The ubiquity of kilt skirts can be almost entirely attributed to London-based brand, Chopova Lowena. Fresh from their MA at Central Saint Martins, founders Emma Chopova and Laura Lowena-Irons saw a sellout of their carabiner-clip, kilt-like skirts made from Bulgarian fabrics – which were picked up by Matches Fashion (RIP) – and in the years since, they’ve become a staple in fashion insiders’ wardrobes worldwide.
“[The skirt] is the starting point for the rest of the brand and the rest of the clothes we design,” Laura told listeners on The Run-Through With Vogue podcast at the end of last year. “We give it the respect it deserves,” Emma added. (They also revealed that they made the first 30 skirt orders for Matches by hand in their studio.)
Proof that their signature has lasted the test of time? Unlike other viral products, Chopova Lowena’s skirts are still in circulation several years on from the first iteration, with an ever-growing community of devotees. The skirts have also inspired a wave of rip-off versions (some closer than others), as well as a noticeable uptick in people wearing kilt-like skirts.
While CL’s cult styles aren’t strictly kilts – they only resemble them – Scottish brand Le Kilt specialises in styles closer to the traditional silhouette. “I ordered 12 tartans to my granny’s house, we made them over Christmas on the kitchen table, and did a little photoshoot with my flatmate at the time,” founder Samantha McCoach previously told Vogue of the fledgling stages of setting up the label, which is another fashion favourite.
Samantha played a starring role in Dior’s cruise 2025 show held in Scotland in June, and advised Maria Grazia Chiuri on the kilts she included in the show; choosing Scottish tweed over tartan. “I wanted to work with a fabric that feels really raw – that sort of has the wildness of the Lowlands and Highlands, but also incorporates the sort of city landscape of Edinburgh I grew up in. The edges are unfinished, so there’s a bit of a punk element,” she told Sarah Mower of her collaboration.
Miles from Dior’s Drummond Castle show location in Scotland, kilts and their shorter, more subversive counterparts, have trickled into the mainstream. Beyond playing Chopova Lowena street-style bingo at fashion week, I’ve also seen regular folk wearing vintage styles embellished with buckles and buttons on the Tube and in and around London. And given their cosy, blanket-like qualities, I expect to see many more as we enter autumn.
