I think I am correct in saying that the author also produces knitting kits for dancers hose, and I presume that this book is based on the same instructions that come in those kits. As an owner of one of those kits I am not sure I would recommend this book for someone trying to make hose for adult men; as a few posts have hinted shaping for an adult male's calf is not easy – this is less of an issue for children/women who the book is probably aimed at.

The real difficulty with knitting argyll hose is yarn; this has to be dyed to suit the tartan and marled yarn must be spun. Double thread can be attempted but again the colour match will be difficult, and very light weight yarn will have to be used to give the required stitch count, which will limit options.

It is certainly not unknown for commercial hose to have visible seams at the rear, and not just budget offerings. To maintain a perfect pattern the tension and needle size have to be altered, although this of course has limits and certain leg shapes probably can't be catered for without visible decreases.

As to the price of argyll hose, well these can be obtained fully bespoke for around 150 dollars. The amount of work that goes into these means that's a pretty fair price in my opinion. It really depends if you consider the value of you own time in comparison – the book, plus yarn, plus 10 or 20 or 100 hours to knit...