Friday 26 April 2013

Just arrived: Silky Shimmer Dance Tights, Cindy 30 Denier Tights, Silky Thermal Fleece Tights and Couture Future Tights

I recently published a feature on Legwear International and an interview with Kirsten Taylor, their Product Development and Marketing Manager.



Legwear International have kindly sent a package of tights for Hosiery For Men to test and review.

Silky Shimmer Dance Tights



Silky 140 Denier Fleece Lined Tights



Cindy 30 Denier Semi-Sheer Tights



Couture Future Ladder Resist Tights




Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Special offers on the Activskin A2019 Microfabric Full Support Sheer Men's Pantyhose and A535 Microfabric Light Support Sheer Men's Pantyhose

One of the most read posts on Hosiery For Men has been the feature on Activskin®, the legwear brand of G.Lieberman and Sons, Ltd. 


You can read Part 1 and Part 2 of the interview with Steven Katz, the Managing Partner at G. Lieberman and Sons, Ltd.

We have just received news of two great offers from Activskin: both the A2019 Microfabric Full Support Sheer Pantyhose and A535 Microfabric Light Support Sheer Pantyhose are on sale with a 25% discount until 31 May 2013.

A2019 Microfabric Full Support Sheer Pantyhose



Activskin Style A2019 is a full support sheer pantyhose that has some great features. The fabric has 36% spandex in it, which makes it very compressive (not medical hosiery, however) for those who want that level of support. Yet the control brief has plenty of room for comfort and will instantly reduce your waistline a bit. There is no fly, which keeps the cost down. The toe fabric is not compressive so you won't find the toes binding at all. The design really does achieve maximum comfort in a support style. If you like compression, you just won't want to take these off at the end of the day!

The Hi-Glide shiny fabric won't grab at cotton pants and denim jeans like other hosiery and the legwear stays in place all day long. The reinforced toe and the cotton gusset provide ample durability for many wearings. They're regularly $12.99, but they on sale for 25% off until May 31. They come in 3 colours and 4 sizes.

A535 Microfabric Light Support Sheer Pantyhose



The Activskin Style A535 sheer light support pantyhose has just 14% spandex, so they are not as compressive as full support hose, but they have more compression than other Activskin all-nylon styles. These are perfect for summer, as the very light weight, stealthy, matte fabric is ideal under shorts or slacks. These also have no fly, but the brief is non-control top and although it's not the same sheer fabric as the leg (which would make it sheer-to-the-waist) it is VERY transparent, hides nothing, and has a very open knit for maximum ventilation and comfort you'll love.

The sheer toes are perfect for wearing with sandals, too. They come in 3 colors and 4 sizes. At $8.99 regular price, they are also on sale with 25% off until May 31.

Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Thursday 25 April 2013

Just arrived: Nylonica Lusso Silk 70 Opaque tights and 40 Opaque Tights

Stockings HQ is an online retailer with one of the largest ranges of tights, including many top brands.



They have sent me two pairs of tights to test and review from the Italian Nylonica brand. I am really excited about checking out this brand as it is new to me and appears to only be available in the UK at Stockings HQ.

Nylonica Linea Lusso Silk 70 opaque microfibre tights



Nylonica Linea Lusso Silk 40 opaque tights



Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Reviewed: Aristoc Ultimate 20 Denier Satin Tights

Tights Tights Tights, the shop and online retailer, sent me a pair of the Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights to test and review.



You can still read the Hosiery For Men feature on Tights Tights Tights.



Materials and features

The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights are attractively packaged. The tights are folded around a rectangular card, which fits into a clear plastic sleeve.



This is then housed in a sturdy card envelope. The rear of this provides information on the product and sizing.



You can see that the packaging says that this style is 'Made In England'. That seems quite rare these days.

Aristoc provide this description:

'These beautiful and resilient tights add a sheer satin finish to complement your skin tone, the 20 denier leg has a polished leg look. Designed to withstand the knocks of your busy life, they are knitted with a revolutionary yarn that prevents holes turning into ladders, enabling you to carry on wearing them for the rest of the day."

The fabric is 75% Nylon, 24% Elastane and and 1% Cotton.

Although they are described as having a satin finish, I felt that they only had a very slight sheen, somewhat more matt in appearance. The fabric feels extremely soft to the touch.

The tights are sheer to waist, with sheer sandal toes. Seams are flat throughout.



The brief is commendably deep and features T-band reinforcement around the gusset, on each side of side of the seams and below the waistband. The waist band is 4cm wide, extending to 8cm if the reinforcement band is included.



Fit and sizing

The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights are available from Tights Tights Tights in four sizes: Small, Medium, Large and Extra Large.



I tested the Extra Large size.

I have been really impressed with the commitment Aristoc have shown to making larger sizes available in their premium hosiery. Styles in the Aristoc Luxury Opaque that I have already reviewed have all been spot with sizing for taller people and the deep brief would be very welcome for most men.

The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights provided a wonderful fit. There is plenty of stretch and the Extra Large size was perfect for me.

They were exceptionally comfortable in very respect. I loved the brief - Aristoc have really got this design spot on. The waistband in particular is superbly designed and helps keep everything in place without digging in.

Colour range

The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights are available from Tights Tights Tights in two shades: Black and Illusion.

I tested a pair in the Illusion shade. The appearance is slightly darker than shown in the photos above.

Price and availability

The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights are priced at £12.00.

Tights Tights Tights offer free first class UK delivery on all orders over £20.00

Conclusion

These are some of the best sheer tights I have ever tried. They are made with top quality fabric and superbly designed.

They get top marks for comfort and fit.

As we get warmer weather, sheer and semi-sheer tights provide comfort and warmth on cooler days. The Aristoc Ultimate Satin 20 Denier Tights would be a great choice. Give them a try.



Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Wednesday 24 April 2013

Spotlight on Legwear International

Legwear International is a long-established hosiery manufacturer and retailer in the UK. I recently interviewed Kirsten Taylor, the Product Development and Marketing Manager at Legwear International, and am happy to now publish this feature.



Can you provide Hosiery For Men readers with some background on Legwear International? When did the business start and how has it developed? 

Legwear International Ltd was established 16 years ago by Allan Falconer, an ex Pretty Polly MD, who wanted to set up on his own.

Originally, suppliers to wholesale and housing solely the Silky brand, Legwear International has now expanded to house four brands offering a vast range of hosiery products.

Joanna Gray and Cindy being the value ranges, Silky offers products in the middle banding with sub brands Scarlet, Party Signature, Dance and Ballet, Tattoo and Silky Everyday Basics of affordability and Couture at the top end with sub brands such as Little Ladies, Vixen, Future etc.

We have proudly moved into manufacturing our own products here in the UK just over a year ago. In addition to this, we continue to source goods from China, Italy, Serbia, Turkey and Lithuania.

Are male customers buying tights for themselves is part of your customer base? 

We do have a loyal following of male hosiery wearers and are currently developing and trialling new products with some of these customers in the hope that we can offer a wider range of goods to this genre of people.

We welcome feedback from our consumers and would love to become specialists in this area.

Would you say that that segment of your customer base is growing? 

Yes, definitely.

There are now many brands and styles of tights made for men now. Are you planning to stock any of these? 

No, we only manufacture and stock our own brands.

From the range that you stock, which brands or styles of tights would you particularly recommend for men?
I would particularly recommend the following:

Our Ballet and Dance Shimmer Tights. These offer great leg coverage and a good skin tone colouring. This is the most popular seller with men. They are available in three sizes and two lovely shades: Toast and Light Toast.



Silky Smooth Knit Extra Size Tights. These are available in X-Large and XX-Large sizes and are great value at £1.99 and £2.09 respectively.




Silky Supershine Tights. These are very comfortable and durable tights and are available in X Large.



Silky 40 Denier Soft Opaque Tights. These are great value at just £2.19.



Silky 140 Denier Fleece Tights. These are great for insulation on colder days. A X-Large size is available. These tights are also available in a footless style.



Couture Ultra Sheer Tights. These are very durable sheer tights and the X-Large size is available for £4.49.




Couture Future Ladder Resist Tights. These are a new cutting edge range of hosiery developed using an innovative bonding procedure on the stitch structure of the garment. These tights have incredible strength and durability but still gives the wearer a silky sheer feel with enhanced fit. They would be perfect for men who need harder wearing tights. They are available in four shades and the X-Large size costs just £5.49.



Cindy 70 Denier Opaque Tights. These have a great matt appearance and are available in X-Large.



What kind of service will male customers receive at Legwear International? Do you welcome enquiries and requests for advice? 

We are very open to requests and regularly give advice. We are very consumer focused and pride ourselves in our customer service i.e. being out of stock on lines very seldom and offering a next day delivery service on orders placed before 12am within the UK.

There has been a huge amount of media coverage of 'mantyhose' (tights for men) in recent months. What are your thoughts about the greater visibility of men buying and wearing tights these days? 
This an area that I have very little knowledge about but am hoping to learn more through improved contact with this type of customer.

Essentially mantyhose have very few, if any, differences from female hosiery and I would be interested in whether packaging these products in specialised packaging is a positive or negative move? Would this make consumers more or less comfortable when purchasing these products? 

That's an interesting question. For some men I feel that might be a positive move, if the tights were packaged more neutrally or as 'unisex'. However, I feel that any style packaged like this needs to be carefully designed to make sure that the fit would be suitable for both men or women. That means attention to the range of sizes, including sizes that extend to at least 6'0". Perhaps Legwear International could develop an opaque tight aimed at men for next autumn/winter season as see how that goes?


To men thinking about trying tights, what would you say are the main benefits of wearing them?
There are three particular benefits that I would mention.

Firstly, comfort and warmth: there are practical reasons for men to wear tights and many do in the winter months for warmth under their suits etc.


Secondly, there are health reasons for improving circulatory problems etc. We have a range of flight socks and Sheer Relief products under our Couture Brand that are excellent for this. Manufactured in Italy they are possibly some of the most accomplished products in existence in this genre.

Lastly, fashion: with the skinny jeans trend growing and developing, I think we could see men moving more openly into wearing hosiery.

Thank you very much Kirsten for speaking to Hosiery To Men, and for providing such detailed information about a wide range of products. I hope this feature increases interest in what Legwear International has to offer.

Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Tuesday 23 April 2013

Just arrived: Nylonica Lina Lusso Microfibre 20 Tights

Pantyhose HQ is the international sister site to Stockings HQ - the web's biggest dedicated stockings shop.



Pantyhose HQ have kindly sent me a sample of the Nylonica Linea Lusso microfibre 20 pantyhose.



Nylonica are a brand that is new to Hosiery For Men and I am really looking forward to testing and reviewing these tights (pantyhose).

Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Reviewed: Falke Cotton Touch Tights

Tights Tights Tights, a shop and online retailer, sent me a pair of the Falke Cotton Touch Tights to test and review.



You can still read the Hosiery For Men feature on Tights Tights Tights.

Materials and features

The Falke Cotton Touch Tights are packaged very simply in a card sleeve that locks around the tights.



The rear of the packaging provides information on the fabric and sizing.



The first thing one notices about these tights is how fine the fabric is and how soft they are to the touch.

The fabric is 50% Polyamide, 43% Cotton and 7% Elastane. The finish is matt with very little shine.

The cotton blend fabric is really top quality and quite luxurious.

Opacity is good, although not absolutely total in areas where the fabric is stretched such as the knees. But coverage is even and once on, the tights provide a smooth appearance.

They are sheer to waist with no demarcation in the brief.

The brief has a rear comfort panel; other sizes have a cotton gusset. The waistband is 3cm wide and of double thickness.

Seams are flat throughout and superbly engineered.

Toes are lightly reinforced with just a slight thickening of the denier and weave.



Fit and sizing
The Falke Cotton Touch Tights are available from Tights Tights Tights in four sizes: Small, Medium, Large and Extra Large.

I tested the Extra Large size.



The fit was absolutely superb and right in line with the sizing information. The Extra Large size was perfect for my 5'10" height.

I loved how these tights fitted snugly and comfortably at every point - from the ankles right up to the thighs.

The brief, like all Falke tights in the larger sizes, is really deep and stretches comfortably well over the waist.

These tights are just so comfortable to wear; they provide warmth but your legs also seem to breathe.

Colour range
The Falke Cotton Touch Tights are available in Black only from Tights Tights Tights.

Price and availability
The Falke Cotton Touch Tights are priced at £20.00.

Conclusion

Falke have another winning product here - these are superb tights in every respect. You pay a bit more for Falke products, but take it from me the extra expense is more than worth it.

These tights are just so soft and smooth, and exceptionally comfortable. The deep brief is perfect for men who generally need more space in this area.

Yours legs will love the luxurious matt fabric, which looks perfect under trousers in place of socks.

Highly recommended.




Hosiery For Men is sustained by hosiery retailers and manufacturers who generously provide us with samples for review. Readers can also support this blog by clicking on any of the advertisements displayed and checking out the products on offer. Each time you do this you are making a valuable contribution and help to ensure that Hosiery For Men continues. Thanks for your continued support.

Monday 1 April 2013

Reviewed: Adrian 60 Den City Men's Tights

US-based hosiery retailer The Stylish Fox sent me a sample of the Adrian 60 Denier City Tights to test and review.



At Hosiery For Men we have previously reviewed several styles of men's tights made by the Polish hosiery manufacturer Adrian:

Adrian 20 Denier men's tights

Adrian 100 Denier footless tights

Adrian 60 Denier 'Grating' tights

The Stylish Fox stocks a wide range of the tights for men from the Adrian Men Collection range.

Materials and features

The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are packaged very attractively like all Adrian products. The tights are housed in a clear plastic bag, which in turn is inserted into a sturdy white card envelope. Everything then fits neatly into an outer sleeve.

The Stylish Fox provides the following description:

'Semi-opaque microfiber tights that, according to our customer's feedback, may look more sheer than one would expect for 60 Deniers. The brief portion has a different fabric, although not very noticeable. These tights have a male front panel (no fly opening), flat seams, and invisibly reinforced toes.'


The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are made in Poland. The fabric is 85% Polyamide and 15% Elastane (Lycra).



These tights feel very soft and the fabric is very comfortable on the skin.

As mentioned in the Stylish Fox description, the City tights are slightly more sheer than one would expect for 60 denier tights - perhaps similar to 4-50 denier styles. However opacity is good overall, with a slight shine.


I found the City style to be sheer to waist, despite what is stated in the Stylish Fox description, with no demarcation between the brief and the legs.

Toes are lightly reinforced. The waistband is 3cm wide and does the job well.

The male comfort panel is well-designed.

Fit and sizing

The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are available in three sizes: L, M and XL. I tested a pair in the L size.



I was really pleased with how well this style fitted me. Sizing information is accurate and the L size was perfect for my 5'10".

The tights have a decent amount of stretch. The high Lycra content provides a superb fit.

The brief is admirably deep and stretches easily over the waist. As mentioned above, the comfort panel works well and provides good support for the male equipment.

The slight shine on the fabric provides very good glide under trousers.

Colour range

The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are available at The Stylish Fox in a wide range of shades:
  • Black
  • Fumo (Dark Grey)
  • Grey
  • Marine
  • Olive
I tested a pair in Black.

Price and availability

The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are priced at $11.30.

Conclusion
The Adrian 60 Denier City Tights are a fine product. They have clearly been designed with men's needs in mind, rather than being repackaged women's tights.

They are very comfortable, with the fabric moulding itself well to the legs. There is no wrinkling or bagging. My legs felt wonderful with them on.

The City tights provide a nice, smooth additional layer of insulation and are perfect opaque tights for cooler days.

They are my favourite style so far in the Adrian men's tights range.