Everything old is new again. So the saying goes, and it’s especially true for fashion. We live in an era of reassessing and reclaiming quote-unquote bad fashion moments, of bringing back things that used to be considered passé or uncool. Anything can be so bad it’s good if you have the right attitude. But does that feeling extend to nude pantyhose? Few things remain as maligned and downright triggering as hose, which were once a nonnegotiable part of a woman’s wardrobe.
Now, I am not talking opaque tights, cold-weather essentials that have also been trending on the runways lately, but actual sheer nude pantyhose. The kind that come in egg-shaped containers, the kind whose penchant to rip can only be stopped by a quick application of clear nail polish. Apologies if that last sentence was triggering.
A few seasons ago, I noticed the models in The Row’s fall 2022 look book were all sporting nude hose. Their inclusion was likely a nod to Martin Margiela, who often used the material in his collections, most famously as full-body stockings or face masks that aimed to conceal the identity of the models. (The typewritten descriptions on each image in the style of Margiela’s look book from spring 2000, the collection that also featured a pair of tights as a makeshift belt on a trench coat—which the sibling designers also re-created as in their collection—is further proof they had the elusive Belgian in mind.) At that time I wondered if pantyhose could ever actually make a comeback. Then Miuccia Prada, the queen of subverting notions of femininity, delivered a blockbuster Miu Miu collection for fall 2023 where sheer hose was on full display, pulled high over the waistbands of low-slung skirts, sometimes with prim and proper cardigans tucked right in. Well, if someone could make them cool again, it would certainly be Miuccia.
What’s funny is that, once upon a time, hose were a symbol of freedom. When hemlines began to rise in the 20th century, it was with the assurance that a pair of nylons worn underneath would maintain women’s modesty. Although in the 1920s flappers largely wore their frocks with bare legs or alluring fishnets, most women favored standard stockings. Even the miniskirt that spurred a youthquake revolution was supported by its pairing with tights of various colors that (literally) underpinned the childlike aesthetic at its core. In the 1980s, when women were entering the workforce in larger numbers than ever, hose were almost like filters, allowing them to keep up the sheen of perfection and showing they did not need to give up their femininity in their new lifestyle. By the time the 1990s came around, nylons were a thing of the past—seen only on first ladies or ripped up on the legs of Courtney Love. Tellingly, Ally McBeal, likely the decade’s most famous TV lawyer, went bare-legged underneath her famously ultrashort skirt suits.
These days there are two groups of people who still wear stockings: older women who grew accustomed to them in their younger years and who still consider it quote-unquote ladylike to don a pair, and women who work in conservative institutions like banks, courtrooms (sorry, Ally), or government institutions. (Kate Middleton’s bare legs are seldom exposed.)
And yet there they were on the spring 2024 runways, like a siren song. Luar’s Raul Lopez explained that one of his inspirations this season was a small outdoor church in the Dominican Republic, so it wasn’t surprising to see his models wearing the skin-toned hose favored by many an elderly church lady, though they were worn with decidedly unchurchlike cutout gowns! At Givenchy, Matthew M. Williams added sheer nude knee-highs that matched the gowns.
At Acne Studios, monochromatic looks were completed with matching sheer pantyhose in emerald green, sapphire blue, ruby red, and burgundy, while Saint Laurent’s Anthony Vaccarello doubled down on his sensual safari-inspired palette by putting models in sheer hose in shades of brown and black. Of course once we veer into sheer-colored hose, the vibe changes considerably. Because the thing is, while nude or otherwise light-colored hose recall a certain kind of outmoded inoffensive femininity, sheer black hose carry with them a sort of sexual allure. At Schiaparelli, Daniel Roseberry was surely aware of this when he sent out models in ultrashort dresses and tunics that showed the control tops of their sheer black hose. It was fun and tongue in cheek and entirely within the irreverent spirit of the maison.
While colorful pantyhose truly has the power to change the vibe of an outfit, and Miu Miu’s over-the-waistband styling certainly made some good points, the jury is still out on whether nude hose can ever be considered cool. They may well be the one item fully resistant to a rebrand.
