If You Could Have Just One Pair Of Hose

[GrainReaper]

If you could have just one pair of hose, what style would they be? What colour?

This popped into my head the other day, I'm helping a friend get kitted out in his first foray into the kilted world, his budget is tight so I'm helping him where I can, I located him a pre-enjoyed kilt for a song.

I told him many of his shirts will work as nicely with a kilt as with slacks, he picked up a belt with a nice buckle that looks like it should look at home dressed up or down.

He asked about hose and I was stumped...... I started out with bottle green hose that seemed to go nicely with my kilt, and then with my second kilt, but it all changed when I recieved a few pair of hose for my birthday, I now have a good number of hose in many colors, and I'm in the process of stepping up from those lower priced ones into the nicer Lewis hose in similar colours.

So if you could have just one multitasking pair what would it be? I'm thinking some nice chessboard hose or Argyll hose, but what about for a newcomer who might be a ways out before becoming a "hose hoarder" as it were.

[Father Bill]

"To go with my tartans" is the key here. I'd pick a figured-knit in a mid to darker green... but that's for my kilts in my tartans.

[S Mitchell]

If I could only have one pair, I'd probably go with claret or deep burgundy. My kilt is green/blue based.

[Tomo]

On a budget I would go with a plain colour, probably black as it's easy to dress up or down, or dark green to tone with my first (and still favourite kilt).

However, I recently got a pair of chessboard topped hose _MLC1454 (678x1024).jpg

These will most likely be my default pair now - unless I am wearing one of my other kilts, but I am now thinking of ordering another couple of pairs to go with them as well. Perhaps one with a shepherd's check instead of chessboard.

[Father Bill]

I like those, Tomo. Where did you get them? My hose wardrobe is probably over-full, but I'll bet there are a lot of fellows who'd like to follow your lead.

[Tomo]

Hi Father Bill. I got them from Anne Stewart http://www.annestewartknitwear.com (she calls them textured diced hose). She is very friendly and easy to deal with (did everything by email). Cost is about £32/US$52 - so she must ship to US (and maybe elsewhere).

[IsaacW]

I would have to say, and in this order: Lovat Green, Claret, or Dark green. I wear green and blue based tartan.

[Liam]

My kilts have quite a range of colours, so I'd likely pick grey or possibly black. Fortunately I don't need to restrict myself to just one.

[John_Carrick]

Black is pretty infallible. Lovat blue or green would be my favourite

[Jock Scot]

I have found, over many decades, that the best compromise here are dark (bottle) green hose. In the darker evening formal conditions they are dark enough to add a certain mystery to the actual colour and in informal day wear conditions they are colourful enough not to look too drab. Like all compromises the solution is rarely perfect, but dark green hose are getting close for kilt wear.