kilt hose for, um, shorter lads

[Tobus]

I am 5'7" too, and my Lewis' come just below the knee when folded at the seam. I like that, but I also wear a size 7 shoe. I need to do some hot water treatments on them, at least up to mid calf. It takes a lot of work to keep wrinkles out of them right now.

Well I'm glad I'm not the only one who is short with little feet! My shoe size actually measures 6.5 US (6 UK), but I usually end up wearing a size 7 US because they just don't make men's shoes smaller than that. Heck, some don't even make them smaller than size 8.

So I'm pretty much stuck wearing "small" hose, and not even all hose-makers offer that size. It's usually only medium or large.

I have considered trying a hot water treatment on some of my cheaper hose that are way too long, to see if they'll shrink down to actually fit me. I just haven't worked up the nerve to do it yet, as I'm afraid I'll ruin them. But then again, I tend not to wear them anyway because they don't fit me, so I suppose it's no loss.

What's weird is that not all of us 5'-7" guys will be able to wear the same hose. I think my lower legs are probably the same length as someone who would be 5'-9" or 5'-10", and my vertical deficiency is more in my torso (which seems too short in proportion to the rest of me). Some of you other guys may have regular torsos, but short legs, in which case the hose will fit differently. And calf shape/size will have a lot to do with it too. I'm really starting to become a believer in the idea that hose need to be custom made just like kilts. There is no "one size fits all" category, and even the small-medium-large sizing simply doesn't work for some of us (or at least, not if we want them to fit well).

And yes, custom hose are amazing! (Except for the hand washing part.)

I hand-wash all my kilt hose anyway. I'd be afraid to put a nice pair of hose in the washing machine, even the commercially made ones like House of Cheviot.

That shows my issue exactly, Tobus. It's not as though I have extra small feet, adding insult to the injury of my short legs. I think the Lewis hose are of a great quality (better than the House of Edgar) but they just don't fit. And I don't have the chance to wear the kilt often enough right now to make custom hose financially feasible.
If nothing else, hopefully this thread turns up some possible vendors for us.

Believe it or not, you can have custom hose made for not much more than the House of Cheviot hose, if you get them from the right places (or find someone willing to hand-knit you a pair). I've had two pair made for me, hand-knitted to my measurements, and the cost was VERY reasonable. PM me if you want details. These are "chunky" hose, which I happen to like because I have skinny bird-legs and they help with the visual proportions:



That said, I have also been thinking that the Lewis hose could be made to work for short legs with a simple alteration. Since the cuff is stitched to the ribbed tube portion of the leg, I wonder if you could undo the stitching, trim the hose down an inch or so, and re-stitch the cuff. This would take some hand-work, or could even be done on a sewing machine (or "thread injector" as some guys like to call it). The aesthetics of the stitching don't matter, since ideally it would be hidden in the final product. Has anyone tried this? Is it do-able?

[Mickey]

Well I'm glad I'm not the only one who is short with little feet! My shoe size actually measures 6.5 US (6 UK), but I usually end up wearing a size 7 US because they just don't make men's shoes smaller than that. Heck, some don't even make them smaller than size 8.

I have considered trying a hot water treatment on some of my cheaper hose that are way too long, to see if they'll shrink down to actually fit me. I just haven't worked up the nerve to do it yet, as I'm afraid I'll ruin them. But then again, I tend not to wear them anyway because they don't fit me, so I suppose it's no loss.

What's weird is that not all of us 5'-7" guys will be able to wear the same hose. I think my lower legs are probably the same length as someone who would be 5'-9" or 5'-10", and my vertical deficiency is more in my torso (which seems too short in proportion to the rest of me).

That said, I have also been thinking that the Lewis hose could be made to work for short legs with a simple alteration. Since the cuff is stitched to the ribbed tube portion of the leg, I wonder if you could undo the stitching, trim the hose down an inch or so, and re-stitch the cuff.

Sucks doesn't it? Terribly hard to find shoes that fit. Most of mine are 8 to 8.5. I've been wearing larger sizes for so long that they almost feel normal now. I was going to practice on a pair of white cheapos that I have too. I think your lower legs are longer than mine by a couple of inches, just by looking at where the tops of your hose come. Mine come to just under the knee.

The restitching idea is brilliant! I'm going to give that a try before the hot water and see what happens. I'll be sure to get some pics of it and let you know how it goes. Maybe tonight if I have the time. Can't believe the thought never crossed my mind!