Argyll Hose with Day Wear

**ShaunMaxwell** · 14th April 15, 01:08 PM

Though I understand that argyle hose are typically reserved for more formal occasions, I once wore them with daywear and wasn't struck by lightening. Mine were pretty subdued in color, and I thought it worked well enough. That said, I haven't done it since... Nor for that matter have I had the opportunity to wear them again, as I have no formal events that I attend. Too bad... I like them.

**IsaacW** · 14th April 15, 01:28 PM

Originally Posted by Jock Scot

and is rarely seen worn thus, by the locals, these days here. So I suppose, they are really considered to be in the historical catigory, but if you want to wear them, then its hardly a hanging offence.

Not trying to be cheeky, but I know that you have commented that bonnets are rarely worn by folks locally these days as well. Would you consider them in the same category of more historical too?

**Jock Scot** · 14th April 15, 02:00 PM

Originally Posted by IsaacW

Not trying to be cheeky, but I know that you have commented that bonnets are rarely worn by folks locally these days as well. Would you consider them in the same category of more historical too?

Good question! I suppose they must be heading towards the historical category, although in Scotland, I don't think that they have arrived there just yet. Take today for instance, it has been raining hard all day---it still is---- and when I popped to the shops for a paper and a few essentials i must have seen four or five balmorals being worn, so they are still lurking on the hat rack so to speak. The balmoral is not just reserved for the kilt though, I am not sure it ever has here and is regarded as nothing notable by the locals.

**davidlpope** · 14th April 15, 02:16 PM

I reserve my Argyll hose for formal evening wear. I can't imagine the circumstance where I would wear them for regular day events, as I don't have a BBSB.

It's either tweed and regular hose or regulation doublet and Argyll hose in my closet.

**IsaacW** · 14th April 15, 03:28 PM

So I have been thinking on this even more (if that is possible), and I think that the traditional vs. historical issue here is perhaps clouded by our perception of argyle use historically. Tartan hose were, of course, common when they were cut cloth; but by the dawn of knit hose, dramatically decreased.
I would assume that due to the difficulty and cost of argyles vs. plain hose, they were uncommon even in the 19th century. Photos certainly show that argyle hose were present and worn (even with daywear), but when quantified, seem to be far outnumbered to plain hose. MacLeay's watercolours certainly show a lot of argyles, but these are exceptional cases (as has been discussed here previously) AND there are still A LOT of plain hose shown by MacLeay. I think the numbers of argyles shown in images (even though slight to start with) are probably greater than were seen by the common population of the time. This could be due to the status of the common sitter of portraits/photographs as well as a bias to romanticize Highland dress.
I would argue that historically there were slightly more chaps wearing argyles for both daywear and formalwear than today, but they were still few and far between in comparison to those wearing plain hose. Although the use of argyle hose perhaps dropped off some, especially in daywear, there are still some folks that do it on both sides of the Atlantic. They are a small few, as perhaps has always been. I am starting to wonder if there isn't a so much a drop of of the use and fashion of argyle hose as much as a perceived difference due to a misconstrued understanding of their use in the past.