Lol, that’s a great idea. I just bought the Sporran that will be featured in the Jan/Feb Muzzleloader Magazine to go with it so I’m putting together a nifty set. Think I’ll shock the fellers on BPTV when I show up in a plaid skirt to shoot my c1740 Fowling Piece?
Aye, Lad, then perhaps some recommendations both practical and whimsical?
When the Tartan is referred to as "plaid" it is properly pronounced "
played" and not "plahd," the latter being the Sassenach pronunciation.
Since TN gets a might warm in Spring through Early Fall, you might want to consider not wearing a full Kilt, but rather the Philabeag (Small Kilt) to keep cooler, as it only wraps around the waist. Either way, there are some very important things you need to do when going Regimental or "authentic" and trust me this is from personal experience. The first is to rub cornstarch on your inner thighs the first few times you wear the Kilt or Philabeag, this to keep from chafing certain more tender parts of your flesh and inner thighs. Cornstarch works better than baby powder or most anything else in this regard, plus it is period authentic. The second is even MORE important and that is to liberally use Bug Juice (Insect repellent) so the Skeeters don't eat you alive under the Kilt or Philabeag. I found this out the first time I wore my Philabeag at Colonial Williamsburg in late May, much to my discomfort and chagrin. The third thing is you have to constantly remind yourself to kneel down to pick up something off the ground, rather than quickly bending straight over, the latter too often exposing a Full Moon (or worse) even in broad daylight at High Moon - eh, I meant High Noon. The fourth thing is to ensure your hose are high enough on your leg that they can be tied above the calf of the leg and have a little material that hangs over the ties. OK, that takes care of the practical, now on to the whimsical.
A true Scot is expected to be a natural and charming story teller, so it is well to prepare for that as well.
I'm a natural ham, so at events like "Under the Red Coat" at Colonial Williamsburg, when we portrayed the British Army on their way to Yorktown, I would invite tourists into our camp and do talks and demonstrations, especially for the "Wee Bairns." (Bairns is the Scottish word for "Beloved Children.") Now these talks were mostly "rated G and sometimes slightly into PG," as we did not wish to embarrass ourselves or Colonial Williamsburg.
Around 10:00 AM on Saturday, I had gone as long as I could without a cigarette. We did not smoke them in camp, but had to go to designated spots to smoke anything other than a period pipe. I decided to go over to the sort of Outdoor Cafeteria Restaurant to see if I could get a lemonade with no sugar (excellent way to cool down) and have a smoke. Whilst there, four ladies near my own age were looking at me and whispering to each other. It was unusual to see four attractive Ladies near my own age in their early to mid 40's, so I wasn't going to waste an opportunity. So I looked at them and said, "Good Morning Ladies, how fare ye this fine morning?" That emboldened the two oldest and most attractive Ladies and one said, "Do you mind if we ask a few questions?" To which I replied, "For a bevy of such Bonnie Lassies, how could I possibly resist? Please ask any and all questions you may have."
Three of the four asked a few questions one might expect, but held back on the one they really wanted to know. The fourth appeared to be the youngest by a year or two and she was too shy to ask a question directly to me. Instead she finally whispered the question they all wanted to know into the ear of the one asking most of the questions. That Lady blushed slightly, but with an impish little grin, asked me what I had on under the Kilt? To which I replied, "What the Good Lord in his magnificent benevolence, has seen to bless me with." To this the two most attractive Ladies chuckled, the third smiled, but it was plain the fourth didn't understand. This allowed me a chance to pull out a very old amusing story of a Scot in similar circumstances and slightly modify it for these circumstances.
I asked them if they had been in town two days past when the heat was so unbearable? That piqued their interest and replied they had not. I informed them after a hard morning's labor, I sat with my back against a tree while eating my mid day meal and wound up falling asleep. When I awoke, I felt a curious restriction, so I lifted the edge of my Philabeag only to find my caber had a blue ribbon tied round it. I thought to myself, "Laddie, I dinna ken where ye been, but it seems ye won First Prize." (I said this while rolling my "R's" as much as possible and with a straight face for good effect.) A few seconds later the older two laughed, but the other two looked puzzled and the youngest this time sort of blurted out in normal conversational tone, "What's a Caber?"
Again with a straight face, I asked if they ever had the occasion to be present at a Highland Games? The two oldest said they had, but not the two youngest. So I asked if they had ever seen the game where a Lad picked up a large wooden pole and attempted to toss it end over end? That rang a bell with them. So I informed them, "That game is known as a "Caber Toss" and is meant to teach Highland Laddies how to properly handle their Caber for the day they reach their age of majority." Then I gave a small devilish grin. At that, the three older Ladies busted out laughing, though the youngest blushed mightily at first, but then laughed as well.
Gus
