have the day off work to help my parents move but as they moved earlier thn I thought, I went into work anyway but forgot to withdraw my vacation request, it made for a confusing time this morning.

Dressy Semi-Trad and hats

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I realized that I did not have any dressy photos of my Semi-Traditional Black Stewart Kilt, from USAKilts so decided to rectify that today so here are couple shots of a dressy Semi-Trad. proof that these kilts can go just about anywhere and fit in. Also my friends I do believe that one of the other Moderators at x-marksthescot has turned me into, of all things, a hat person. This morning the perfect hat to go with my Inverness Cape arrived, yes my very own deerstalker so there are the photos of it also.