Where to get good silk stockings?

[kaliope]

I love silk stockings, especially white. Where's a good place to buy them? I regularly get pedicures but I get runs, Any advice or suggestions? Help!

[sterling12]

Hi Kaliope:

Where to buy SILK stockings,hmmm? I'll assume your talking about true silk and not the old fashioned nylon stockings. However, either way I'd start on Ebay just type the word silk stockings or seamed stockings into the search window. I begin to believe that anything ever made will eventually come up for auction on Ebay. Probably, at least once a week!

How to avoid runs? Ok, here's an easy cheap solution. Most runs start when you put the stockings on. You nick them with your nails or rough hands when you "shimmy" them up your legs. The small pulls and little holes you create will later on start to run. So, go down to The Walmart and go to the garden department. Unless you have really big hands, get an 89cent pair of thin ladies gardening gloves. They're made of cotton and they are lighweight enough that you can feel "what's going on", under your fingers. Put the gloves on BEFORE you even start to gather your stockings into a donut in preparation for putting them on. Continue to wear the gloves all the way through the process of putting the stockings on your legs and attaching the garters. Like I said, the gloves are thin enough that you should have little or no trouble attaching the garters unless you have the garters too tight. You can get nylon gloves and get fancy with this but I'm giving you the simplest solution. Think you'll find the stockings last a lot longer.

Other things you can do to cut down on runs. 1.) Wash your stockings regularly in a product like woolite. Hand wash them and let them dry over the tub, on a rack. There was a reason our mother's did this with their stockings. They knew that regular gentle hand washing helps to increase the life of the hose. 2.) Don't get your garters too tight! Old fashioned stockings don't have much give in them and they were always intended to be attached with "just a Bit of pull" on the garters. If you keep them "drum-tight", the first time you touch most anything, you'll get a run. In fact, if really tight, you can tear your stockings, just with the shear force of the pull. Personally I think a little bit of wrinkling and bunching looks kind of sexy and I remember that when I was a kid, women were constantly stopping and adjusting their seams and giving a little pull to their hose. They knew what they were doing, it looks sexy and they accepted a little looseness to cut down on the runs. 3.) Avoid the male habit of crossing your ankles. There are a lot of sharp buckles and pointy things on the backs of women's shoes. You cross your ankles...you often make small pulls in your stockings. 4.) Oh, I almost forgot, get the right size for your leg. You'll have to experiment here. There are no standards on length. A size 10 can be 31" in one brand and 33" in another. The older stockings are flat knitted and they DON'T stretch. Learn your size in inches, measured from the top of the welt to the heel. Many of the sellers on Ebay know this and they will give you a size and an inch measurement. If your stockings are too short, too much stress... which equals runs. Too long, too much "bagging" and your likely to tear them on objects more often.

I'm sure that others can add more to my comments. Great care is the watchword! Avoid pets, avoid sharp protrusions. Old fashioned hose are getting to be expensive. If you "ladder' your nylons, you'll be crying and that looks bad! It ruins your makeup and now you've got a two-fold problem!

Take heart, for those of us who love hose, no price is too dear. Have fun wearing your stockings and remember dear...."it's the feel that counts"!

Love, Joanie

[kaliope]

Thanks, you're a doll. Great advice

[Carlacd]

Try www.stockingstore.com. Have bought a lot of stockings from them, from thigh highs , to FF's. Nice selection.

[Julie York]

(Good advice Sterling.):thumbsup:

A lot of runs in stockings are caused by toenails snagging. A way to overcome this is to go to your local garden centre and buy a pair of wellingtons. If you wear them and THEN put your stockings on you will find that your toenails no longer snag the nylon.:D


On a serious note (yeah right!) the comment about not crossing your ankles is very important. I have a pair of shoes with a little diamante dangly bit on the buckle. I crossed my legs without thinking and the dangly bit got firmly attached to the stocking on the other leg. I then stood up and nearly brained myself on the desk when I found my legs 'locked' together and flew across the room like someone in a pencil skirt trying to tap dance.

:D

[Lisa Marie]

Try Victorias Secret pantyhose. Their soft and feel excellent!

[Madilyn]

Try StockinGirl.com http://www.stockingirl.com/ I've been an avid customer and have never been disappointed. Their "A Short History Of Stockings" page http://www.stockingirl.com/stockings.html is very informative. Great tips Sterling...

Merry Christmas,

Maddy :angel: