Show off those Tartan Hose!

[Kilted Craanen]

Hello all,

I was browsing the Google for tartan hose, but I didn't get any results I was pleased with. I know that McMurdo has a pair, so McMurdo, can ye post a couple of pictures of those?

Others with tartan hose, please post a few too! I'm looking for lots of different tartan hose, so everything is welcome! (please post a few of the calf too!!)

Thanks in advance!

Daniel Craanen

[McMurdo]

Here are the photos I have of my Maple Leaf Tartan Hose, I also have red and white diced hose.

Maple Leaf





Here are my hose for the Isle of Skye




the back

[Kilted Craanen]

Thank you for the pictures McMurdo, much appreciated. Is anyone able to post one showing the back of tartan hose?

Greetings,

Daniel

[DWFII]

My wife knitted these up for me over Christmas...





They are Merino Superwash fingering yarn--a mix of 90% (?) merino wool and 10% nylon for strength and durability. She had to dye the red for the rakers.

[Phil]

My wife knitted these up for me over Christmas...

That is a really impressive job of knitting - I hope she got a good Christmas present!

Here are mine (which I had to buy). They have a seam up the back and I know Panache lusts after them - the hose that is.

[svc40bt]

Thought I would throw this photo in as it shows the heel seam (running right below the yellow line).

[Malcolm MacWilliam]

I make a lot of 18th century hose, no elasticity, so it's bag hose. Actually it fits well with a good pattern. Take a good piece of wool tartan that you like (when we do Jacobite we do not match the hose to the kilt, since in Morier's famous painting of Jacobites at Culloden, there are 20 some tartans pictured among approx. 12 soldiers), the pattern is made from taking about 4 measurements on the leg and ankle, I have a paper pattern I use all the time, cut it out on the bias and sew it up the back. Attach the foot part, if you like, but doesn't have to be....just wear a pair of socks under. Works well and lots of choices for tartans. Our diced hose for 42nd and 77th regiments are made the same way. Hose ties or leather garters must be used to keep them up.

Malcolm

[DWFII]

That is a really impressive job of knitting - I hope she got a good Christmas present!

Thanks. I made her a distaff for her spinning wheel so that she could spin flax into linen and straw into gold.

I looked really hard at tartan hose in the lead up to asking her to make these. All I have are this pair, so this is partly speculation, but from what I've been able to determine...from photos, inquiries and talking to several experienced knitters...if they are done correctly the increase in size from the ankle to the calf is done by switching to a larger needle. You can't really make the diamonds bigger (more stitches) without distorting the whole pattern. And then what you end up with is the diamonds not coming together exactly right at the seam. Or orphaned portions of extra diamonds, and again not converging at the seam.

Intuitively, it would seem to be almost impossible to keep the pattern symmetrical with customers who have large calves, but it may be that the yarn is larger either to begin with or switched to in the knitting process. My wife used a very soft (it's so nice on the skin--softer than any other hose I have) merino fingering yarn throughout, so the yarn itself was of fairly small diameter. To tell the truth, I don't think she could have made the calves any larger, but I'm not a knitter. I just offer this commentary for anyone who is thinking about doing (or having some else do) a pair.

BTW, from everything I have been told...and heard during the long anticipatory lead-up to Christmas...this is advanced knitting and not a "gimme" even for the "experienced."

PS...those are beautiful, Mark. What does your calf measure?

[Malcolm MacWilliam]

Some great legs (with tartan bag hose!). Malcolm

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Check out more Jacobites!

http://jacobite1745.homestead.com/Culloden2004One.html

[Mark Keeney]

PS...those are beautiful, Mark. What does your calf measure?

Thank you. My calf measures 19".