Kilts. A Scottish staple, which has become popular the world over as an outfit for special occasions: weddings, ceilidhs and other big family celebrations. They are rarely seen outside of these events, as generally, certainly in Scotland, they aren't seen as being particularly practical for work unless your job is bagpiping, or working in a kilt shop. However, in the US of A, some have decided to ignore the (admittedly, unofficial) rules of kilt wearing which Scots have adhered to since the days of being a battle-weary Jacobite ended. In Oklahoma, mechanics working in a garage in Tulsa have decided that during the blistering hot summer months wearing a kilt is a far better alternative than shorts.“It was mainly that we were looking for an alternative for the heat,” said David O’Brien, the owner of O'Brien Auto Performance, speaking to ABC news last month, “And since I have Irish and Scottish heritage, it was just a fun thing to do.” O'Brien turned to a local kilt maker to get his lighter, airier, non-woollen kilt. It is plain black and cost him $130. Without air conditioning, he believes this is the perfect way to keep cool from May to October, when the temperatures can reach up to 47 degrees Celsius (118F). However, one of his fellow mechanics has no intention of baring his legs and will happily stick with jeans. Perhaps this is quite wise as there are some dangers involved in wearing kilts while working in a hot garage: “You have to be really careful when you’re laying on the ground — knees down, legs crossed,” O’Brien said. “Plus you can really burn your bum on the seat of a hot car.” Due west, in California, others are bringing the kilt to the office. At Pixar studios, home of Toy Story and new computer animated adventure Brave, the part-Scottish director Mark Andrews decided to implement Kilt Fridays while working on the Scottish project. Andrews explained that he had been wearing kilts at Pixar parties for years and when his team started creating Brave a number of animators started wearing the garment. This was in order to learn how it moves and sits so they could animate it properly in the film. Eventually donning a kilt to work caught on and this led to him deciding that every Friday would officially become a day of kilt wearing. According to Andrews, the trend soon spread to other departments: "They wouldn't wear kilts, but on Fridays they’d come in with tartan ties or tartan plaid shirts." The Scotland Kilt Company has a range of utility kilts for customers who want to wear a kilt in a more practical situation. The kilts come with pockets and come in a black or camouflage. Visit the page to find out more. We also do utility kilts for ladies which are shorter and are available in black or khaki. They can be found here. Whether you are working on cars in a garage, animating the latest blockbusting kids movie or just planning on doing some DIY on a Sunday, there is now a kilt for every occasion. No longer just for big special events, kilts can be worn whenever you fancy, even just to pop down to Tesco.