Footware to go with a kilt

[Cormac]

I am having fits trying to settle on footware to go with my kilt.  I have been going back and forth between a pair of brown ghilles and a pair of black mocassin style boots.  Both are comfortable enough but I am not sure they give me the right look.  I really want something new that I will love.  Budget is $200.  Please let fly with your recommendations.

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

Steve bought these at Bristol from the Renboots shop there.

Men's Gilly
Price:    $69.00

He says they are the most comfortable shoes he's ever worn at faire.  He had a pair of Dreamshoes, but after 11 years, they bit the dust, so he got these to wear with his kilt.  They are butter soft black leather.  He has very hard to fit feet, and is always grateful when he can find something to fit.  And the fact that these fit perfectly and are so comfortable has him sold on these shoes.

On the Renboot website, click on Marcy's shoes on the home page.  I had to scroll down to find it, but you can see a picture of them. 

[white trillium]

Hmmm, my husband is looking for footwear to go with a kilt as well.  How are the Renboots' Gillys as far as support goes?

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

When we go to faire, it's 3 hours each way, so we leave home about 7 a.m. and get back around 11 p.m.  Steve has his shoes on the whole time.  At faire, we spend a lot of time walking around.  We are not ones to sit in 1 pub the whole day and never move.  He's never complained about sore or aching feet, so I guess he must feel comfortable in them (he's at work now so I can't ask him!).

[Rani Zemirah]

My guy has settled on kilted pirate for his character, so the ghillies aren't really the look he's going for, and he's got a tattoo on his his calf that he doesn't really want to cover with high boots, either, so I was wondering if anyone has experience with the lower-to-mid-calf type boot in leather? Specifically something like these? Anyone bought from this site? These boots look pretty descent, but some of their other stuff looks pretty "commercial", so I wanted opinions before I committed to anything.

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

I asked Steve today about the support in the ghillies.  He says he isn't sure how much support there actually is, but he stated again how comfortable they are and how his feet don't hurt at the end of the day.

[Tipsy Gypsy]

Milord bought his faire ghillies at Native Earth, and he says that even with his inoperable bunions, they're comforable enough to be on his feet all day. When he bought them about 2-3 years ago, they were less than $100, and they've held up quite well. If you're looking for dress ghillies for outside faire, several pipers have recommended that he look for ones with crepe or vibram soles. It's tough to find them with sewn sole as opposed to glued on, but it's worth it when it comes time to replace soles vs. the whole shoe. And when weather dictates, be it faire or not, he says to heck with fashion and goes for his hikers.

[white trillium]

I asked Steve today about the support in the ghillies.  He says he isn't sure how much support there actually is, but he stated again how comfortable they are and how his feet don't hurt at the end of the day.

Thank you for checking with him!  Kurt has arch support issues (he has for years), so I'm hesitant to purchase footwear unless he can try it on....but those are reasonable enough pricewise and look comfy.

[Julianne]

Now that I'm a Pedorthist I would say with the right orthotic you could don any of the aforementioned footwear quite well.


For the Renaissance a "soft" leathered ghillie is most appropriate for the Celt.

Either low or high shanked would be personal preference depending on the persona.

[groomporter]

I've got some links to patterns for ghillies and related shoes and the bottom of the page here
http://www.historicgames.com/Scottishstuff/ghillies.html

[Macintyre]

i has the same problem for the longest time.  i kinda wanted to stay traditional with the tall ghillies, but i kinda wanted boots too because of the support in the ankles that they give but i couldn't find a pair that i liked that weren't rediculously expensive.  then i found son of sandlars boot and they are great.  not that pricey, fit good, look nice and they have a great warranty on the soles.  look at my myspace picks of TRF 08 to take a look at them.  they also come in other colors too.

[Rani Zemirah]

Thanks, Mac! I think those might be a little higher than he's looking for, but I'll check and see if they have something more mid-calf! Nice boots, btw!!!

[Cormac]

My boots are very similar to Macintyre's.   I need to put on my kilt and boots and get in front of a full length mirror to see how it all looks.  I could stand to invest the money in vest I have been wanting and a new shirt from Renshirts.  Maybe Santa will be especially nice and I can just get it all.

[Rani Zemirah]

Santa will be slow getting to my house this year, but he has promised to make up for it in a really big way later on, so maybe there will be a couple of pairs of boots (a pair for me, too!) to be unwrapped a little later in the New Year... oh, and something fun in leather, too!

[white trillium]

I've got some links to patterns for ghillies and related shoes and the bottom of the page here
http://www.historicgames.com/Scottishstuff/ghillies.html

Hmmm I hadn't considered making footwear, but it sounds like a fun winter project.