It should be noted that women were not to wear the Great Kilt or the Little Kilt. This was a rule and was the equivalent of a man 
wearing a skirt today. The kilt was strictly a man's garment and the women of the clan had to wear long dresses and shawls. Being too hot
was never an issue as the weather in Scotland was very cold. The women did have what was called an 'arisaid' and it would be put on the same way as
a belted plaid would be put on except it would reach to the ankles. White was usually the base colour of the arisaid and it was covered in a bright tartan. Although the women did not hunt or fight in war they did often wear the hunting tartan for working purposes. These white-based tartans were, and still are, considered much more normal for women to wear than men.
Women often wore a hood or a piece of their arisaid over their head. Some women also wore great jackets. The wealthier women had the sleeves of their jackets decorated with gold leaf and fine
lace. The large plaid was not only warm and comfortable, but it also provided a good place to carry babies, as they were rugged up in the plaid. The church once tried to ban the wearing of the arisaid because
the women could, and would, hide their face in it and sleep during church - this annoyed the clergymen greatly.
The women often used a head-dress called a kertch. This was worn after a woman was married. A kertch was a piece of square linen which had been diagonally rolled from one corner into the middle.
Women also treasured their brooches which they pinned to the front of their
clothes. The brooches could be made out of silver, gold, or brass. Animals were usually engraved onto them. Queen Mary Brooches (also called Luckenbooths) were quite popular later on. They were heart shaped and often had some kind of love inscription on the back. They were
called Luckenbooths because they were sold in the jeweller's' "Locked Booths" near St. Giles Kirk, Edinburgh. Newly born baby girls would often also have a Luckenbooth pinned to them.
When women went to a social event they would wear their best brooches and a great deal
of jewellery. They would wear their 'plaids' (I say plaid but I am referring to the arisaid) and their finest jackets. It is said that the clanswomen should pin their plaids to their left shoulder and the wife of the clan chief should pin hers to her right shoulder. This rule is not official though. The finest pins would be used with many
jewels on them.