Over 50 years ago, Marion Foster sewed her first kilt as a Cub Scout leader. Little information existed about making them the traditional way, but she completed the project by studying how they were constructed.
After making her first kilt, she fell in love with the craft and always wanted to know more — especially the traditional methods used by the Scottish people centuries ago. Fast-forward to her late forties, Marion found a school founded by a former military kilt tailor who taught traditional sewing and the history of Highland wear.
“In my late forties, I heard of a school that one of the military’s master kilt tailors had set up because he recognized all of the knowledge and skill that had been created over a couple of centuries,” Foster told Good News Network.
After learning the skills from this school, Marion wanted to share her cumulative knowledge with others and keep this art alive.
Marion Foster’s unique kiltmaking college
In 2020, Marion Foster set up a unique online course where people worldwide could learn this traditional craft along with restoration skills. The school, Askval Strathearn of Kilt, is located near Perth, Scotland.
This course is offered through video tutorials and written kiltmaking notes. People also get a one-on-one session with Marion to get hands-on lessons from her.
“The kilts I make are in the traditional style using the methods of the Highland Regiment master tailors, but there is very little written material or resources on how to make kilts this way.
“Teaching has traditionally been done by people passing on their skills face-to-face. I have always been interested in textiles, and I first started learning kiltmaking myself around 20 years ago when I became concerned that it could become something of a lost art,” she writes on the school’s official website.
She also says she made this an online course to make learning this craft easier without worrying about traveling and accommodation expenses. Over time, Marion’s school has enrolled students from several countries, including Australia, Germany, America, Scotland, and more. She hopes that her students can go on and open up traditional highland wear businesses, restore historic kilts, and make special occasion versions for their loved ones.
A short history of kilts
Kilts have long-standing historic and cultural roots in Scotland. Interestingly, the word comes from the Norse word “kjilt, “meaning pleated clothing tucked up and around the body.
The Gaelic-speaking Scots initially wore full-length garments, and the first mention of this clothing was in 1538. However, the short version that most of us have come to know and love came about in the early 18th century.
Like most early cultures, the Scots Highlander men used nearby berries, mosses, and other plants to dye the wool of their clothing. The first kilts came in white, brown, green, or black, but over time, they developed plaids, which came to be known as tartan cloth. Each clan had a tartan cloth or plaid pattern associated with it. So, there are different patterns for clans such as Clan Graham, Clan Stewart, and Clan Duncan, among others.
In a recent survey, 91 percent of Scottish women said that men in kilts have a beautiful appearance, while 67 percent of Scotsmen believed that it showed strength and patriotism. But you don’t have to be from Scotland or have Scottish ancestry to enjoy this marvelous craft. If you appreciate history, culture, creativity, and craft, you can learn how to make your tartan cloth at home.
Things to learn at Askival of Strathearn College
At this college, you will learn crafts such as bespoke tailoring, restoration, making bespoke tartan ties, handfasting ribbons, wool sashes, scarves, stoles, and more. Marion believes that most high-street kiltmakers have diluted the traditional methods and end up making pleated garments that are “flat, made to measure, and very different.”
She also says that restoration is a vital part of the process, and it brings joy to restoring a historic piece that a person holds dear.
“People come in with historic kilts that have been left to them,” she says. “We have the technical knowledge of restoring and reweaving the cloth, deconstructing it and reconstructing it to fit that person.
“It’s fantastic to see a filthy First World War kilt be cleaned and restored, the stitching recovered, and made to fit that young grandson or great-grandson.”
In the long run, Marion hopes to pass on her craft, keep the “noble garment” tradition alive, and support other people’s passions and hobbies.
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