Even in the Hebrides

[Orionson]

A very interesting thread, indeed. My daughter married last weekend in Edinburgh and the these are photos I will always be very proud of.

Not because of my attire, but the beauty, poise and serenity of the Bride.

The next day, on our way home to Skye, we dropped off a dear friend from Raasay at her Aunties in Ardersier, Inverness. The dear Aunt is 92 and a Gaelic speaker from Skye. Gaelic was and remains her first language. We had never met before. I was wearing the same kilt with a dark brown horsehair leather sporran and heavy heather brown hand knit hose from Lewis. The first thing the dear lady commented on (in English) was that my kilt was "perfect - not too short, not too long - chust the right amount of knee. Chust right." I was pleased, but without skipping a beat she added "pity about the dark hose. Should be white."

Make of this what you will.

Cheers,
John

[ThistleDown]

I have a few pair of hose knit in the fifties and sixties by a friend of my mother in Strathglas. She referred to them as 'greasielamb'. They are still full of lanolin, soft as a lamb after all these years and although originally undyed are turning a bit yellowish in their age. I wouldn't wear them on this forum, but I do when nobody from XMarks is looking

[CMcG]

I have a few pair of hose knit in the fifties and sixties by a friend of my mother in Strathglas. She referred to them as 'greasielamb'. They are still full of lanolin, soft as a lamb after all these years and although originally undyed are turning a bit yellowish in their age. I wouldn't wear them on this forum, but I do when nobody from XMarks is looking

Those sound like lovely hose! That's a perfect example of where the categorical injunction against anything resembling white socks shouldn't be taken too far and we should be able to parse the options.

I think there is a real difference between what you've describe (or the hand knit ones I posted earlier) and the typically thin, crappy, rental/bargain examples. That difference is not only in thickness or quality of wool. The nice ones are a natural cream/ecru colour vs. the nasty ones that tend towards either bleached or dingy white.

Not that I actually own any such hose... I guess I'm just playing the Devil's advocate

[xman]

Xman.

So really with your coloured hose you are, perhaps, more THCD than you thought you were! Interestingly, in my youth there were no white hose, no argyll hose and no diced hose worn with the black tie in this area of the highlands, just plain lovat green or lovat blue knitted with finer wool than day-wear hose. I am not sure if the shortages after WW2 may have had an influence there, but I think not. The "fancy coloured hose with patterns" only put in an appearance for white tie events.

My first assumptions as to what you saw in your youth would have been, local preference, and WWII influence. Lots of military culture tends to influence civilian culture at least somewhat.

You could be right about the coloured hose habit being quite traditional, but I suppose my habit of running barefoot or sandalled while kilted would more fit an historic context. ;)

[Jock Scot]

Xman.

Barefoot would indeed be historical, although it could also be "one of those good ideas at the time" things too---------- and that is very traditional!