Matching tartan flashes?

[Laurence]

LOL! omg! You mean flashes are not official? I'm crushed! It's all new to me, thanks for the insight!

[AFS1970]

I have had two sets of tartan flashes, I still have one. I have found that they do not hold up very well. Worse in both cases than the kilt itself made from the same material. I rarely wear them. I am not a fan of these flashes for the reason that they just don't seem to last.

I have one set of solid black flashes that are I guess sort of a hybrid in terms of how they are made. They are a woven ribbon, but too wide for traditional flashes. The sides are folded over and either sewn or ironed onto a stiffer piece of backing. These are really durable but far less flexible than all my others.

I have a few others that are made out of ribbon, that appears to be nylon grosgrain, they hold up well but have a tendency to curl up if not stored carefully.

[Tenmiles]

For somebody interested in the origins and traditions of things, like me, it's not only a matter of tartan flashes looking untraditional, it's the idea of making flashes out of woven yardage, then cutting them to size and hemming and stitching them.

For flashes have always been made, even up to today, of special cloth tape woven for the purpose to the correct width.

Traditionally this cloth tape is woven with a zigzag/herringbone pattern, of worsted wool. The tape is usually plain but is sometimes striped.

Here are modern flashes made of the traditional stuff; note that it is not hemmed but specially woven for this purpose to the correct width



Originally you would wrap a length of that tape round your leg and tie a knot

And I quite like the look and texture of these tapes, in keeping with the purposeful look of the original method. I shall keep my eye out for flashes of this manner; there's something much more appealing about these.

[Dileasgubas]

A roll of white cotton grosgrain ribbon, a pack of fabric dye, some elastic tape and some velcro (and possibly the services of a seamstress at the local dry cleaners). Comes out to a few dollars a pair and indistinguishable from what is sold in shops. Haven't been able to find any tartan dye so solid colours only.

[Sir Didymous]

I generally like matching tartan flashes. As I see it, they can be used just like solid color flashes for the most part. That is provided they match the kilt. The exceptions for me at least, are: When wearing a great kilt- I have a pair that matches my blue/black great kilt, but with so much tartan from the kilt itself, they just look like overkill. When wearing diced hose- I have tried my Clergy tartan flashes and my Scottish National flashes (both with the matching kilts) with my diced hose, and have not been impressed with the look. My personal rule is to only use solid flashes or garter ties when wearing diced hose.

It is therefore my humble opinion that one could pull tartan flashes off with black tie if they are wearing solid colored hose.