Wednesday 31 August 2011

Tights retailers and men: Part 2








UK Tights is one of the Britain's leading hosiery retailers on the internet. They stock a huge selection of brands and have very friendly and helpful customer service.

The UK Tights website has a specific page for men's tights. They state:

"Gender at UK Tights is not an issue, a large part of our customer base are in fact men and we welcome them. Whether you are looking for everyday tights or something for a special person or occasion, we will help you find the best quality products as well as providing a discrete and personal service."

They stock both the Gerbe men's tights as well as the WoMan unisex range. For both of these brands one can read product reviews from customers.
















However, UK TIghts encourage men to browse all of the products they sell:

"For those men that are slightly more adventurous you should try products from any of our many sections, the tall section being a favourite."

Some time ago, Dawn at UK Tights recommended I try the Kunert Satin Look Tights. They are very good quality.

In summary, UK Tights recognises that plenty of men are buying their products and provide a first class service. In my experience they are always happy for customers to make contact and will always promptly answer any enquiries.

Tuesday 30 August 2011

What I am wearing today

Looks like Autumn is here early in London - it's 14 and really quite chilly. So decided on some trusted Charnos 60 denier opaque tights. Colour: Navy. Size: Large

I bought these tights a couple of years ago and they are still wearing well.

For the price they are great value and I can see why they are a bestseller for Charnos.

I see the Charnos also have a range of 100 denier opaque tights as well now in a range of colours. Must try those some time.

Available from: Tights Please, UK Tights and other retailers.

Monday 29 August 2011

Update on Adrian tights for men

I have already featured the new range of men's tights made by Adrian in Poland. The 100 denier footless tights have now been renamed as Legginsy Megginsy. They previously were named 'Hunter'.

These tights are made with 92% Polyamide and 8% Lycra. At the moment they are only available in Black in two sizes: S/M and L/XL.

I am really looking forward to trying these, especially as it seems cooler autumn weather is already with us in London.

Am also hoping to get more information about the range from Adrian as, as you can see, the site is only available in Polish. By the way, I have learnt this week that in Polish, tights are called 'rajstopy'. That might be useful if I ever travel there!

Tights shopping in Spain

I am a frequent visitor to Spain and have always been impressed with the hosiery section of the leading department store in Spain - El Corte Inglés. The branch in the photo is the one in Seville. Most Spanish cities of any size have a branch, or even several branches.














The selection of tights at El Corte Inglés is really impressive and puts most British department stores to shame. The focus is mainly on premium European brands, such as Wolford. What I particularly like is that they stock a great range of Italian-made tights, especially the Filodoro and Philipe Matignon brands.

Both brands make tights in an excellent and accurate range of sizes, which is particularly important for male buyers. The 5 - XL size is the one I go for and the fit is always perfect. The yarns used are always top quality and I find that the tights wear extremely well and last for ages if looked after.

I particularly like the range of 30-40 denier tights made by Filodoro and Philipe Matignon. These are not as thick as opaques but also not very sheer and are perfect for autumn weather. Many of the tights are also available in a matt finish, which I also like as it is not so obvious that I am wearing tights, not that I am particularly worried about that.

On a recent trip I bought a pair of the Galerie 40 tights in the dark brown cappuccio colour. They are matt, sheer to waist and have a 9% Lycra content. The fit is excellent and they give an energising feeling to the legs. The price was €9.80 which I thought was good value given the impressive quality.


















I haven't seen this brand of tights on sale anywhere in the UK, so I guess for now I will have to keep stocking up when I travel to Spain.

Finally, the staff at El Corte Inglés are always really helpful and always offer assistance if you are browsing for tights. They seem fine about men buying tights for themselves and often recommend particular brands and styles.

Friday 26 August 2011

Tights retailers and men: Part 1






I buy most of my tights online these days, although I occasionally like to visit stores to browse and buy.

The online market for tights seems to have grown massively in recent years and some retailers now maintain specific parts of their website for male customers. I suspect this is because they are aware that there are many men who are buying tights for themselves and this is now an important segment of their market.

The retailer Tights Please maintains a Tights for Men page on their website. They state:

"At Tights Please we know how popular tights for men are and a number of our customers are men buying hosiery for themselves. If this is the first time you're buying tights for yourself we’d recommend you try the reasonably priced Cette Dublin Tights."



The Tights Please web page features a wide-range of tights recommended for male customers. I have tried the Charnos 60 Denier opaque tights, the Wolford 66 Velvet De Luxe opaque tights and also the Falke Pure Matt 100 Denier tights. These have all been great purchases. I have yet to try the Cette Dublin Tights, but hope to do so and also write a review. According to the retailer they are their current bestselling tights for men.They are available in colours other than black, such as brown and dark blue, which is a real plus as I get a bit bored sometimes with black opaques.

Tights Please genuinely encourage feedback and dialogue with male customers:

"What are your favourite pairs of tights for men? Would you like to see more patterned tights on our tights for men pages? Let me know, I'd love to hear your feedback, email me now customercare@tightsplease.co.uk"

Regarding patterned tights - well, I hope to blog about that soon as I reckon that some styles would look really good under trousers, especially the ones that have an Arygle sock type pattern. I am going to research some patterned styles shortly and plan to ask some retailers for their recommendations. Look out for the future blog post.

Tights Please recently carried out a Men in Tights survey. I haven't seen the outcome of this but will try and obtain it to post later.

Anyway, top marks to Tights Please for their attention to men who wear tights and their genuine efforts to learn more about that segment of their customers.

Falke Pure Matt 100 tights


I bought a pair of these tights from Harrods earlier this year. The sales assistant there was really helpful and professional and had no hang-ups at at all serving a guy buying tights for himself and helping to find the right size for me.
If you like opaque tights, then these are the ones you have been waiting for. Sure, they are a bit more expensive then the cheaper opaques you can get from Marks and Spencers for example, but the quality is really impressive,



They come in five colours:
  • Anthracite (A very dark, charcoal grey with a hint of brown)
  • Black
  • Brenda (A rich chocolatey brown)
  • Marine (Dark navy)
  • Steel (Light grey with a hint of blue)
What I love about Falke tights is that the sizing is spot on. I am 5' 10" and the extra large fits perfectly.
I bought a pair in black and these tights are quite thick and completely opaque. They are completely matt and if you wear them under trousers, as I do, then they look just like socks. They are extremely warm under trousers but not uncomfortably so. The fabric used seems to let the legs breathe, so you don't feel sweaty or uncomfortable.

I can honestly say that if you try these you won't be disappointed. Along with Wolford, these are p
robably the very best opaque tights on the market. Falke don't market tights specifically aimed at men, but these are of such good quality, they don't need to as they will, I am sure, fit most men really well.
In the UK, these tights are stocked by these online retailers: Tights Please, mytights, and UK tights
You can also get them in major department stores such as Harrods and John Lewis.

Wednesday 24 August 2011

New tights for men from Poland



















I have just read about a new range of men's tights from Adrian, a leading manufacturer of hosiery in Poland. There has obviously been a huge effort made in the design and marketing of this Men Collection range and the manufacturer clearly believes that there is a demand for tights specifically designed for men.

There are five models available;

Grating - diamond pattern opaque tights, 60 denier

Street - sheer tights, 20 denier
Urban - footless sheer tights, 20 denier
City - opaque tights, 60 denier
Hunter - footless opaque tights, 100 denier

I hope to review these tights in the future once I have worked out how to obtain a sample or purchase them.

 The full range can be viewed on the Adrian website.

Welcome

Hello everyone and welcome to Hosiery for Men, a new blog about men's tights and legwear.

There seems to be a growing trend and popularity of tights for men. One can argue that tights have historically been part of men's fashion and attire, although currently many, if not most, people would regard men wearing tights as odd or some kind of weird fetish. On the contrary, most men who wear tights do so because they like them and also appreciate the comfort and other benefits they provide.

I have enjoyed wearing tights for many years and it is has been such a positive development to see this segment of the market now being catered for both by mainstream hosiery stores and manufacturers.

In this blog I aim to track new developments, discuss trends as well as review products, both tights made specifically for men but also women's tights that I also like.