How a Kilt Is Made: From Tartan Cloth to Finished Kilt

A traditional kilt is made from one long length of wool tartan, usually about 8 yards. The kiltmaker measures the wearer, marks the cloth, folds it into deep pleats across the back, stitches those pleats flat over the hips, adds canvas inside for strength, and finishes it with leather straps and buckles. Sewn by hand, it takes a skilled kiltmaker somewhere around 8 to 14 hours.

Most people never see any of that. They just see the finished kilt, and the price tag. But knowing how it's put together makes buying a kilt a lot easier, because you can tell where the money goes and which shortcuts matter. Below we walk through each stage, then cover pleating styles, hand vs machine sewing, how much cloth goes in, and what's involved if you fancy making one yourself.

What a Kilt Is Made From

The main thing is the cloth. A traditional kilt uses worsted wool tartan, a tightly woven twill that holds a sharp crease and doesn't sag. It is woven in a long narrow strip, called single width, which is exactly what you want for a kilt because the cloth runs round the body in one piece.

Wool comes in different weights. Heavier cloth, around 16oz, swings better and keeps its pleats for longer. Lighter cloth is cooler and a bit cheaper. The usual kilt fabric weights are 11oz, 13oz and 16oz. Many modern kilts, ours included, use acrylic wool instead, which is lighter, costs far less and is easier to wash.

Apart from the tartan, you need:

• Canvas for the inside of the top section, to give it shape
• Lining, usually a cotton or poly-cotton strip across the top inside
• Stay tape or a waistband to stop the top edge stretching
• Leather straps and buckles, normally three of each
• Strong thread, and on traditional kilts, a lot of patience

If you've ever wondered what each bit of a finished kilt is called, the parts of a kilt are worth knowing before you read on. It makes the steps below easier to picture.

How a Kilt Is Made, Step by Step

Every maker has their own habits, but a traditional made-to-measure kilt goes through roughly these eight stages.

1. Taking the Measurements

Everything starts with three numbers: waist, seat (hips) and length. The waist and seat decide how much the pleats are tapered, and the length decides where the cloth is cut. Get these wrong and nothing later can really fix it, which is why it's worth knowing how to measure for a kilt properly before ordering.

2. Checking the Cloth

The kiltmaker unrolls the tartan and checks it for faults. They also work out the size of the tartan sett, which is the width of one full repeat of the pattern. This one number shapes the whole kilt. A big sett means fewer, wider pleats. A small sett means more of them.

3. Working Out the Pleats

This is the maths bit. The maker takes the seat measurement, the sett size and the amount of cloth, and works out how many pleats there will be and how deep each one is. A standard man's kilt usually ends up with somewhere between 25 and 40 pleats. Too few and they look clumsy. Too many and they look fussy.

The front of the kilt is not pleated at all. It is two flat panels, the outer and inner apron, which overlap. So the maker also has to measure off cloth for each apron before the pleating starts.

4. Marking and Pleating

Using tailor's chalk, the maker marks each pleat so the tartan lines up the same way all the way round. Then the pleats are folded by hand, one at a time, and tacked in place with loose stitches. On a good kilt, a stripe you can see on the apron carries on in the same place across the pleats at the back. That doesn't happen by accident.

5. Sewing the Fell

The fell is the top part of the pleated section, from the waist down to the hips, usually 7 to 9 inches deep. Here the pleats are stitched down flat. Below the fell they hang free, which is what gives a kilt its swing.

The fell is also where the kilt is shaped. Your waist is smaller than your hips, so the maker takes a little cloth out of the hidden fold of each pleat, getting narrower towards the top. Done well, the outside pattern doesn't change at all, yet the kilt hugs your waist. This is the bit that separates a skilled kiltmaker from someone who just sews.

6. Canvas, Lining and Stay Tape

Next, a layer of canvas goes inside the fell and the aprons. You never see it, but it stops the top of the kilt from sagging or creasing, and it takes the strain from the straps. Stay tape is sewn along the top edge so it doesn't stretch out of shape, and a lining covers the inside of the top section to keep it neat.

7. Straps, Buckles and Finishing

A traditional kilt fastens with three leather straps and buckles. Two usually sit on the right hip and hold the kilt closed. The third, on the left, fastens the inner apron. Many kilts also get belt loops at this stage, so you can wear a kilt belt if you want to.

The edges of the aprons are finished, and on many kilts a fringe is left down the edge of the outer apron.

8. The Final Press

Finally the tacking stitches come out and the whole kilt is steam-pressed so the pleats are crisp and sharp. It is then checked one last time against the order. If you ever need to redo this yourself at home, pressing kilt pleats is not hard, but it's slow.

Why a Kilt Has No Hem

This surprises a lot of people. On a traditional kilt, the bottom edge is the selvedge, the finished edge the cloth comes off the loom with. There is no folded hem because a hem across 8 yards of thick wool would be heavy and bulky, and it would stop the pleats from hanging straight.

There's a catch. Because the bottom is the selvedge, a kilt can only be shortened from the top, at the waist. That's a big job, and another good reason to get the length right first time. Children's kilts are sometimes made with a proper hem instead, so they can be let down as the child grows.

Pleating Styles: Sett, Stripe and Box

There are three main ways to pleat a kilt, and they change how the back looks.

• Pleated to the sett: The back shows the same pattern as the front. You see it on most kilts, especially for weddings and clan wear.
• Pleated to the stripe: One stripe is centred on each pleat, so the back looks like stripes. You see it on military and pipe band kilts.
• Box pleated: Wide, flat double pleats instead of narrow knife pleats. You see it on older styles and some pipe bands. Fairly rare today.

Neither of the first two is better. Choosing between pleating to the sett and to the stripe comes down to taste, while box pleat kilts are mostly a specialist order these days.

Hand-Sewn vs Machine-Sewn Kilts

Traditionally, every stitch in a kilt was done by hand. Today, most kilts are at least partly machine-sewn, and only a small number of makers still sew the whole thing by hand.

A machine can't really do the fell the way a hand can. Hand stitches can be hidden inside the folds and tapered more gently, so the pleats sit flatter and the kilt moves more naturally. That said, a well made machine-sewn kilt is still a very good kilt, and it costs a lot less. For a lot of buyers that's the right trade. Hand-sewn kilts earn their extra cost mainly on a kilt you plan to wear for decades.

How Long Does It Take to Make a Kilt?

A fully hand-sewn kilt takes an experienced kiltmaker around 8 to 14 hours of work, depending on the tartan and the size. That's one full working day at the very least, and usually more. Machine-sewn kilts are much quicker.

The time on the workbench isn't the same as the time you wait, though. Made-to-measure kilts often take several weeks from order to delivery, because makers work through orders in turn and some tartans have to be woven or ordered in. If you need a kilt for a wedding, order early.

How Much Cloth Goes Into a Kilt?

Most of the cloth in a kilt is hidden inside the pleats. The deeper the pleats, the more cloth you need, and the more the kilt swings when you walk.

• Traditional kilt: About 8 yards of single-width tartan. Deep pleats, heavy, lots of swing.
• Lighter or casual kilt: About 4 to 6 yards. Shallower pleats, lighter and cheaper.
• Child's kilt: Often 2 to 4 yards, depending on size and sett. Smaller pleats to suit a smaller body.

A larger man, or a tartan with a very big sett, can need more than 8 yards. The gap between an 8 yard kilt and a 5 yard one is among the biggest reasons prices vary so much.

Can You Make a Kilt Yourself?

Yes, and plenty of people do. A kilt is, at heart, a pleated wrap made from one piece of cloth. But a traditional 8 yard kilt with a properly tapered fell is a serious project, even for someone who sews a lot. Most first-timers start with a simpler kilt with fewer, shallower pleats, often sewn on a machine.

The basic process at home looks like this:

1. Measure your waist, seat and length, and work out the cloth you need. Allow extra.
2. Choose the cloth. A tartan with a medium sett is easiest. Very light fabrics won't hold a pleat. You can buy tartan fabric by the yard.
3. Mark the aprons at each end, then mark the pleats in between with chalk, following the pattern.
4. Fold and pin the pleats, checking the stripes stay straight. Tack them in place.
5. Stitch the fell, tapering the pleats from hip to waist.
6. Add a strip of interfacing or canvas inside the top, then a waistband or binding.
7. Fit the straps and buckles, and press everything.

Be honest with yourself about the result. A homemade kilt can look great at a ceilidh or a games day. For a wedding or something formal, most people are happier with a kilt made by a kiltmaker.

What This Means When You Buy a Kilt

Once you know how a kilt is made, you can see why prices range so widely. You are paying for the amount of cloth, the kind of cloth, and the hours spent on the fell and pleating. A lower-priced kilt saves on one or more of those.

A few things worth checking on any kilt you're thinking of buying:

• Do the stripes line up between the apron and the pleats?
• Are the pleats deep and evenly spaced, or thin and shallow?
• Does the top hold its shape, or feel soft and floppy?
• Is it made to your measurements, or a standard size?

Those checks explain most of the spread in what a kilt costs. When you're ready, you can order made-to-measure tartan kilts using your own measurements.

Kilt Making FAQs

How is a kilt made?

A kilt is made from one long length of tartan. The maker measures the wearer, marks and folds the pleats across the back, stitches them flat over the hips, adds canvas and lining inside, then fits leather straps and buckles and steam-presses it.

How many yards of fabric are in a kilt?

A traditional kilt uses about 8 yards of single-width tartan. Lighter kilts use around 4 to 6 yards, and children's kilts less still.

How long does it take to make a kilt by hand?

Around 8 to 14 hours for an experienced kiltmaker. Delivery usually takes a few weeks because orders are made in turn.

How many pleats does a kilt have?

Most men's kilts have somewhere between 25 and 40 pleats. The exact number depends on the hip size and how big the tartan pattern is.

What is the fell on a kilt?

The fell is the top section of the pleats, from the waist to the hips, where the pleats are stitched down flat. It's usually 7 to 9 inches deep and is shaped to fit your waist.

Why don't kilts have a hem?

The bottom of a traditional kilt is the selvedge, the woven edge of the cloth. A folded hem would add too much weight and bulk across all those pleats.

Can a kilt be shortened?

Yes, but only from the top, because the bottom is the selvedge. It's skilled work, so it's best to get the length right when you order.

Are kilts sewn by hand?

Some are. Most kilts today are partly or fully machine-sewn, and a smaller number of makers still sew every stitch by hand.

What is a kilt made of?

Traditionally, worsted wool tartan, with canvas and lining inside and leather straps and buckles. More affordable kilts, including our own, use acrylic wool or poly-viscose, which is lighter and easier to wash.

Is it hard to make your own kilt?

A simple kilt is a manageable sewing project. A full 8 yard kilt with a hand-tapered fell is hard, and most people leave that to a kiltmaker.