Fads & Finds
Designer listens to complaints, puts the positives in pantyhose
By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer
It's no secret that women have a love-hate relationship with pantyhose: We love the smooth look but hate the heat, the constriction, the getting in and out of the things.
Now a young designer, Sara Blakely, has come up with an innovative take on pantyhose that eliminates some of the negatives while emphasizing the positives. They're called Spanx and they're footless with a control top.
Blakely was hearing women talk about cutting the feet off their pantyhose and using rubber bands to keep the ends up above their skirts or capri pants (including Oprah, who flashed hers during a show recently). They wanted the smooth look of pantyhose while wearing mules or slingbacks or strappy sandals and, as we all know, pantyhose are a fashion no-no with those shoe styles.
"Women love what control top hose does for their figure in clothes but always want to wear open-toed shoes," Blakely said.
Spanx spans the huge gap between the thong and the body shaper. I was hearing enthusiastic reports about Spanx from friends, so I decided to give them a trial run. This is what I found:
- They're easy to pull on because they're footless; no tugging required.
- Spanx created one smooth, seamless line, especially nice in the back view.
- The control portion stopped lower on the thigh than other pantyhose, which can have a nasty way of emphasizing saddle bags.
- They reduced the "jiggle factor" under capris, dresses and skirts.
- The leg bands are knitted into the hose so they lie flat and don't bulge out; they can be positioned anywhere on the calf, depending on the length of the dress or pant.
- The waistband didn't cut into the stomach, as it does not contain rubber cord like some girdles and control-top panty hose do.
- The sturdy, substantial, pure cotton crotch is comfortable and is just fine without additional panties.
- And they've lasted through five wearings so far without a run. And if they do run, does it matter? They're not meant to be seen anyway.
A note of caution: Bare calves in Hawai'i can look like shark bait if they're not tanned. There are plenty of good self-tanners on the market now. Use them.
Spanx come in three sizes and two colors: invisible (nude) and black. In Hawai'i, Spanx are available at Neiman Marcus for $20.
