Vest and hose advice

[cruiser348]

As a kilt newbie and admitted victim of the dreaded matchy matchy disease I present a couple of questions to the rabble.
I am looking for a vest to wear with my kilt when I attend events that require a little nicer attire than what I currently have. It will be worn with a Mackay modern kilt. Primarily, it will be worn to events where the rest of the people in attendance will be wearing clothing ranging from khakis with polos to dress slacks and shirts; so it doesn't need to be something overally formal.
I would like the advice from those here concerning color options as well as vendors. The budget available is very tight, and I would perfer to deal with a US vendor so as to save on international shipping rates.
Also, I am looking for color options for new hose and flashes to wear with this kilt. I would like suggestions in both solid color as well as diced.
Sorry for the long winded post but wanted to be sure I give enough information.

[Zardoz]

Uniformal Wearhouse is a good source for inexpensive vest options and colors;
http://www.uniformalwearhouse.com/apages/servests1.html

And being able to color-coordinate is not a disease

[cruiser348]

Thanks for the link. The prices are certainly inline with what I was looking for, and having a suitable vest will keep me looking good until I find a suitable jacket to attempt a conversion.

[Spartan Tartan]

For hose, you could link to any of the advertisers at the top of the page. I would select complimentary colors to those in your kilt. Perhaps the colors of the thinner stripes rather than the dominant color.

I happen to like the machy-matchy. Too much is too much, I can agree. But I wouldn't purposefully choose some hideous hose just to prove I do NOT have matchy syndrome. It may be difficult to match colors, so anything in the general color class would compliment well.

[davidlpope]

Hose, Daywear: Lovat Blue, Lovat Green, Bottle Green, Dark Red/Claret

I'm a big fan of the House of Cheviot hose. The best I've found, though, is the hose from Almost Unwearoutable Kilt Hose. Pricey, but you only need a couple pairs that will last.

Hose, Evening: Diced Red/Black, Red/Green, Red/White
House of Cheviot offers these in off the shelf versions. Good quality/value for price. As above, you only need one good pair.

Consider saving your pennies and buying a tweed jacket/waistcoat combination. You can always wear the waistcoat alone. Also, consider a five button tartan waistcoat. You could make it do double-duty with a Sherrifmuir for formal events.

I've had really good experiences with Matt Newsome of the STM and Rocky Roeger from USA Kilts.

Best of luck.

[room2ndfloor]

I am looking for a vest to wear with my kilt when I attend events that require a little nicer attire than what I currently have. It will be worn with a Mackay modern kilt. Primarily, it will be worn to events where the rest of the people in attendance will be wearing clothing ranging from khakis with polos to dress slacks and shirts; so it doesn't need to be something overally formal.
.

Have you thought about a knitted sweater-vest? With a Celtic-style textured stitch, such as cables or moss stitch, this could be very effective with a kilt.

I made one, in a heathery teal color, for my sweetheart:



Take a look in a thrift shop and see if there is such a sweater-vest, or perhaps a whole sweater where you could remove the sleeves and bind off the armholes.

[Nighthawk]

Have you thought about a knitted sweater-vest? With a Celtic-style textured stitch, such as cables or moss stitch, this could be very effective with a kilt.

I made one, in a heathery teal color, for my sweetheart:



Take a look in a thrift shop and see if there is such a sweater-vest, or perhaps a whole sweater where you could remove the sleeves and bind off the armholes.

I had the same thought. I have 2 nice sweater vests in Argyle style patterns. I bought them at J C Penny for like $50 each. They look spectacular.

As to hose, I love these:

http://giftshop.scottishtartans.org/hose_specialty.htm

I have a pair of the New Diamond in loden green. As with the others, they're a bit pricey, but save up- they're well worth the wait.

[Cowher]

I also will throw in some suggestions on hose. I have INCREDIBLE hose from USA Kilts. But they may be to hot for summer. Call Rocky because he will tell you available colors where the ecru is the only ones listed online. http://www.usakilts.com/store/cart.p...ct_detail&p=78

Kyle who is a XMarker known as KWD turned me on to a woman in Canada who knitted him some fantastic hose and some knitted flashes as well. I just pulled the trigger on some navy hose and claret flashes that will match my two kilts beautifully. They looked less bulky and therefor not so warm. I can't wait to see them.
http://www.cafeciza.com/11.html

[Korvyn]

Nice to see someone else wearing Mackay. I actually have found a couple at Yard sales. they are both suede and look rather well.

[AKScott]

As a kilt newbie and admitted victim of the dreaded matchy matchy disease I present a couple of questions to the rabble.
I am looking for a vest to wear with my kilt when I attend events that require a little nicer attire than what I currently have. It will be worn with a Mackay modern kilt. Primarily, it will be worn to events where the rest of the people in attendance will be wearing clothing ranging from khakis with polos to dress slacks and shirts; so it doesn't need to be something overally formal.
I would like the advice from those here concerning color options as well as vendors. The budget available is very tight, and I would perfer to deal with a US vendor so as to save on international shipping rates.

I can't help with the vest, I am trying to figure one or two out for myself. opcorn:

You will likely want a belt when kilted with a tucked in polo style shirt. Should be a useless fashion accessory if your kilt fits correctly, but chicks dig it, so...

The Lewis line of hose from Scottish Tartans Museum (clickable ad above) are made by House of Cheviot. I love them. Not cheap. Their standard hose at $27.95 per pair are pretty good. Open link/ giftshop / men's wear/ footwear/ hose.

I have yet to read a single negative review of anything about Rocky at USA Kilts either. Picking between those two seems to be a good kind of dilemma to have.

Also, I am looking for color options for new hose and flashes to wear with this kilt.

Looking at the online swatch from Loch Carron Strome I personally (quite pale skin tones) would stay away from bottle green. I could make Lovat Blue work with a lot of stuff, claret would be a good choice for day wear and smart daywear, and I could probably make yellow hose work. Bottle green would be very difficult for me to carry off without looking like a leprechaun. Lovat green would be easier than bottle green, but still a lot of green.

I might try ancient (very light) blue hose with that kilt.

Another (cheaper) option would be to buy inexpensive white hose with 50-70% wool content and then home dye them in a bucket of coffee. Darker roasts, longer soaks and higher wool content lead to darkest browns, but a very light oatmeal sort of brown is possible.

I have read (more than once) that those living in Scotland can use either bright blue or bright red garter ties 99.44% of the time.

I would like suggestions in both solid color as well as diced.
Sorry for the long winded post but wanted to be sure I give enough information.

Anytime I have rendered an opinion on diced hose those with more experience than me have disagreed (politely) with my opinion and uniformly suggested some other combination.

red/ white, green/ white, red/black and green/black are the "players". You have a lot of green and black in that kilt already. I bet the top two responses are going to be red/white and red/black, but I am not quite clear (yet) on why that will be.

Good luck!