Lovatt blue question

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I agree it would look fine. But while I used to think it was great to coordinate the hose colour with the jacket, I strongly avoid this now!

The point I was trying to get across is that if one wears a tweed jacket and lovat mixture hose of a similar color, then it hardly matters what tartan the kilt is in, because the whole outfit will tie in together. But I agree with you, there are often other more interesting color combinations available to one with an eye for it.

[Shedlock2000]

I've just spoken to a few members about a very similar dilemma, I'll tell you what they said to me (paraphrased):

Sometimes [we] over match: get what you like, wear what you have; and enjoy.

I love Lovat blue, but I think that most jackets seem to go with most kilts.

I was bugging someone recently for a photo of a brown jacket with the Blackwatch tartan, as I shared your concerns - boom...... And there it is in the thread - front and centre!

[OC Richard]

Here's a great example of NOT matching bonnet, jacket, and hose, from the 1936 Anderson catalogue. I really like the way that everything co-ordinates instead of matching



Now back in the 1980s I was working at a Highland Dress shop and I went all matchy-matchy! I got the bonnet first, then went through all the tweed sample-books to find the most-matching tweed, and had the jacket custom made. I also searched high and low for the most-matching hose I could find. Oh dear me! The unmatching look above is so much better, I now realize

[creagdhubh]

What David said. It's not really a desirable thing to have the jacket "match" but rather co-ordinate, or contrast. If the jacket matches the kilt then the two things become one big blob, visually.

One "t" by the way, Lovat.

Lovat Blue and Lovat Green are so popular because they're fairly neutral and they look good with just about any kilt.

Here are some examples

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[creagdhubh]

I agree it would look fine. But while I used to think it was great to coordinate the hose colour with the jacket, I strongly avoid this now!

Me too!

Me several years ago...what was I thinking?! Hahahaha!

Charcoal jacket and charcoal hose.


Lovat blue jacket and lovat blue hose.

[OC Richard]

Ah many of us have travelled down the matchy-matchy path...

My thing was, I was thinking in terms of Highland military uniforms, or rather in terms of my misunderstanding at the time of Highland military uniforms.

Because there's very little matching there! For example the Highland regiments wear, in No1 Dress, Archer Green doublets, but nothing else in the uniform is Archer Green. The Glengarries are dark blue.



In No2 Dress the jacket is "dark khaki" (what we in the USA call "olive drab") but the hose worn are Lovat Green and don't match the jacket at all. Once again a dark blue Glengarry is worn.



This is as matchy as I get nowadays... though I usually wear claret hose with this jacket & kilt



Back to the Lovat Blue thing, is it just me or do I see a dozen or more Lovat Green jackets for every Lovat Blue one? Lovat Blue is a lovely colour that isn't worn as much as it should be.