tights at 10 and 25

When I was a little girl, tights ("pantyhose," as I knew them back then) were the bane of my winter existence. I was forced to wear them in church plays and for family photos and every freaking Sunday throughout winter.  To me, they were one more thing that got in the way of running around outside with my friends; they were itchy and binding and too fragile for the active lifestyle of my adolescence.  I remember my mom washing her many pairs of varied neutral hues in the sink before hanging them over the shower rod, and I can recall that every trip through JCPenney required a stop in the stocking department.  When I was 10, tights were just a necessary evil in a woman's life.

A decade and a half later, tights and I have a better understanding of one another.  I've realized that they're a delicate alternative to pants, a colorful tool for keeping my legs warm and stylish through the colder months, and a semi-disposable and inexpensive accessory with which I can add variation and creativity to my wardrobe.  They really aren't even that itchy or uncomfortable (unless the office heater is set too high.)  These fuchsia* tights were a cheap score last year when the weather began to warm up and Target purged their cold-weather accessories.  I think they may have cost $3 at the most and they've held up pretty well.  I know you're supposed to buy quality over cost but come on, who really has the cash to blow on $25 tights? That said, I do often buy multiples of my favorite colors when they're on sale because inevitably they'll snag when I'm miles away from the nearest bottle of clear polish.

Thanks to EBEW for giving me a reason to talk about tights for a whole post.

*I googled whether the hue is called fuschia  or fuchsia and it turns out both forms are accurate but technically, the term comes from Leonard Fuchs, the German scientist who labeled the flower of the namesake plant, so officially I suppose it's fuchsia.  Hm.

tights at 10 and 25