My practice set is on the way, and I have yet to pick up the instrument. I have just come across the item known as a popping strap. Must they be leather? Must you have one? Where do you get one if one must have one? Thanks.
Here in San Diego, we have Michael’s craft supply stores. You can get a very nice 9"x9" sheet of black suede for about $5.00 or so. I’ve been using them as popping straps for many years.
Thanks for the reply. Do you need to fasten the popping strap to your leg?
Congrats to your set dahlilama.
Really when I’m wearing jeans I don’t need to use the piper’s apron. All the ways If I use it I simply put the strap simply over my leg, no attached. I know that some people fasten his apron to the trousers with a elastic strip or velcro, but it isn’t very usual.
Take a look to previous topics with the search tool and you’ll find useful info about popping strap or piper’s apron. 
Greetings
you can play well without it 
I think it’s well worth getting a popping strap, unless you regulary wear leather trousers. Yes, jeans are pretty good, but for other materials, a ps will help. I used to tie mine to my leg, so it didn’t get blown away when playing outside.
I’ve now got a popping valve, which is useful with drones as you can hold the chanter at more of an angle on your leg, and still be airtight.
Congrats on your set too.
Thanks for the replies. I suppose a little experimentation is necessary to see what works best.
I use the same thing Michael Eskin does, a piece of leather I got at Michael’s. It’s not attached to my leg, I just lay it across.
As a beginning/intermediate piper, I find that it helps me a lot.
Brian McNamara recommended to me that I get one after I took a lesson from him, and I figured it he thought I should get one, then I would. 
Justine
I remember that–but he did say that your techinque on your jeans was proving him wrong
but it does help !!!
edited once- can’t spell
There has been a discussion about this a while ago
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=25231&highlight=popping
and Uillliam has made a very convincing contribution:
The popping strap is more than just a seal!It is called a pipers apron for a good reason.Most popping straps today are miserable little scraps of leather neatly tied around th leg,right…wrang!!Get a good size piece o leather say 12"x12" and let it drape over the leg,quite apart from helping to make a better seal it can help the harmonics tremendously by utilising the longer piece when the chanter is off the knee.
eg Play the drones in the middle of the room,then go to a corner and play the drones into a corner(creating a sound box) and listen to the difference,well it is the same with a proper Pipers Apron! when ye play the chanter into the apron
Uilliam
I had heard a similiar thing: Many years ago I took Double Base lessons from a jazzman (the idiot turned his eyes when he heard the word “bagpipes”). We talked about that it is extremely difficult to mike a Double Base and he told me that because of the very long (average) wavelengths the best sound (not loudness) is from a distance of about 12 m. I was thinking that a similiar (much closer; perhaps for other reasons a much, much longer distance only goes for GHB:)) thing might go for UPs: They always sound better when someone else is playing than when you are playing yourself. (My “non-setteled” wavelenght-considerations of a reed will lead too far). I think that sound-reflections from a good popping-strap will help this. Any thoughts?
Best,
Hans
Hans-Jorg,
I just recently discovered that a large popping strap, shiny side up can have a dramatic reflective effect on the sound coming back at you from the chanter, most noticeable on the bottom D, which makes sense. It is doubly advantageous to have the coarse side to your trouserleg because the coarse fibres restrict it from moving around.
Regards,
David P.
If Dahlilama is a woman - and there are those who are - it might be advisable to get a longer strip of leather to go over both legs for occasions when a dress is worn.
A woman piper, who plays on Fridays in my local, always wears a long dress - hippie generation, I suspect - and has a popping strap nearly a meter long.
Dahlilama is not a woman, nor do I have plans to be. But good advice.
yOU mEAN lIKE tHIS:
:roll: That’s very mature, Kevin.
J.
I’ve also found that the big brimmed hat, as often cited by Paddy Keenan, helps catch the chanter in your ears when playing in large groups or bands.
I wonder what it’d be like then with one of those, like, you know, umbrella hats with the umbrella you wear on your head.
Cheers,
DG
I wear a broad brimmed hat when playing out of doors, primaily to keep the sun off of my shiny scalp, and partially to be able to hear the chanter better.
Personally, those hats with the beer can holders make me sound better…