PANTS/KILTS/STUFF
There are several options for what you can wear on your bottom half. Most people chose to go with pants, though kilts are fun additions, and some tunics (sometimes roman or greek styles) are not made to be worn with pants. I would first like to say that no matter what you are wearing, SOME kind of pants/shorts should be worn! I don't care if you want to go regimental. You WILL fall on the ground, you WILL spin/jump and your tunic/kilt will fly up, you WILL sit wrong. I don't know what the official rules say about this, but i can assure you no one will find it amusing if you aren't wearing shorts/boxers/swim trunks underneath.
Now, back to the garb ideas
The easiest garb you can find for pants is just go to a thrift store and look for black sweatpants.
Find ones with a drawstring that are slightly too big. Make sure they don't have any designs or stripes on them. Take them home and neatly cut off the elastic at the bottoms (this is also your chance to cut them short enough to fit you). Hem the bottoms of the pants with a zigzag stitch so they won't fray when you wear them. You now have baggy black pants that are acceptable to wear. This is only temporary garb though and you need to be on the lookout for something better to wear.
You can also sometimes wear pajama pants if you can find ones that work (this isn't a guarantee). I can't find a good picture to show you, but generally they would be loose and baggy, brown or black, and have no decorations or patterns on them (though i've seen small brown stripes that looked alright). If you find a pair of pants that are too light-colored to use, you might want to experiment with dyeing them darker brown or black. As with sweatpants, pajama pants are only temporary and you need to find a better pair of pants soon. (especially because i rarely see good pj pants for garb)
Beginner Sewing Pants
For people who don't like cutting a lot of strange shapes, this pattern is for you:
http://images.km.ru/images/tourism/porty.jpg The picture isn't drawn well so i'll explain. You have 3 pieces of fabric. the two outside ones are the pant legs, and need to be wide enough to wrap around you leg comfortably. The centerpiece is the crotch piece and needs to be 5-8 inches wide and long enough to go between your legs and back up to your waist. The picture doesn't really show proportions very well. Part 1 just shows your fabric lying out. the side pieces are much wider than the middle. Part 2 is the middle piece folding up to make the crotch. Part 3 is the side pieces folding in half to make the legs. After you fold them like shown and pin the pieces together, you just sew the crotch to the front and back of the legs, and then sew the legs into tubes.
For people who want a little less sewing, but don't mind cutting funny shapes, here's your pants.
the directions are a bit wordy, but it's not too difficult.
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to- ... /?ALLSTEPSsimply put, you cut out the fabric like it says using another pair of loose pants (remember your fabric is folded in half), you sew up the side until you get to the curved part near the top. You turn one of them inside out and put the other one inside it, matching up the curved U openings. Sew along the U. You can now pull the pant leg out of the other, and ta da, you have pants. You'll need to put a drawstring in it or put belt loops on. drawstrings are easy. just look them up.
REMEMBER: WHENEVER YOU MAKE PANTS, REINFORCE THE STITCHING ALONG THE CROTCH. YOU DON'T WANT IT TO RIPBaggy pants/Rave Pants/Phat Pants
These pants go by several names but i've seen a number of pictures on the boards of people wearing them. They're not too difficult to make, but they require quite a bit of fabric. The following link will tell you how to make them (please ignore the fact that these pants are blue and shiny)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Phat-Pants/?ALLSTEPSNOTE: the directions are a bit unclear as to how the pant legs are sewn together. They are sewn together the same way the pants above are put together. Turn one pant leg inside out, and put the other pant leg inside it. Match up the U and sew along the U. Reinforce the seams, and flip the other pant leg back out. Hem everything and put a drawstring in.
Dagorhir Pants (pretty much the same as above)
Wrap Pants
I think these pants would work really well, especially since you can tie them over the pants you're already wearing!
The directions are nice and clear, and also check out the pictures at the bottom of the page. Those wrap pants look like they would work well too.
http://laupre.wordpress.com/2008/06/29/ ... -tutorial/Pants from Patterns
Using patterns is nearly always more complicated, and gives you more authentic/official looking clothes. Here are a few patterns with pant instructions
Simplicity 4059
Simplicity 8913
Butterick B4574
A Few Other Ideas
Patiala Pants
Knee Breeches
Persian Pants
Leather Leggings
Now for KILTS!!!!Kilts are wonderful and fun to wear, but they can be expensive. Since there is so much tradition behind the kilt, you may want to research tartan patterns before you buy anything. It's always fun to wear your family/group's colors. If your family doesn't have their own tartan, you can pick one randomly or pick one that has some significance to you (you can pick one that has the colors of your realm, there's an official tartan for people who don't have claim to other tartans, many countries, states or cities have their own tartans too).
I ask you again, please make sure you wear shorts/boxers/swim trunks underneath your kilt. Nobody wants their day ruined by you falling down.
UTILIKILTS ARE NOT GARB! They are made to look like a modern. Often they are made from denim, which is not usually approved for garb making.
Regular Kilts
First of all, i don't know if i would recommend going out and buying a kilt to fight in. Most kilts you find will be made as formal wear and can be extremely expensive, and it would be very unfortunate if you were to mess yours up. While it would be awesome to have one, most people don't have the money and must figure out another way to go.
The easiest (and worst looking) way to make a kilt is simply wrap a plaid or tartan fabric around your waist and belt it on. While this is neither correct or nice-looking, it might pass.
Here are instructions on how to make a basic kilt. Be warned, this isn't for beginners. It can be difficult to get the pleats correct, and i would make sure i knew what i was doing before i started this.
http://sewingsteps.com/blog/sewing-tips ... ep-by-stepThis video is also shows a very good way to make a kilt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a02zjNcW ... re=relatedThe Greatkilt
The Greatkilt is much closer to the original kilt worn by scotsmen. It is not the same as the modern kilt (which is very different and has changed quite a bit). It uses quite a bit more fabric but does not need any sewing (besides making sure the edges don't fray)
This video give an EXCELLENT demonstration of how to put on a greatkilt and various styles and uses it has.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBbg953p ... re=relatedThe Sporran
No kilt is complete without a sporran (and some consider it wrong to wear a kilt without a sporran). As you want to look your best, you certainly will want to wear a sporran.
Other Garb
I mentioned before, some styles of garb may not call for pants underneath the tunic. I find that roman and greek styles often do not call for pants.
The roman tunic and the greek chiton above do not need pants. They look best when worn with high-lacing sandals.
Okay everyone, 2 posts down. Several more to go! if you see any mistakes or something i should correct, please message me! If you know of something that i will need to add, tell me! i'm hoping to create an extremely in-depth and comprehensive list of garb recommendations and i dont want to leave things out.