As we head towards autumn and the days begin to get a little cooler, it’s time to start thinking about how to style highlandwear for the Autumnal season. From chunky knitwear and tweed jackets to rich, earthy colours, autumn is the perfect time to experiment with your highlandwear.
Whether you're dressing for a special occasion or simply looking for a more relaxed way to wear your kilt, here are some of MacGregor and MacDuff’s favourite ways to style highlandwear for autumn.
Choose an Autumnal Tartan
Autumn is the perfect season to embrace tartans with rich, earthy and muted colours. While you might immediately think of traditional reds and greens, an autumnal tartan can be much more varied. Deep greens, warm browns, heather tones, burnt orange, muted blues and weathered shades can all work beautifully for the season.
At MacGregor and MacDuff, we have over 4000 tartans to choose from, so there is plenty of opportunity to find a colour combination that suits your personal style.
Some of our favourite tartans for an autumn-inspired outfit include Stewart Hunting Weathered (Braeriach), Harris Mist, Buchanan Hunting Modern (Braeriach), Failte (Hebridean) and Lomond Mist.
Harris Mist is a particularly versatile choice for autumn, combining soft greys, greens and blues with a warm orange thread.
For something more muted, Lomond Mist combines smoky greys and earthy browns with a subtle flash of pink, making it an easy tartan to pair with neutral autumn layers.
When choosing your tartan, don't be afraid to look beyond the obvious autumn colours. Sometimes a darker or more muted tartan can provide the perfect foundation for warmer accessories and layers.
Layer Your Highlandwear with Knitwear
One of the easiest ways to make your kilt or trews feel ready for autumn is to introduce knitwear.
A chunky wool jumper can instantly give an outfit a more relaxed feel, while a finer knit or roll neck can create something a little more refined. Neutral shades such as cream, oatmeal, charcoal, brown and olive are particularly easy to pair with tartan and allow the kilt to remain the focus of your outfit.
Add a Tweed Jacket
Try pairing a warm-based tartan with a brown tweed jacket for a traditional autumn-inspired look. Alternatively, a grey or green tweed can provide a more contemporary contrast against a warmer tartan.
The combination of tartan and tweed also gives you an opportunity to play with texture. Rather than relying on lots of different colours, you can create an interesting outfit by combining the woven texture of your kilt with the heavier texture of tweed and soft knitwear.
For a classic autumn look, try a tweed jacket with a kilt, woollen kilt hose and brown leather accessories.
Finish Your Look with Autumn Accessories
The smaller details can make a big difference to an autumn kilt outfit. Accessories give you another opportunity to introduce warm colours, natural textures and seasonal materials.
Brown leather brogues are a great alternative to black footwear when you're creating a more relaxed autumn look. Their warm tone works particularly well with earthy tartans, tweed and brown leather accessories.
For autumn, look towards warmer or more muted shades such as cream, grey, brown and green. Choosing a colour that picks out a subtle shade from your tartan can help bring the whole outfit together without making it feel overly coordinated.
Natural materials work particularly well with autumn styling, which makes a wooden sgian dubh a great finishing touch.
The warm tones of wood complement brown leather, tweed and earthy tartans, while adding a traditional Highlandwear detail to the outfit.
Your sporran is another easy way to influence the overall feel of your outfit. Brown leather or more natural-toned sporrans can create a softer, more rustic look.
Think about your accessories as a whole rather than choosing each item separately. Brown brogues, a leather sporran and a wooden sgian dubh can create a much more cohesive autumn look than mixing several unrelated finishes.
Embrace Autumn Highlandwear
Autumn is a great opportunity to experiment with your kilt and create an outfit that feels both traditional and personal. By combining tartan with soft knitwear, textured tweed, warm leather and natural accessories, you can create a look that feels perfectly suited to the season without losing the character of traditional highlandwear.
