Thursday 21 January 2016

Tuesday 19 January 2016

Luxury Legs interviews Hosiery For Men

One of the UK's top hosiery retailers, Luxury Legs, has just published an interview with Hosiery For Men.



You can read the full interview here.



In the interview we answer the following questions:

  • You created the Hosiery For Men blog back in 2011. How did you come up with the idea of making a blog based on legwear reviews?
  • How difficult was it at the beginning to approach hosiery brands and start collaborating with them?
  • What makes the difference between brands? 
  • How do men choose their tights? Do you think men prefer to wear tights for women or tights specifically created for men?
  • If you were asked to create the perfect pair of tights, what would it be?
  • Can you tell us a bit about your future projects and collaborations?

Sunday 17 January 2016

Introducing the Tights For Men blog

A new year and a new men's tights blog! 

In news that will be of interest to all men who buy and wear hosiery, the Tights For Men blog was recently launched.

We believe that the more men are writing and reading about tights, the more that they will become more visible and acceptable.

We recently interviewed the writer behind Tights For Men and are pleased to publish our conversation.

It’s great to see a new men’s hosiery blog starting up. Can you tell us why you created the Tights For Men blog?

Firstly let me just say thank you for taking the time to interview me and the support you’ve given my blog, it’s much appreciated.

My main reason for creating the blog is to add my voice to the growing trend of men wearing tights. The more it is talked about and seen the more mainstream it becomes and the less it is viewed as a fetish or abnormal.

The second reason is to try and give men some good honest feedback on what I’ve tried to help with their choice of tights. For a female shopper there is a lot of information available to them, this is not the same for men and there are so many options, it can be a bit of a minefield.

My hope is if there was man thinking about trying tights for the first time, starting to look around, maybe a little overawed by the choice out there he’d come across our blogs and it would give him the information needed and, fingers crossed, help make his first experience of tights a good one.

What will the blog focus on? I can see that there will be reviews of tights, but is anything else planned?


For now I am mainly going to focus on reviews plus any interviews such as this one (providing I get more offers!) I will let it naturally evolve and see what people like and respond well to. Perhaps I might add a little more commentary to the blog, but Twitter is generally a better tool for that I think.

If anyone reading my blog has any particular requests however I am always open to suggestions.

When did you start to wear tights?


I’ve worn them under trousers for a couple of years now after my wife gave me a pair of hers on a particularly cold day. It was her suggestion, she’s never understood why more men don’t do it as they are in her eyes so similar to wearing long johns.

As you can imagine those hand-me-downs got a little old and so this winter I started browsing to buy myself some more, that way I could get what I wanted, they would fit better, plus I wouldn’t have to pester her anymore!

I’ve also got a little braver over the last couple of months and started wearing them with shorts on warmer days. My plan now is to get some lighter denier tights in the spring as I’ll probably start to over heat in what I’ve currently got!

Where do you normally buy your tights? Have you had any memorable shopping experiences?


I wish I could tell you some interesting stories but all my shopping has been done online so far. There are a number of great online hosiery retailers, the likes of UKTights, Luxury-Legs, TightsTightsTights and SockShop to name a few, that between them have such a wide variety of hosiery that I haven’t needed to venture out onto the high street. 












What are your favourite brands? Do you have a favourite pair?


For me a great pair of tights feel amazing on the inside and the outside, by that I mean they’re nice and soft on the legs but also silky or velvety to touch.

I’ve just stocked up on a few pairs of Wolford tights, who I believe you are more than familiar with! (Velvet de luxe 66 and Satin Opaque 50)




Wolford really do make superb tights, as proven by their recent hosiery award, managing to be both long lasting and luxurious.

For me though Aristoc’s 80 denier tights from their ‘Ultimate’ collection, that I reviewed recently, have to be right up there when considering value for money. They are soft, velvety, warm and a great fit, they are my go-to tights!



Are there any brands that you are eager to try out?


As you can imagine with my relative inexperience there are a number of styles and brands I‘d like to try and as with any hosiery enthusiast the luxury brands always appeal, the likes of Fogal, Falke and more of the Wolford range. However my immediate interest is to try out some of the unisex and men’s tights to see how they compare to what I’ve warn so far. For example Comfort4Men look amazing, I love the look of Emilio Cavallini’s unisex tights and the argyle tights from Adrian look great.



Many men are buy tights made for women, if they are sure the sizing is right and they meet their requirements. What are your thoughts on this considering that there are an increasing range of tights made specifically for men?


Good question, and a difficult one to answer.

There is a growing range of tights for men which is great to see and I offer my support to any company looking to market tights to men. The choice is still rather limited at the moment in terms of number of brands and colours compared to the tights marketed for women (understandable given the size of the market).

I hope the growth continues and I think it will, it has only got to be a matter of time until the trends seen on the catwalk from the likes of Givenchy, Alexander McQueen and Nuno Gama makes it’s way onto the high street. Once that happens, with a little clever advertising men’s tights could really explode.



For now though as a general rule, I think you get better choice and value for money from women’s tights.

To men thinking about trying tights, what would you say are the main benefits of wearing them?


For me there are three main benefits, warmth, I’ve found them so useful for that extra layer in the winter, I personally find that if my legs are warm I am warm. For those that say ‘just wear long johns’, they are far better than long johns, they are more comfortable, fit better and because of the variety in denier they can be worn in a wider temperature range.

Secondly compression, there are tights designed for compression but I find even non-compression tights make your legs feel more supported and energised.

Finally comfort, let’s be honest they feel amazing on, especially if you shave your legs, there’s no feeling like it.


Thanks for speaking to us Tights For Men. I hope Hosiery For Men readers will check out your blog and also follow you on Twitter. We are looking forward to reading more of your reviews and whatever else you publish on the blog.

Competition winner: Aristoc 50 Den Micro Fibre Tights

The competition to win a pair of the Aristoc 50 Den Micro Fibre Tights ended yesterday.



Thanks to everyone who entered, as well as all the new followers of Hosiery For Men on Twitter.

The winner is: @BruggenClaire

Congratulations!

We will be in contact with you shortly to arrange for you to receive your prize.

Tuesday 12 January 2016

Wolford: Hosiery Brand of the Year

Congratulations to Wolford for being awarded the Hosiery Brand of the Year at the recent UK Lingerie Awards.

Here is a report on the awards from Lingerie Insight magazine.



We would like to offer our congratulations to Wolford and their team in London.

The Hosiery For men blog is a huge fan of Wolford products. We recently published an archive of all our Wolford reviews.

Stay tuned for our soon to be published review of the Wolford Pure 10 Tights.

Monday 11 January 2016

Just arrived: Falke Seidenglatt 40 Tights

Hosiery retailers Tights Tights Tights have just sent us a pair of the Falke Seidenglatt 40 Tights to trial and review.







Tights Tights Tights recently interviewed Hosiery For Men and you can read the full Q & A on the Tights Tights Tights blog.

Saturday 9 January 2016

Reviewed: Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights

Hosiery retailer Luxury Legs recently sent us a pair of the Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights to trial and review.







We have never reviewed any Fogal tights before so were really looking forward to trying this style.

Fogal, is one of the most prestigious hosiery brands. It was founded in 1921 in Zurich and is now an internationally established luxury brand in the legwear and knitwear sector.

Material and features

Luxury Legs describe the Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights as:

"A modern classic for chilly days. Smooth pantyhose made from the finest cotton and cashmere. Very soft, warm and in four fabulous shades. Comfortable sewn on waistband."
The tights arrived in beautiful packaging from Luxury Legs. You can really tell that they value customers as all of their hosiery is packaged as shown. Such a nice touch.



Presentation is simple and elegant. The tights are folded over a plain card rectangle, which is then enclosed in the main card packaging. Everything is then housed in a cellophane envelope. The look is understated but classy.



These tights feel absolutely luxurious due to the special yarn used (72% Cotton, 13% Cashmere, 12% Nylon and 3% Spandex).

We have reviewed a lot of cotton tights at Hosiery For Men, but the cashmere used here really adds something extra.

They are sheer to waist tights with no demarcation between the leg and the brief/panty.

The tights looked quite small to be when I took them from the packaging, but the Spandex provides them with impressive stretch.

The brief/panty has a rear comfort panel in the Large Extra size, and a conventional cotton gusset in other sizes.

Toes are rounded with no reinforcement.

The waistband is a shade under 2.5cm wide. It is quite a unique design, being sewn onto the brief. It has the Fogal logo on the outside, while the inside is made from a very soft material. The aim being to provide support without any discomfort.

 




Fit and sizing

The Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights are available in four sizes:
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large 
  • Large Extra
I tested a pair in the Large Extra size.



These tights have really impressive stretch, despite looking rather small. Fit was really good after carefully working them up the legs.

In terms of feel on the skin they are definitely the softest cotton tights I have ever worn.

The brief was perhaps slightly less deep than I would like. Men generally will usually need more depth in this area for obvious reasons. However, once again the stretch qualities of these tights helped greatly and it was quite easy to pull the waist over the hips.he

The unique Fogal waistband provided really comfortable support.

Colour range
The Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights are available in the following shades:
  • Beige-Mele
  • Gris-Mele
  • Anthra-Mele
  • Noir
I tested a pair in the Anthra-Mele shade, a dark charcoal cover and a great alternative to black.



Price and availability
The Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights are priced at £35.50 in the UK.

You can currently get 10% off by using the code 'LLSKI'.

All orders over £50.00 quality for free delivery at Luxury Legs.

Conclusion

We mentioned at the start of this review that this is the first time we have worn and reviewed tights from Fogal.

Luxury Legs stock an amazing range of Fogal styles, which readers should check out. Several are available at sale prices.

The Fogal Touch Cotton and Cashmere Tights are a seriously impressive product. Somewhat pricey, but as we have written before, quality products cost more and will also provide a better wearing experience and longevity if looked after. 


To summarise these are lovely tights that not only keep your legs warm and comfortable, but also provide a touch of luxury.

Competition: Win Aristoc 50 Denier Micro Fibre Tights

To start the new year we have another competition at Hosiery For Men.

The Glamory Thermoman 100 competition last year was so successful we have decided to provide readers with another opportunity to win some quality tights.

This time we have one pair of the Aristoc 50 Denier Micro Fibre Opaque Tights available in Black in the XL size.





To be in with a chance of winning you need to

1. Follow Hosiery For Men on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Hosieryformen

(If you already follow us, you can still enter. Just complete step two below)

2. 'Like' and retweet the special tweet for the Aristoc tights competition.

The competition will run until midnight (UK time) Saturday 16 January. We will then contact the winners. 


Of course, both men and women are welcome to enter.

Good luck everyone!

Friday 8 January 2016

Tights Tights Tights Q and A with Hosiery For Men

One of the UK's leading hosiery retailers, Tights Tights Tights, has just published their interview with us on their blog.



You can read the full Tights Tights Tights Q and A with Hosiery For men here.



In the interview we answer the following questions:
  • How long have men been wearing tights?
  • What do you see as the benefits of men wearing tights?
  • In your opinion, what does the future hold for men’s tights?
  • What difference do various deniers make when men wear tights?
  • What styles do you predict to be big in 2016?
  • Which tights do you recommend for this time of year?

Thursday 7 January 2016

Reviewed: Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights

The top European hosiery brand Wolford recently provided Hosiery For men with a lovely range of products to review.



We recently provided an archive of all reviews we have published on Wolford products.

We now focus on the Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights.



Material and features
Wolford describe the 
Individual 50 Leg Support Tights as:

"Irresistible and indispensable: mat, opaque tights offering a luxurious and ultimate comfort. The anatomically well-distributed support feels fresh and light. It is indispensable on long autumn and winter days."


Packaging is the standard Wolford approach for most of their hosiery products. The tights are folded around a card rectangle, with images of Wolford products, which is then housed in a folded card envelope. Everything is then wrapped in a cellophane envelope.





The Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are made from 82% Polyamide (Nylon) and 18% Elastane.

These tights aim to provide what Wolford describes as "invisible support" that energises and lightens the legs. The lights compression aims to stimulate circulation to prevent tired and swollen legs.

The fabric feels soft and luxurious to the touch. It has terrific elasticity and stretch.

The tights have a deep and comfortable brief, with flat seams. There is no rear comfort panel in the XL size.



The 3.5cm wide waistband is soft and comfortable, with the famous Wolford logo sewn inside. There is a cotton gusset expertly engineered into the brief with flat seams.



The tights are sheer to waist with no demarcation between the leg and the brief. Toes are finished with a rounded seam, with no reinforcement.



Fit and sizing
The Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are available in five sizes: XS, S, M, L and XL.

I tested a pair in the XL size.



The amazing amount of stretch, due to the high use of double wrapped Elastane, provided me with a simply wonderful fit. These tights are genuinely fit like a second skin, moulding to the legs but without any uncomfortable tightness.

Opacity is even and consistent. Although these are 50 denier tights, the appearance and density of the yarn is more similar to 60-70 denier tights.

The tights do indeed provide a comforting level of support to the legs. I tested them once on a day when I was out and about, and on another day when I sat at my desk working. On both occasions I felt a sense of comfort and wellbeing. It's like having your legs gently hugged all day.

The brief is deep and comfortable and can be positioned where needed - either on or above the waist and hips.

Colour range
The Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are available in the following shades:

  • Mocca 
  • Black 
  • Nearly Black 
  • Anthracite 
I tested a pair in the Mocca shade, a rich, very dark brown.

All four shades are shown below.

 
 

Price and availability
The Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are priced at £31.00 in the UK.

They are available from the Official Online Wolford Shop as well as other leading hosiery retailers.

Conclusion
I will get straight to the point: the Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are simply superb and I loved them. So much, that I would like to get pairs in all of the shades.

This is the first time I have tested and reviewed any leg support tights by Wolford. I have tried and reviewed a wide range of support hosiery from many different brands, but the Wolford Individual 50 Leg Support Tights are really unique. They are opaque tights that are completely suitable for everyday wear, but at the same time provide leg support without any constriction or discomfort.

I can see why Wolford describe them as "indispensable and irresistible". I have a very substantial Wolford collection and I like all the styles I have, but the Individual 50 Leg Support Tights could easily become a favourite as they provide such a great wearing experience.

Highly recommended.

Thanks again to Wolford for the sample and for their support for the Hosiery For Men blog.

Wednesday 6 January 2016

Falke Pure Matt 20 Tights Promotion at Luxury Legs

One of our favourite hosiery retailers, Luxury Legs, has a great offer on the Falke Pure Matt 20 Tights.



This is a 3 for 2 offer: Three pairs cost £24.00, a saving of £12.00.