What could be more feminine than a pair of silky smooth pantyhose?
While many women opt for the bare-legged look these days, pantyhose (and tights) give a much more polished appearance.
The secret is to choose hosiery that makes you look sexy and stylish – not like you stepped out of a time warp from the 80s.
Follow these 5 transgender / crossdresser / femboy pantyhose style rules and I guarantee you can’t go wrong!
A Quick Note About Pantyhose vs. Tights vs. Stockings
Before we jump into the rules, let’s quickly discuss terms:
- Pantyhose – This is a term used in the U.S. to describe sheer hosiery with a denier (a measure of thickness in tights) of 8 to 30.
- Tights – Tights are thicker than pantyhose, with a denier of 40 to 100. (That said, most other English-speaking countries use the term “tights” for all hosiery, from sheer to thick.)
- Stockings – Stockings differ from tights in that they only extend to the upper thighs. They stay up with elastic or are secured with a garter belt.
Rule #1: Only Wear Nude Or Black Pantyhose
For the most sophisticated look, I recommend sticking to the basics and only wearing nude or black pantyhose. (Colored tights are a different story. See Rule #5.)
If you wear black hose, make sure that they’re jet black – not gray-black or brown-black.
Rule #2: Go For Sheer Nude Hose That Matches Your Skin Tone
The #1 rule for nude hose is to match your skin tone as closely as possible.
High-end hose brands (like Donna Karan and Calvin Klein) offer lots of nude shades to choose from, so you should be able to find a perfect match.
The #2 rule for nude hose is to buy the sheerest hosiery you can find. Nude pantyhose should be like the foundation you wear on your face: invisible, but enhancing.
Rule #3: Buy The Best Quality Pantyhose You Can Afford
Most trans women, crossdressers, and femboys have great legs, so it pays to show them off with nice pantyhose. There’s a big difference between drug store brands and department store brands.
My favorite high quality hosiery brands include:
- Wolford
- Spanx
- Donna Karan
- Calvin Klein
- Nordstrom
Rule #4: Coordinate Your Pantyhose With Your Shoes
If you wear black pantyhose, wear black shoes for the most streamlined look.
Nude hose gives you the most options: You can pair them with any color of shoes. For the most leg-lengthening look, try wearing nude hose with nude shoes.
Just remember: NO pantyhose with sandals or open toed shoes! (A small peep toe is fine.)
Rule #5: Try Tights
Semi-sheer and opaque tights are a great alternative to transgender / crossdresser pantyhose – especially when it’s cold out.
Tights are less formal, but they tend to look more modern and youthful than pantyhose.
The pantyhose rules DON’T apply to tights, so experiment with different colors, styles, and textures. Funky tights can totally make an outfit!
Let’s continue the conversation…
Do you love to wear pantyhose, tights, and/or stockings? If so, what are your favorite styles and brands?
Please share your comments below!
Love,
Lucille
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I fell in love with stockings when I was 6 years old and could never get enough of their sensation. Later it was pantyhose and girdles that I enjoyed wearing and I have always been “stocky” as they used to say, so I was always ridiculed even by my relatives as needing a bra. I was only 12 years old and was sensitive to the remarks so I hid most of the time and kept my feelings repressed and secret. Throughout high school I was a “normal” heterosexual young man and dated but in private I would still indulge secretly. After high school I was drafted and put in my time and left all of my feelings bottled up and unsatisfied. After leaving the military, I came home and married my high school sweetheart and we had four children. My inner female was kept hidden although occasionally I would enable myself a little relief in pantyhose and girdle and bra which I managed to kept hidden from my wife and children.
I managed to build a couple of businesses and support a family and send all of my children to college, and through it all I managed to keep my inner self hidden with an occasional bit of satisfaction. Now I am 67 and semi retired and have started wearing my favorite lingerie almost daily. I regret denying my inner self all of my life and post this so that others may learn from my choices.
Hue puts out “opaque” tights, I have them in white & Black. When pulled tight and wear open toe heels, and you have your toes polished ( Ie Plummett by Sally Hanson” Oh my those tights look great. I do not have big calves or thighs & keep my legs clean shaven ( thanks to YES endorsed by my girl (she played the Nanny) Fran Dresher. Thanks Fran for the product. YES works great on your Underarms, Pubic area so no nasty waxing. Incidentally, Plummett is a dark Purple color, quick dry, so is Sally Hanson for under & Top coat. You can go to: Hue.com and they sell sheer, even pantyhose for the summer season. Control Top they have a Big selection. I buy sheer to waist & Nude toe (love showing off my toes). If looking for Thigh hi’s fishnet pantyhose, they got it & you can forward order 3 to 6 or 12 months & they ship them so long as they have your credit card number on file. Ok Ladies Take Care & Bless You All! Love Robin
I most certainly love wearing pantyhose, my favorites are Hanes power shapers firm control high waist pantyhose, the fit and feel are tremendous and luxurious, I buy the next size up from what I would usually wear so I am able to pull them all the way up to my armpits and the waist band is extra tight to keep them from riding down, i LOVE how feminine these great pantyhose make me feel, I have almost 40 pairs in my collection.
Love to wear pantyhose and heels but I have a problem with the waist band rolling down does anyone else have that problem
Love dressing as a woman love wearing pantyhose everyday im a sexy woman.
Love wearing pantyhose girdle bra slip panties dress heels so much much everyday everyday wear wear pantyhose pantyhose OMG OMG love love woman’s woman’s clothes want to be a woman so so much
Pantyhose are ultra feminine and I wear them even at times when I can’t be my feminine self, when I can’t fully cross dress. They give me confidence and a good feeling about me still being me. Although not as sexy as stay ups (which don’t stay up without a garter belt) these are invisible under mens pants or jeans. I wear control top as these stay in place better. Thank you for the write up as this helps in choosing the pantyhose or the right look at the right time. Just found pantyhose with seams. Love those, even keeping the seams straight.
Alright, just like for cis women, I’m going to squash the fact that there are rules to begin with. And if there are rules, then rules are meant to be broken. But start by getting rid of rules 1 and 2.
If you like hosiery, explore your space a little. Everyone says don’t get the shiny suntan Hooters pantyhose, well, I wear similar shades to that (not shiny) when I wear tan shoes. Matching hose to shoes is a good thing I promise. Just like when I wear my nude shoes I wear nude hose and black shoes with black hose, unless I feel like putting a different color hose with my black heels, then I throw that rule out the window of a 43 story window so it shatters on the ground.
Different colors of hosiery work differently with different outfits, they just do. Here’s the bad news, it’s difficult to see how it all comes together in the mirror, so you’ll need some pictures in good lighting. A bit of a pain to change hosiery just to see which shades work with different outfits, but once you do it a few times, you’ll know what goes with what.
I didn’t even mention the taupes. Yes, there are more than one and they can be great.
Learn the word sawny and how it applies to hosiery and try to avoid that. That would be the complaint about the stuff that “looks like your grandmother’s hose.” I’ve been guilty of wearing it myself. But once I read about it I learned and moved on.
Yes tights. Opaque. Patterned. Fishnet (oh Lord), fishnets can be worn very tastefully without looking like a hooker, just pair them with the right outfit. Maybe nude fishnets, maybe black.
Fit is so important. If you don’t like the ones you’re wearing, try another brand, it can make a big difference.
Keep clear fingernail polish around to stop a run.
These are suggestions, not rules. I say again explore your space with hosiery and accent outfits with different looks and have fun with it.
What fun! Pantyhose and heels. I am wearing No nonsense sheer tights. I really enjoy the fit and feel.
Have fun dressing!
Barbara Jane
Hi Barbara You look really great. Well done and keep it up.