What Guin said.
Of the men I know who use kilts as formal wear, both are average frame rather than Sam Heughan, but they look just fine. One comes across as distinguished, the other (mildly) nerdy and distinguished. I commend them both.
Well done.
Slightly OT, I believe costume designer Terry Dresbach is on record somewhere (podcasts, perhaps?) as explaining that Jamie’s boots are remnant of his French mercenary uniform. I’m sure the aesthetics were an influencing factor as well.
They did say it’s very difficult to keep continuity with bare feet…dirt changes, etc.
You really want to scream “FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LOOK AT MEEEEEEEEE!” forget about kilts. Start rocking a koteka, especially if your family is not originally from the New Guinea highlands. I think I may start marketing a line of them. “Utilikoteka?” “Go-teka?” Ah…that’s what the advertising drones are for. I’m a big picture guy.
A quick search suggests a lowly mercenary in the French army circa 1718 would have worn low-cut shoes with stockings or spats, but let’s just acknowledge that I am a picky old grump and that Jamie looks nice in boots, and move on.
Jamie would look good in a floral muu-muu. Just so long as I can see those fuzzy knees…
In most cases I say hubba hubba, but not with the ugly shoes these cuties are wearing. They all look good from the knees up.
I have a transman friend who doesn’t really like pants and misses skirts/dresses, but doesn’t want to be misgendered or trigger dysphoria. He’s looking into kilts because of it. I do admit that I kind of roll my eyes when I see a guy just walking around in a kilt, because it strikes me as “trying too hard” and sort of hipsterish. And while it is most of the time, my friend gave me a new perspective on it that may make me less eyeroll-prone in the future.
Hetero male here.
I have no objection to kilts per se, on functional or aesthetic grounds. However, my eye is jaundiced by the fact that every American I’ve known who wore a kilt was annoying to me for three dozen other reasons. It seems to me, anecdotally (and I’ve never been to the British Isles), that kilt-wearing in public is comorbid with such personality flaws as poor hygiene, LARPing, and making sure near-strangers know that you’re a Wiccan.
Also, every single kilt wearer I’ve spoken to personally in America was much closer physically to Fat Bastard from the Austin Powers movies than to anything you’d see in the Aberdeen City Fire Department’s Annual Fundraising Calendar™, so that may dampen the hubba-hubba factor a little.
I have a beautiful sari given to me by one of my husband’s Indian coworkers. At church I teach a lesson on Diwali and get to wear it then, otherwise its folded in the closet.
I love to see a man’s man who can rock a proper kilt. And for some reason I think Utilikilts look stupid and ugly. I don’t know why. Those kind of fall into the “trying too hard” or the “wannabe” territory for me. I have noticed that men in the most truly masculine cultures around the world tend to wear “skirts” (kilts on Scotsmen, the long gown things on middle eastern men, etc.) Last summer we did a week vacation in Scotland and managed to catch the Highland Games in a small town. Men who can pick up, carry and toss a 20-foot telephone pole can wear whatever the fuck they want. Somehow they did it without showing us all “what a Scot wears under his kilt”, which was also impressive (speaking as a lady who never quite figured out how to get around with my legs clamped tightly shut in skirts so usually wears pants).
On that same holiday, we did ask our tour guide about kilts and teased him about not wearing one. He told us that they are very expensive. And if you’re going to spend that money, you might as well get the shoes, socks, belt, dagger, sporran, etc, etc, etc, and then you’re talking close to the Euro equivalent of $10,000. He also said that once you’ve made that investment, you can’t wear it to a wedding (except your own) because the groom’s family wants everybody to wear THEIR tartan… so they end up renting the kit for the wedding while their own stuff gathers dust in the closet.
Do they work at the head office of Visit Scotland? Because otherwise that’s a bit weird. 
The UK doesn’t use the Euro, but in any case the cost is closer to $1,000 than $10,000. Still not cheap for an outfit though.
That’s not true at all, in my experience.
Not a fan.
Honestly, without the whole “kit” they look like they’re wearing the same skirt my sister had to wear to St. Scholastica.
OP here.
When my dad died 10 years ago, I inherited his kilt. Dad was from Scotland, and I was born there too, although I’m about as Canadian as you can get at this point.
At some point I plan on updating the kilt by buying a decent sporran and the rest of the accessories. I plan on wearing this on special occasions like my kids’ wedding, or perhaps weddings of the children and grandchildren of my good friends.
Dad was a piper, and the pipe major of his own pipe band right up till he died. I’m gonna wear that sucker proudly as soon as I have the first occasion to do so.
So, I was curious what the overall thoughts were regarding this. Sounds like a mixed bag. I’m still going to do it. I might even wear it next Burns’ night.
As noted, I think people’s reactions to someone with a link to the culture wearing the full attire to a special event is considerable different than some random yahoo wearing a plaid skirt to a party just to be like “Look at me wearing a kilt!”
Do it! 
Hey it looks good on you.
That’s exactly right. If you are into such things and want to wear one at a Burns night event or any other appropriate event you won’t look out of place. Otherwise you might as well be walking around wearing lederhosen.
I’m a guy, but she speaks the truth. Who do you know who’s not a massive doofus* who actually wears a kilt out in public anywhere but in Scotland as part of some kind of formal occasion? I say this as a guy who actually wore the full formal kilt get-up as part of a wedding in Aberdeen once, complete with Prince Charlie coat, bow tie, sgian dubh; garters w/flashes, ghillie brogues, and a sporran. Neat to do once, but not something I’d bust out here.