We walked over to the kiltmaker’s shop where they had enough chairs for all of us to sit. Our presenter about the bagpipes was waiting for us. He has had the honor of playing for Queen Elizabeth before! I now understand how the bagpipes work, and this gentleman played several songs for us. He was very humorous and had us laughing. He showed us his training instrument called a chanter which bagpipers still use when learning a new song. They have to perfect the melody before actually moving to the bagpipe itself because of the effort it takes to sustain the air in the bag. Fascinating! Our second presentation was on the history of the kilt and kilt-making. A young woman shared with us the evolution of the quilt to today’s quilt. The business is thriving, and they have established a Young Kiltmakers’ Guild in order to preserve the craft. Gordon (of the company) has collaborated with a number of institutions and companies to create tartans. They even had a collaboration with Microsoft to create the X-Box tartan. Really informative sessions to day which are icons of Scotland - the bagpipe and the kilt.

Long before the internet, I’d heard this phrase originated from the construction industry, where a cement mixing truck would bring in nine yards of concrete. With common use of the Web, I found another source. The whole nine yards is a colloquial American phrase meaning “everything, the who lot.” In America, its first usage was the punch line of an 1855 Indiana comedic short story titled “The Judge’s Big Shirt”. Imagine my surprise when visiting Gordon Nicolson Kiltmakers for a kiltmaking tutorial. To demonstrate how a kilt is made, the lecturer rolled out a length of wool and asked for a volunteer. A vivacious member of our tour group jumped—literally—at the chance. She was instructed to lie down at one end of the unfurled cloth, then to roll over and over clutching the loose end of the cloth. With help, she stood, looked as though she’d gain quite a few pounds. The narrator then began folding pleats half an inch at a time. The amount of cloth shortened around the volunteer’s waist. The volunteer helped the narrator—along with other volunteers—to hold the unfurled cloth at waist height. The length was measured. Voilà! Nine yards to the inch. It was explained that the cloth is doubled, then pleated all the way around. To make a kilt for an adult man requires “the whole nine yards.” Although a wool kilt is stylish, it isn’t practical in Florida’s heat. I did, however, purchase a stylish gray lambswool scarf for unseasonably cold in January and February, two of Florida’s three seasons. The third season is summer☺

After various “hiccups” in both make of tartan trousers and kilt hire Gordon and team rallied and all turned out perfectly. There may have been some staffing issues that caused the initial problems but Gordon and staff went out of their way to correct all. We had a perfect wedding day and thanks to all at this shop. Highly recommend!