Monochrome sett pictures here please

[AKScott]

Need help. I have a monochrome kilt and very thin search results here. If you have even just a shirt and hose and flashes combination you think will work, please take a picture and post it. I really feel like I am floundering here.

Not only do I have one, but my local club rugby team is apparently going to play in a monochrome sett come spring thaw, I would like to offer your sage advice to them if you would care to share it.

Local rugby team sett:

http://www.sportkilt.com/product/962...lly-Roger.html


So, pictures.

First, the combination I planned to wear to Christmas Eve services, only the sweater was dramatically longer than I had remembered:



My second choice I think was too much. I wore this and think I got away with it, but I think it would have been much better with a waistcoat of some kind to tone down the claret shirt, a lot. I tried it on with my green tank when I got home, better I think.

[AKScott]

The wife and youngest child are out of town for New Years, helping the eldest child move into a college dorm. I am home with the cat, but I usually dress up for NYE, so what the hay. I do need to get more light into my shooting corner and my hair is frightful. The last time it was warmer than -15dF here was a couple weeks ago, everyone in town has hair very much like mine just now.

I think the contrast between the ancient Dagliesh palette and the stark white/black of my shirt and jacket show pretty well in a couple of these.
here are my current options:

Claret and charcoal hose (one of each):



Medium grey and lovat blue hose, one of each:



Bottle green and ancient blue hose, one of each:



So the grey hose is especially "iffy", but really none of these are as horrible as I had feared.

The best thing I have that is supposed to work, clan green with claret hose for black tie evening wear:




So whaddya think? I will pay US$20 and reasonable round trip shipping if someone will loan me a pair of black/white diced hose to fit my US size 9-9.5-10 feet. I just want to try them on and get a picture up here, I promise to ship them back out within one week of receipt. Open to trying other diced color combos as well.

I am working with Artificer towards a suitable formal sporran with some hair on it.

If I can make the monochrome kilt work with black tie that will likely be about the only times I wear it. I can't imagine spilling barbecue sauce on this thing.

[AKScott]

I lifted an image of Matt Newsome's shephard check hose (clearly in modern pallete) and photochopped them on/in. I got to go find Lit Trog's wedding pictures next...



EDIT: I think I am getting the hang of this.



LitTrog, Matt, thanks for "loaning" me your hose.

[AKScott]

Here is the last of what I have that "might" work. Everything else in my wardrobe, I don't think will work. Tee-shirts with writing on them, plaid flannel shirts, camoflague hunting gear, just no. This is the last of everything that might work.

From here I either need to buy more clothes or get help arranging what I do have.

Grey T-shirt. I decided to trot out the brown leathers just in case. I don't think they work with this shirt. With the right combination, I'll give brown leather a qualified maybe.


Grey sweater. Different hose and black leather. I think the charcoal hose together with the black shoes is not enough contrast, kinda sorta. Grey sporran and black sgian.


Grey/green smartwool base layer. Very dark green with lots and lots of grey in it. i put my khaki colored hose back away after this shot, but they are out there.


Steel blue shirt. If you would rather call it steel grey or blue/grey, I am fine with that. This is the fourth one this color I have owned in the last twenty years and now this one is too small. This is one of my four favorite colors for a buttoned shirt, I'll make sure my next one doesn't have a button down collar.


French blue shirt, another of my favorite shirt colors. Curious if this is just too much darn color, I must be an American to even try on that rig...Ancient blue hose on my right leg, lovat blue on my left leg.

[AKScott]

250 views, not one comment. I need help. These are the options that I own that maybe might be OK.

I am haunting my local second hand clothing store looking for pale colored anything, button shirt, Tshirt, sweater, I don't care just a lighter shade of pale as it were.

I find myself reaching for my bottle green hose, a lot.

For now I think brown leather, the khaki hose and the medium grey hose are out.

I am thinking about either the green or blue in one of these vests: http://www.scotweb.co.uk/products/tw...5-button-vest/
I think I could wear the cranberry red button shirt with either the blue or green vest, I think, maybe. I also have a similar cranberry red in a long sleeved turtle neck, not pictured.

With five colors of hose left to choose from, three colors of garter tie, two sgians and two sporrans, what would you not be caught dead in, and what would you rock?

Please and thank you.

[pascs]

I actually think most of what you have works, except I' not keen on the blue against the PC jacket.
The kilt looks a fraction high on the waist to me, maybe the lack of a belt is creating that illusion because it looks good with the PC jacket.

With the light blue shirt, either hose would work. With the dark blue shirt I'd try a dark grey hose to match the grey of the kilt.

For the PC I like to see non coloured hose so that would be dark grey or probably black to match the jacket, maybe with white flashes to match the kilt? The black/white diced hose look like they'd work too but these are usually pretty expensive.

[AKScott]

I actually think most of what you have works,

Thanks for breaking the ice in this thread.

except I'm not keen on the blue against the PC jacket.

I concede, it isn't my favorite.

The kilt looks a fraction high on the waist to me, maybe the lack of a belt is creating that illusion because it looks good with the PC jacket.

My made to measure green tank does indeed sit about half an inch lower on the waistline. In the Christmas Eve pictures I changed kilts without retying my neck tie. Kudos to you. The monochrome was made to someone else's measurements close to mine and clearance priced.

With the light blue shirt, either hose would work. With the dark blue shirt I'd try a dark grey hose to match the grey of the kilt.

I'll try it with the medium grey and charcoal hose I already own.

For the PC I like to see non coloured hose so that would be dark grey or probably black to match the jacket, maybe with white flashes to match the kilt? The black/white diced hose look like they'd work too but these are usually pretty expensive.

I'll try white flashes with charcoal hose first since my wife has lately taken up knitting. I think for now I like the shepard check hose better because the chop is closer to the position my own legs were in. Next time I am in black tie I'll try to stand more like Littrog was so I can chop it again and have it look more natural.

Thank you for speaking up.

[Jock Scot]

Well alright as you are asking! I seldom comment about tartans, it causes less offence that way, but suffice to say I have not seen a tartan like the black and white one before.

The simple answer is, you go with what you have and my word you have plenty of kit to play with! Plus some picture adjustments too. Any of the hose and shirts on display actually work perfectly well and proves, really well, how versitile kilt attire can be. Ok, I have my personal "not so keen" bits of your proposed attire-----red shirt------black and white diced hose----- but frankly if that kilt is the way you want to go, then just shut your eyes grab a shirt out of the wardrobe and take the first pair of hose out of the drawer that comes to hand and you will not be far out. In all honesty,I think you are in danger of overthinking all this.

On having a quick re-look at your pictures before I post, the claret hose do illustrate just how versitile the colour is, but any hose that you are showing work well.

[The Wizard of BC]

Because you specifically asked sir.

Some advice I try to get across to my customers when they are first getting into the kilt may be very appropriate here.

Let the Kilt stand on its own.

I try to get them to stop thinking that just because they put on a kilt that every part of their outfit must now be color coordinated to the kilt.

I often do a little trick where I stand in front of my rental fleet. I ask the customer if my outfit works with the kilt I have on. When they say yes I reach over and pull a completly different Tartan out and hold it in front and ask again. As long as everything else of my outfit works together it really does not matter what Tartan I put with it. You should see their eyes bug out. Then a little light goes on. "You mean that I can use what is already in my closet? I don't have to buy eveything special to create a single kilt outfit?"

Nope. This only thing you have special are your hose and flashes. Everything else can be what you already have.


Try this-----
You can start with the hose you currently own, Lay them out on your bed.
Then look in your closet for a shirt that goes with the color of the hose. Lay this out with your hose.
This builds the basic color of your outfit.

If you can find a good combination of hose, and shirt then lay out the flashes you have and find a tie that goes with it. Or try flashes and pocket square if you are wearing a jacket.
This becomes your accent color.

Notice that we have not yet talked about the kilt.

Lay all this out on your bed and then lay any kilt out with it and I think you will find that it works.

If it is me the only thing I would avoid is too much texture or pattern in the outfit. This is a strong Tartan so keep everything else simple. For example - A simple, plain Sporran would work very well with this Tartan where a fur sporran in black and white cow would look horribley busy. In fact I would avoid fur all together with this outfit.
KISS,,, Keep-It-Simple-Stupid. Plain, classic, understated never goes wrong.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Tartans that only incorporate black and white are fairly rare beasts, but they are out there. In addition to the black and white Scott you are wearing, there are black and white tartans for Menzies, Stewart, MacFarlane, and of course the shepherd tartan (Northumberland). They seem to present a challenge for people in terms of matching accessories, but I actually think they are fairly versatile.

One trap that people fall into is to color match their accessories with their tartan. This is a "safe" thing for people new to kilt wearing to do. If your tartan has green, blue, black, red and yellow, then wearing a shirt, tie, kilt hose, flashes, etc., chosen from that color palette is a pretty simple way of making sure your outfit looks well put together. I would consider that a good place to start for most people.

The problem comes when people fail to realize it is ok to branch out beyond that. That many times a color NOT contained in your tartan will also look great with your kilt, and may actually serve to better compliment the tartan. Very often branching out and NOT matching the kilt will give a bit more visual interest to your outfit. And indeed, you should consider the entire outfit, not just the kilt.

This problem tends to be magnified when people wear a black and white tartan. Suddenly one's color choices seem to have been whittled down to black and white! Which might be ok (if not a bit boring) for formal evening wear, but what about all other times?

Here it is essential that people get past the "wear the colors in your kilt" mentality. Indeed, when you consider that your kilt is only black and white, it really presents a neutral tone, and just about any color can coordinate well with it, so long as it does not clash with other parts of your outfit.

I sold a fellow a lovat grey tweed kilt once and he was confused about what color kilt hose to wear with it. I asked him what color shirt he thought he might be wearing. He said claret. So I suggested claret hose. Or charcoal grey hose with claret garters. And if he were wearing a light blue shirt, I'd wear lovat blue hose, etc. He caught on pretty quick. I told him since the kilt was a pretty neutral color, so long as the rest of his outfit looked good together, it didn't matter whether they "matched" the kilt or not.

So that would be my advice here, as well. Don't worry about matching the kilt. If your hose and flashes, shirt and tie, jacket, what have you, look good together, then they should work pretty well with the kilt.

As a personal note, if it were my kilt, I would definitely get a pair of black and white diced hose to wear with it for formal occasions! But for daily wear, I think I would wear any and every color hose BUT black or white.