Phil,

You are correct, the question was about etiquette, and the "recieved wisdom" for the recent past has been that diced or Argyle hose should be reserved for evening wear only (with some exceptions -- for example, Erskine's advice that they were acceptilbe daywear for liveried servants, or pipers).

Fashions change, however, so it is good to know not only what the current fashion etiquette rules are, but also why they are what they are, and whether or not things have been done differently in the past, or if the current trends are changing.

I think that diced and Argyle hose are becoming less and less popular these days than they were in the past, largely due to the increased cost. I get the sense from reading material from 50 or 100 years ago that diced or Argyle hose used to be much more common. It wasn't just that they were reserved for evening wear, but they were the only acceptible hose for evening wear. Solids were only for day wear.

These days solid colored hose are quite commonly seen with evening wear, which would have been anathema 100 years ago. So here we see fashion is changing, and the rules of etiquette along with it. I would suggest that fashion may allow for diced or Argyle hose to be worn more casually than perhaps was allowed in the past.

To be quite frank, being in the business I am in, I get to see quite a lot of plain colored solid knit hose, so I tend to applaud those who strike out and wear something different!