Stillwater Economy Kilt Review
About a month ago I purchased a Stillwater Economy Kilt in Irish National tartan. I chose the tartan partly because I do know that I have some Irish ancestory, but mostly because I thought the tartan was nice. At a mere $37.95 plus shipping it was quite a deal. It is definitely a cost reduced garment, but it was still an excellent value.
The first thing that I noticed, unfortunately, was the odor. It had a mild, but distinct, smell of some kind of chemical. It reminded me of a dry cleaners or maybe moth-balls. I kept catching wiffs of the smell though-out the day, but fortunately after leaving it to air out for the night the smell vanished. My wife said that she has smelled acrylic clothing like this before.
The kilt is made of acrylic tartan. It is not a kilt to wear to a wedding, but it is cheap enough that you won’t scream if you ruin it working in the yard. That is really nice. It cost no more than a cheap pair of jeans.
The length, as with all Stillwater Kilts, is 24 inches. That is a little too long for me, so I end up wearing it a little high, maybe 3 inches above my navel. Stillwater advises that a blind hem stitch will not show and one day I might try it, but it requires a special foot my wife’s sewing machine does not have. As it comes, the bottom is to the selvedge, and the selvedge came slightly damaged.
Saving substantial sewing, and keeping it cheap, the pleats are not sewn down at the fell. If I had realized how nice that would have been when it arrived, I might have sewn them down myself. I have read about other people sewing them down, and it seems to be reasonably easy. I blame the un-sewn fell for the funny way that the left side of the apron and adjoining pleat lays, and for the pleats getting messed up a bit too easily. The acrylic does not hold a pleat as well as poly-viscose or wool, but is machine washable.
The straps are real leather, and the buckles nice enough. I am glad that I chose to purchase the Economy rather than the Thrifty which uses velcro instead of straps. The right edge of the outer apron is frayed, which is correct and a nice touch at the price.
It has been cool in the summer heat, but the waist is a little scratchy, so plan to tuck your shirt under it. It has stayed down in 30 mph winds, but the over-apron did flap around quite a lot without a kilt pin. I would hesitate to wear it in a real storm.
All told, I am very happy with my Stillwater Economy Kilt. The price of $37.95 is more than fair, less than 10% the cost of a “real” kilt and a quarter of the price of a utilikilt. If you are searching for a kilt to wear when you can’t risk your expensive clothing, this is may be exactly what you need.
Overall: B+
Service: A
Quality: C
Comfort: B+
Value: A+
Long have men been subject to the poor and limited choices offered by the Trouser Tyrants. Pants are dead! Long Live the Kilt!
September 18th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
>maybe 3 inches above my navel
What’s usual for a kilt? When I wear Dockers trousers (;-) I definitely prefer the relaxed fit: the regular fit is just too high. I guess the only way to tell is to try on a an actual kilt.
October 21st, 2008 at 10:56 am
Usual for a kilt is just above the navel, sitting on the natural waistline above the hips
December 17th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
@big mike:
>What’s usual for a kilt? When I wear Dockers trousers (;-) I definitely >prefer the relaxed fit: the regular fit is just too high. I guess the only way >to tell is to try on a an actual kilt.
If you’re looking for a kilt, I’d recommend a utilikilt for you since they’re more relaxed than a standard kilt. I was going to go for one, but the look of the black watch tartan has gradually won me over, despite higher sit.
I’ll be the first Swedish-Italian in a kilt!
January 26th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
I’m short too, man. Don’t feel so bad. I, too, have an SWK Irish National and am quite happy with it (except for the length)
February 18th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Lou is correct. For the length, kilts traditionally hang down to the middle of the knee.
Though I don’t think I’ll buy a kilt this cheap.