Sign Up

Share outfits, chat about style and get advice from a friendly community.

OR



home
STYLE
blog
STYLE
forum
STYLE
store
STYLE
← Autumn Mom on the Go: flop proof outfit #2
Save in style: weekend bargain roundup →

A casual twist on textured hose

October 23rd, 2009 by Angie

I’m a huge fan of micro fishnets, but I’m also into other types of patterns on black textured hose. Lace, checks, swirls, chevrons, polka dots, florals, stripes and diamond designs are among my favourites at the moment. Textured hose is versatile because you can dress it both up and down.

I know what you’re thinking – hose is dressy. The same way you might think that dresses are generally dressy. But these perceptions are not entirely true because dresses worn with hose can look relaxed if you add casual elements into the mix. The picture below shows gals in dressy ensembles matched with black textured hose and heeled pumps. The hose smartens up the outfits for sure. But wear the hose with a pair of flat, casual boots and a casual dress or skirt and you’ve dressed down the look.

For example, try one of my favorite looks for Autumn: a no-nonsense day dress with Frye boots and sheer black checked hose. This pairing is unexpected and more visually interesting than falling back on plain old black opaques.

Fashion unites us, but style sets us apart. It’s HOW you wear the item that makes the difference. Anyone can purchase black textured hose and wear it with pumps and a dressy frock, because that’s the combination that makes traditional sense. But wearing fashion items in unconventional ways can often be a lot more fun. This also helps you get the most out of a small wardrobe, which is a real cost saver. An all-round win.

spacer spacer spacer spacer

Wearing black boots with black textured hose is flop proof because it gives you a long leg line. Mismatching the colour of the hose and the boots can be done, but you might find it harder to achieve the long lean line.

Related posts:

  1. Sheer hose, sheer pleasure
  2. Business casual beyond pants: skirts and dresses
  3. Should your hose match your shoes?
  4. Fab Find: Sloane Fit Black Textured Flare
  5. Office appropriate: bare legs or hose?

Posted in Accessories, Casual Wear

Comment RSS
Share this post on Twitter
Tweet

24 Comments on...
A casual twist on textured hose

Sally McGraw
(website)
spacer
Active Member
view forum posts

So true – trying unexpected combinations is what pushes our personal style boundaries. I love the idea of textured hose with chunky boots – will have to add this to my list of outfit ideas.

October 23, 2009 at 7:18 am
RoseandJoan
spacer
Veteran
view forum posts

I LOVE this look and will cry when these items become hard to find again. I should definitely start stocking up (no pun intended)

October 23, 2009 at 7:45 am
Ele
(website)
spacer
Active Member
view forum posts

I’ve never been able to get on board with textured hose at all, unfortunately. I’ve tried them on and off over the years but in general prefer matte, uniform hose and tights. I tend to be shy about my legs (which are ridiculously muscular) and I feel like all that pattern is yelling “look at my legs!”. I could maybe try it with boots, though- only a few inches of pattern to scream with spacer

Love those boots, though!

October 23, 2009 at 8:07 am
Lovelee_79

I love, love, love textured hose this year. I’ve been stocking up on different variations of black and have even ventured into other colors like deep purple and dove gray.

I think they really help bring a different look to regularly worn outfits (which happens a lot during long winter seasons in the Northeast). And I feel they can even add pop to a basic outfit. Earlier this week I donned a black turtleneck, a black pencil skirt, black round toe patent pumps and the purple textured hose (with silver accessories) and I got so many compliments that day.

Though blacks and grays take up plenty of space in my closet, I hate these drab seasons where that’s all you seem to wear. Textured hose in blacks and other colors help break the monotony of the “cold weather blues.”

October 23, 2009 at 8:34 am
Cricket

I love those boots, and have been wanting a flat pair since last winter. I’d to find great boots in my price range, though Fryes are my standard.

I just bought a pair of patterned hose and haven’t worn them yet, but I like this idea of juxtaposing the formal with informal. I would have worn them in a dressy way with my heeled boots because patterned hose with pumps is a little too formal for me.

October 23, 2009 at 8:34 am
Kristen
(website)
spacer
Veteran
view forum posts

I’ve been mixing up patterned tights a lot this fall, and have been looking for some good patterned hose. I prefer the tights because the pattern doesn’t show from afar, which is useful in my conservative work environment. I will look for some patterned ones tonight; I could use some new black hose!

October 23, 2009 at 9:09 am
AmyM
spacer
Active Member
view forum posts

I am so in love with those boots! I must have them. I’m not in love with the textured hose, though. I’ve tried a couple different styles and even followed your suggestions to buy the next size up in order to avoid pattern stretch, but I just think they make my calves look bigger. Granted, the textures do work better when I wear boots so my calves are nearly covered anyway!

I have issues enough finding boots that fit. My calves are often too big for regular sizes, but wide shafts are too large for me. So I try to keep the hosiery stress-free by going with regular black tights or micro fishnets.

October 23, 2009 at 9:11 am
Laurel
(website)

You wore the casual look you’re writing about yesterday and is was super cute. I wish you had a picture of your outfit up so others could be inspired and get a feel for how well it worked.

October 23, 2009 at 9:14 am
Patience

I love it! I’ve also been wondering if chevron hose was acceptable. Thanks for the excuse to get some new patterned tights. (Brain mulling…)

October 23, 2009 at 9:52 am
PalmFronds

I am really picky about patterned tights/hose.As opaques they can look REALLy heavy on the leg.As sheers, the wrong pattern can look a bit tarty, at least to my eye.I love the dots in the hose you pictured, those are lovely.I’ll have to find some of those to keep my baby fishnets company spacer I don’t tolerate the cold very well so I tend to wear hosiery with casual looks as well as dressier ones.
Thanks for the encouragement Angie!

October 23, 2009 at 10:09 am
Mac

I love this look and, back when my calves were slim enough to wear long boots, I sported it often. One issue I struck upon, often, was that the boots would rub and cause “wear” marks on the tights which then meant I couldn’t wear them with shoes. So, I learned to wear these tights W

October 23, 2009 at 10:31 am
Mac

(sorry… for some reason my post got truncated!)

… wear these tights WITH A PAIR OF KNEE SOCKS OVER THEM, under the boots. This way, the tights wouldn’t get wear marks from the boots, and my legs/ feet were extra-comfy from the additional padding that the socks provided.

This solution mightn’t work for some of you, but it helped me extend the life of my tights AND kept my legs and feet extra warm and comfy.

October 23, 2009 at 10:33 am
Antje
spacer
Veteran
view forum posts

Great post, I do this, too. I love textured hose with dresses and skirts, but I always go for a style that’s more funky than dressy, and in fact prefer boots for that reason. I like Mac’s tip about wearing socks over tights to protect them within the boots.

October 23, 2009 at 10:57 am
Maya
spacer
Veteran
view forum posts

I don’t really wear hose for a variety of reasons. I often browse through various hosiery departments and picking up styles I like, but ultimately I always end up putting them back because I know they’ll just end up as orphans. It’s really too bad. I like hose, especially when worn as described here, but it is just not for me right now.

October 23, 2009 at 11:25 am
san

Yes I am totaly on board with this. I just last year bought my first pair of nice flat boots after wearing construction boots for 20 yrs. Now I am ready for the patterned hose. Thankyou so much for this post. I can’t wait to go look for hose. Also the tip of how much more difficult it might be to make it wirk with other than black boots is a good one so we aren’t wracking our brains wondering why it isn’t working.

October 23, 2009 at 11:33 am
mamark

I love this look and it’s one I wear. I find that the tops of my boots create wear lines in the tights, so once I wear a particular pair of tights with boots, they are only worn with boots thereafter.

October 23, 2009 at 2:02 pm
All Women Stalker
(website)

Thanks for the tip. I’ve been wondering if I should buy those, actually, since I was thinking that I’d be able to wear them only with pumps.

-meream

October 23, 2009 at 2:55 pm
FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com
(website)

I have to whip out my collection of hose and start wearing them..

Because this is definitely giving me some major inspiration!

October 23, 2009 at 5:03 pm
Meredith

I haven’t been brave enough to buy myself any textured hose yet, but perhaps I will try!

I saw some tights at Anthropologie the other day that looked like they might be made of sweater-like material. Of course, the hippie in me was immediately drawn to them, but I couldn’t help wondering if they were completely wrong. What do you think about tights that evoke the look of a sweater?

gipoco.com is neither affiliated with the authors of this page nor responsible for its contents. This is a safe-cache copy of the original web site.