Up or Down

[Sir Didymous]

If you can find long cotton socks they seem to bridge the gap between totally casual and kilt hose.

I found some in mild colours, cream, grey, tan, and bought quite a few pairs which have been useful ever since. They are as long as kilt hose would be when folded over, but don't fold over.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

I have a couple pairs of thin kilt socks that I bought without checking the length. I'm apparently longer in in the calf than some. But those might work, that's if not mistaken for bobby socks.

[Alan H]

Personally....and this is just me, but personally....

I hate the sandals and kilt look. I totally get why it's comfortable, I just don't like the look and I'd never wear it to work. But that's just me.

When I wear a kilt to work, I almost always pair it with some sort of long sock squashed down over boots. However, when I hike in a kilt, I wear ankle-high hiking socks with hiking boots.....like this:



Now, the no-sleeve t-shirt is inappropriate for my job, but since the point here is the socks/boots question, there ya go. I'd wear that to work with a more appropriate shirt....in fact HAVE worn that to work with a more appropriate shirt.

[Thekiltedmohawk]

I wear my hoses up no matter what with the boots, and sneakers for any activities. I don't like the feeling and looking of scrunched.

[FinnKilt]

Depends on the time of year and style of the occasion.
In summer, scrunched, in boots or shoes, or (as right now) sockless in sandals.
In winter, kneehigh and boots.
(I wish I could find more affordably-priced kneesocks/ kilthose that would *stay up* even after being worn and washed a couple of times!)

[Riverkilt]

You can have any two of price, quality, or service.

Change your focus from price to VALUE and you can own quality hose that will cost you more up front but save you having to replace them later....and they'll stay up.

[FinnKilt]

At present, since one of the things I love to do bekilted is hiking (I just a week or so ago got back from a 240-km (ca 150-mile) pilgrimage hike in Sweden and Finland), I do have excellent hiking kneesocks fom Bridgedale – warm in winter, comfortable in summer, stay in place – but are all in a forest green – a good general colour, but variety would be welcome and sadly, do gradually get rather shabby. The wool pills, and snags very easily on undergrowth :-(

But thanks, Riverkilt, for the word of wisdom about any 2/3, but not all three, of price, quality, or service.

[Kylahullu]

For me; function before fashion.
If I do not need the warmth of the up pulled hose I use either non-kilt-socks or no socks at all.
If I think the weather will later need it, but at the moment it is too warm, I crunch them down to be later pulled up if needed.
Normally I wear then pulled up with at least garters, mostly also with flashes.

[Superdan]

the athletic shoe part is what throws me off, not that it's wrong or anything, i just don't even know what I would do. I always wear my steel-toe work boots and scrunch my hose down, I kinda like the chunky look on top of my boots. but I think it would look strange on top of anything less rugged than a sturdy hiking boot. something thin would work best, either calf height if you want that look or ankle height like Alan's photo.

[Daneel]

i'm a scrunched man, except when wearing the kilt in a formal situation. Kilt wearing is not about a uniform but being comfortable and sensitive to the circumstances your are in.

[Geoff Withnell]

If you can find long cotton socks they seem to bridge the gap between totally casual and kilt hose.

I found some in mild colours, cream, grey, tan, and bought quite a few pairs which have been useful ever since. They are as long as kilt hose would be when folded over, but don't fold over.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

Jas Townsend has some very nice ones here: http://jas-townsend.com/cotton-stockings-p-238.html

I have worn them in the worst of Washington summer, and been reasonably comfortable. They are one size fits all, usually a lie, but I have long, large calves, and the work fine.