Quote Originally Posted by Planopiper
Diced hose are mostly red and white or red and black. They aren't intended to match a tartan. Those are not so difficult to find. I'm guessing you mean tartan hose, which have a sort of argyle pattern that uses some of the colors from the tartan of the kilt. It can be pretty hard to find tartan hose to match any particular kilt because there are so many tartans and not that much demand for tartan hose. They're a specialty item and not easy to make. That's why they're so expensive. Having said that, here's a link to a well-respected vendor who can have them made for a pretty reasonable price: http://www.jhiggins.net/catalog/hose_argyle.html .

Another, easier and quicker option would be to wear solid colored hose in a color that compliments the kilt. Add flashes of a contrasting color and you'll have a good look.
After my experience with J. Higgins's custom tartan hose, I would not recommend them to anyone -- several years ago I ordered a pair of their tartan hose ito match a Gunn (modern colours) kilt -- after about a year of wear to a Burns Supper, a Kirkin', my wedding and one other formal event, the hose started to fray (little red strings popping out all over the place), and a hole started to develop in the left big toe -- and I did follow their "care & feeding" instructions to the letter.

In my last couple of dealings with Higgins, I have noticed that their customer service and quality levels have dropped a bit since I first started doing business with them in the early 90's -- and others I know are reporting the same thing.

My tartan hose are from the Tartan Thistle in Washington state. They are wool, so yes, I did pay a pretty penny for them, but they are worth every penny I paid for the peace of mind of well-crafted hose:

http://www.tartanthistle.com/Argyll_...tan_socks.html

There is also Cullin Craft in California that does diced and tartan hose, but they are VERY, very expensive!

Cheers,

Todd