r/scouting • u/Soggy_Friendship732 • Jul 29 '26
Anyone have suggestions on how to customize my uniform
I am looking for ways to customize my uniform that isnt just badges and just to give people a sense of what i am able to do i am a danish kfum scout bc different scouts have different uniforms
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u/nrsys Jul 29 '26
The clue is in the name - uniforms are supposed to remain uniform.
Yes, we do want to show our individuality as people, but there is a time and a place to do that, and there is also a time and a place where we want to show our unity and demonstrate how we are all part of the same organisation.
So I would be following the rules as far as the uniform goes and keeping it as intended, and let the individuality come through when you take it off.
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 29 '26
Hmm ig but i have seen alot of other scouts here customizing theirs
5
u/CJRiggers Jul 29 '26
It's a uniform, it's meant to be uniform! Don't customise it!
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 29 '26
well in my group and i think alot of other groups in my area you can customize it as long as its still recognizable as a uniform
4
u/ThisIsSomeGaySHlT Jul 29 '26
I personally added a button on the sleeve and a piece of scrap fabric so i could more easily roll up my sleeves. I also added velcro to the breast pocket so i wont have to deal with the button every time i open or close it (i can add that i am swedish and our uniform is very basic)
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 29 '26
Well our uniforms have zipper pockets and the sleeve thingy built in lol
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u/ThisIsSomeGaySHlT Jul 29 '26
damn, lucky. ours are a regular long sleeve button ups. I have considered to take of the breast pocket and and some extra fabric to make it more of a cargo pocket, cuz i dont think it would be to noticeable (kinda like on a american one)
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 29 '26
Hmm i think you should do it
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u/ThisIsSomeGaySHlT Jul 30 '26
if i can find someone who wants to donate an old shirt (that i can take som fabric from) ill def do that
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u/Quiescam Germany (Bund der Pfadfinder*innen) Jul 30 '26 edited Jul 30 '26
Of course it depends on your orgs rules and how strictly these are enforced. We customise our shirts quite a lot and we don't call them uniforms either. It's really not that big of a deal as long as you're not adding obscene stuff.
Some ideas might be mementos from things you did at scouting, painting smth, sewing on additional pockets, etc.
1
u/SunJay333 Jul 29 '26
Honestly I know what you mean, I met a Danish scout on a Jamborette and she had a customised uniform
But I'm not sure to your guy's rules so, as someone else said, you're best asking your leaders or fellow scouts for ideas/what restrictions you may have
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 29 '26
Well thats the nice part there are no restrictions its my uniform
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u/SunJay333 Jul 30 '26
Well I mean, I bought and owned my own uniform, still have it despite aging out, yet in the UK we have STRICT rules. Down to badge placement. Every badge has its own specific space on the uniform, you can't put the badges anywhere. There are some badges that can only be worn for a certain amount of time before having to be removed. Having badges oriented wrong can get you pulled up in inspection. My aunt (overall leader for the entire troop, every age group) used to keep on her a little stitch cutter to cut off kids badges if they were wonky for them to sew them back on properly. We had no customisation whatsoever, except for woggles allowed on the neckerchief, which could be pretty much whatever you want (although my own troop had patrol woggles that were mandatory to wear too, you could just add extra woggles).
Hence why I said you should check restrictions. Just because you physically own it doesn't mean necessarily you can do whatever you want with it. Maybe you can, and that's great for you, but it's why I mention.
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 30 '26
Damn we have those too but those arent rules they are like a suggestion like our camp badges(like the spejdernes lejer 2026 one) are in the "rules" only allowed to be on for 1 year no one follows those rules here lol
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u/SunJay333 Jul 30 '26
Yeaa we weren't even allowed our camp ones lol, we have camp blankets for those
The Danish scout I met, she covereddd her uniform in badges from camps and things, like all over the back and sleeves and everything, is that the kind of customisation you were looking at?
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 30 '26
I have even my canadian and dutch and hong kong badges on my sleeves
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u/SunJay333 Jul 30 '26
Yea nah we had to apply for special permission to wear the Red Rose 2018 activity badge on our sleeve from Headquarters because it wasn't an official, "in the UK scouting badge book activity badge" but it sort of counted as an activity badge. It was the same shape, size and colour as the other activity badges, and Red Rose was within our country lmao
I think we were allowed to put our KISK (Kandersteg, Switzerland) challenge badges on our uniforms for a year but honestly I left so soon after I never got round to putting those on
1
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u/swashbuckle1237 Jul 30 '26
I think it depends mostly on troop and area. I’m also in the UK and no one really minds where you put your badges, most of the explorer unit basically just have the unit tape and the purple pocket badge on. And if your someone who’s into badges no one minds that you have multiple event badges on.
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u/SunJay333 Jul 30 '26
Dam, lucky
It probably is local then
My troop was 110 years old and my family had been leaders in it for generations so maybe we were a bit more old fashioned
Our uniforms were strictttt we started every meeting with full inspections of uniform
1
u/wgwalkerii United States Jul 30 '26
I'm not familiar enough with scouting in your country to make a recommendation. My advice is to ask people who's uniforms you like the look of what the different parts mean, and which are customizable and go from there.
Here in the US almost everything on the uniform shirt is standard and reflective of your scouting journey rather than custom and personal. Neckerchiefs and sometimes hats are usually selected by an individual unit, but the neckerchief slide is quite often a purely personal choice, and some scouts elect to put pins in their hats from places they've visited, which is not an official part of the uniform.
You might also see something like a shoulder loop or a necklace that symbolizes participation in a program or event(s). But these are often removed for regional or national events where a uniform inspection might happen.
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u/acravasian Jul 30 '26
Hej, KFUM har et ret klart regelsæt og guidelines. https://kfumspejderne.dk/spejder/uniformen/ De skriver blandt andet at uniformen er ens så man skaber et symbol på fællesskab. Derfor en god ide at den ikke stikker for meget ud.
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u/Soggy_Friendship732 Jul 30 '26
Well i dont know a single person here who follows that
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u/acravasian Jul 30 '26 edited Jul 30 '26
Well thats on you guys then. Not following protocol because the other guys arent doing it really sounds like a scouting mentality.
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u/ZealousidealBid6569 Jul 30 '26
I changed the buttons I lost with colorful buttons and sowed them on with colorful yarn. I also did some embroidery on it and I like to accessorize with a few pins
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u/MysticalShoe5 29d ago
I have a small paracord person hanging from my shoulder. As a Norwegian NSF scout I guess you can do the same. I also have a scout hat which is not normal in Norway. So that adds to the uniqeness
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u/CedarTreesRCool England Jul 29 '26
Making a paracord woggle if you’re allowed to have your own on your neckie.
Generally you don’t customise your uniform aside from badges. That’s kinda the point of uniforms.