Turning down the Hose?

[lukeyrobertson]

Ok, how do you guys put on your hose? Simple question I know, and I seemed unable to find a previous thread on the matter. When I put on my hose, I pull them all the way up past the knee and then turn them down over the garter flash and then back up again. I position the garter about the top of my calve muscle. Am I right so far? How does this work for patterned cuffs? It all looks simple, but being relatively new to the practice, I'm not so sure. Most hose seem rather long on me (relatively short-statured guy that I am). Thanks for your help, guys.

[ohiopiper]

That's what i do. Pull 'em up all the way, put the garter flash where i want it and turn the hose down. Same way you seem to be describing.

[Bugbear]

It might also depend on the style of hose. I think some turn down, then turn back up, as yours do, but my Lewis hose only turn down once.

[MacMillan's son]

Well, when the cuff fold over is too long for me I usually fold it under at the bottom, not up, to the length that I like. That way I get the leg/knee reveal that I want and don't have the cuff edge showing from the top. I will try it your way next time and see how it looks!

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Most cuffs are designed to be turned down only once, so doing it as you describe will result in the "wrong" side of the cuff being shown.

If you have shorter legs and find that your hose are too long, you can try "hiding" a small fold in the sock itself underneath the cuff, which will be turned down only once.

[Father Bill]

My hose have the long cuff, Lukey, but I choose to fold them down halfway, and then double it down. This particular knit looks better that way. Experiment a bit and decide which you like. It may vary from one pair to another.

[Tobus]

Being short-statured myself, I have the same problem. What I do depends on the hose. Some will look OK being folded over like you describe (wrong-side out). Others won't.

I always pull them up over my knee and tie my garters first (usually before putting on my kilt... it just seems easier that way). Depending on the hose, I'll do one of these:

1. Fold the top all the way down to the height I want, then reverse the end back up over it so it's wrong-side out, if the pattern allows. I'll usually tuck the end back into the top of the fold so it hides the edge.

2. Do a double-fold underneath so the extra material is hidden, and all you see from the outside is one fold, and no edge.

Sometimes the cuff pattern doesn't start until well above where I want to fold it. So if I fold it over, you see the reverse side of the ribbing, which looks terrible. If this is the case, I have to do a double-fold before putting on my garter ties to take up some material, which is a real pain.

I REALLY wish the hose manufacturers wouldn't make them so darn long. When you order a pair of hose in size small, there should be more attention paid than just shortening the foot. A person who wears a small size is usually going to be shorter as well, so they need to shorten the length significantly. I'd say most hose I've bought are usually a good 3" to 4" too long.

Granted, people with larger calves may not have this problem because the hose will shorten as they stretch around the larger diameter. But I'm cursed with not only small feet and short stature, but skinny legs too. So even a small is too big.

This is why I tend to prefer custom-knit hose where I can specify not only the foot size but the calf diameter and total height as well. We non-average people apparently have to pay extra to get a decent fit.

[beloitpiper]

Granted, I'm fairly tall, but I generally keep the top of my hose only about the middle of my calf and turn the hose down only once. Women love it when you show off more leg....

[lukeyrobertson]

Great suggestions, dear friends. Thank you!