I have been looking around the web for reconstructions of 17th c. Highlanders as we are approaching the anniversary of Mackay's Regiment and found this on the Friends of the Scots Brigade. He says:
No pin or ring to hold the plaid together, just knotted at the back. No sword of any kind. The 'plaid' is a check cloth blanket of natural colours. I wanted to avoid any sort of tartan identity, so typical of the victorian era. That doublet is a home spun material of both linen and wool. I got it from Stewart Peachy who had it made like one of the grave finds he writes about in his book. The 'bunnet' was made by Gloria Holmes. Not sure if she makes them anymore but she consulted with archaeologist and historians, then knittted them up herself, using natural dies. She managed to somehow pummel them into felting, almost to the standard of modern milling and fulling on broadcloth. The result is quite special I think. The longbow is ewe with a bit of string tied around it. I alter the place of that string by sliding it up an down. It's used as a site for aiming. I went for cut hose, as was cheap and common at that time; they were made from the remnants of an old linen shirt as I recall. I should also mention, there is a belief that short bows and not longbows were the most common to be used by the highlanders.
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