Holey Moly Tights

Ah...the wonders of visual merchandising aka shop display... whoever had the wonderful idea of customising the tights on the shop dummies in the womenswear department of Selfridges in Manchester is a clever one seeing as I was transfixed by the mannequin and spent a good five minutes studying it intently, during which I might have also picked up what the mannequin was also wearing and promptly went to seek it out. 

Except, for me, the fascination ended at the tights, the way they had managed to cut up a pair of black tights so expertly so that they achieved a 'web' effect, with the strands of yarn/thread in the tights making a wonderful distressed effect, similar to the tights seen at Rodarte AW08-9 but with more opaque parts of the tight interspersed between the 'web' sections.  Hard to explain and it does make it even harder to demonstrate visually when my own botched attempts with a pair of black cotton tights didn't really pan out with the right effects.  Cutting little slits in the tights made quite substantial strongly round holes in the tights and then it was a case of getting a pair of closed scissors and swiping the tights in a downward motion with the point of the scissors until a ladder appeared.  Of course, I had to do all of this tights-jabbing whilst I was wearing the tights so I've also got a bit of a gash on my calf to add to my myriad of mosquito bite bruises etc.  Oh well... deliberate holey tights it is then... better luck next time... or better yet, Rodarte tights anywhere? 

Comments

[Shen-Shen]

This is so simple & chic.. It's definitely a DIY I can finally DIY!

I love the tights, although that gash on your calf doesn't sound so great...

YOU THINK YOU ARE PRETTY?
YOU THINK YOU ARE STYLISH?
WRONG BITCH!

You suck

[ivoreece]

It looks so funny :)

[selina]

i love laddered tights with body fitting stuff like you, and then with a huge, over-sized coat on tip, it's quite covered and guarded with the coat yet the holes give exposure. maybe the rodarte-esque tights would work with ribbed woollen ones as i find that if they ladder, it travels down the rib pannel rather than making a circular hole.

i wish i was back in manchester to check out the display, and the comment above is mental, some people have some serious issues. i hope you take zero notice!

[Secretista]

UHHHHAAHH!! THAT'S GENIUS!

[shesdressingup]

I really like how this has turned out! Have the holes ripped any bigger over the day whilst you've worn them though?

[Pamcasso]

I have coveted those rodarte tights since the show! I really like how yours turned out, even though it is really different.

[Stevie]

hi! love the attempt. I would think you could try it higher up the leg with your body NOT being in them and use nail scissors or small scissors and not cut into them but make a small hole and pull
*gently* on them
I do like the dip dye tights better but this would be viciously cool over a pair of solid colored tights with your extra holes.
think about the layered effect. Not good during the summer because it's so hot.. but this would be spot on in winter
Stevie

[enc]

Nice job on the DIY!

[STYLE AND THE CITY - PARIS]

Hi from Paris Susie

I am right now covering the Paris fashion week that began last week and still for few days,
I try to forget nobody interested in fashion and style like you because I know that it could help you to find some inspiration for your coming styles.
Dior, Hermès, Agnès B... I hope you'll like my photo coverage.

have a great evening and keep on being stylish

Kamel
WWW.STYLEANDTHECITY.COM

[a dreamer]

um that hate comment is seriously scary. That person has anger problems. anyhoo, your little DIY job is quite successful. It looks like the dots have been printed on. Quite a cool effect. did you use scissors or a seam ripper? Coz i'm thinking that a seam ripper might have made smaller holes.

[Austere]

I actually quite like the holey tights. Yay for a botched job! haha. I really like the way you layered them over the other pair.

[jo]

i can't decide if they look angsty cos they're ripped, or cute cos they resemble bubbles hahaha. it's cool anyway! all the better to put old tights to use

[Sister Wolf]

Make sure you put some antibiotic stuff on your wound! (speaking to you as a mother)

[Cammila]

lol Is that angry person real, or a friend who's joking around? Because if it's the former, it HAS to be one of those poorly dressed women with bad legs and FAKE BAGS you snapped on the tube after they gave you a dirty look! Haha, the trashy and uneducated are bitter people. We're on to you, anonymous commenter, go back to your tanning bed and wait for Vogue to announce "having no style is the new having style!"

[pretty face]

Oh well your DIY version is still very cute. I have orange tights with sheer circley holes but I've never worn them because I can't get the circles to align (they're in a griddy pattern).

But argh how can you bear to wear two tights in this weather?

[Laurenn]

I like the attempt! Alexander Wang did that on his fall runway, too, and it looked amazing. Good for you for going for it. I'm not as brave as you and always assumed that if I tried to do that people would just think I'm a crazy with holes in my tights. But now I think I might try it with an old pair of ruined tights.

[Mer]

I know is about the tights, but I love your mini skirt, :-)

[Drusilla]

It's quite a cool effect, your DIY makes the tights look almost graphic (as opposed to spidery). I suppose a lower denier might work for that webby effect, but I also suspect they'd ladder like no one's business before you'd even had one wear out of them!

PS: What's with the hater? They should go bother someone else, seriously.

[Francis Girard]

I love how brave you are. Considering I have 100's of pairs of black tights DIYing a couple could help with the cull - thanks for the idea. lots of love. xf

[vintage clothes]

nice i like your attempt! im going to check them out in selfridges today!

[lady coveted]

oh my god...i hope you ignore that senseless negative comment.

anyway... i love the holey tights thing. i wore that a lot back in high school, particularly since i had a lot of stripey tights that tended to get holes in them in like two seconds.

i personally would like to see naik fur do a rendition of the rodarte tights... i think she could come up with something beautiful. either that, or wish i could knit, but my knitting really sucks.
;)

[rollergirl]

But I like it! A good solution to the moths problem that is affecting to many of us (me included) too, no?

[mica]

Sounds like painful DIY, but it turned out rather beautifully! I wasn't sure at first but seeing the outfit as a whole, it really works! :)

[Poochie]

I don't think I've seen those Rodarte tights in yet but when I saw them in the latest US Vogue they were listed at being somewhere in the tune of $800.

Kind of pricey for tights although I'm sure they're hand knitted. Makes your DIY version all the more appealing.

All cowardly ANONYMOUS haters need to buzz off!

Luv
Poochie

[Anna-Maria]

I've seen this trend in Stockholm since last fall and I really like it. You did a really nice job on your tights. I might try this trend myself sometime. :)

[anna]

lol the holes look like polka dots. I like how your version turned out.

[The Clothes Horse]

Mmmm...Rodarte tights. I'd like to see this display--the effect sounds intriguing.

[andrea]

Hi Susie, I just love what you have done! Perfectly imperfect! FYI, I want the Rodarte tights but I found out that they are $850 US dollars!! Those Rodarte girls are so creative, but they are really out of control. Or, they want to keep their creations available to only those who can afford them? Or maybe people who have access to a fashion closet?

[miss woo]

Must take you ages! I love your attempt though as it really takes the torn tights out of the trashy category and into a realm of its own.

and I just saw andrea's comment and for a second I thought 85 dollars for Rodarte tights is quite reasonable, then I saw the 0 at the end.. Damn!

[fashionherald]

I really like your end result, it's very pop punk looking! and the nail clipper or seam ripper is good advice, may create the effect you were going for.

[fashionherald]

I really like your end result, it's very pop punk! and the nail clipper or seam ripper is good advice, may create the effect you were going for.

[fashion chalet]

I really want your shoes!! <3

Lovely hair, by the way, it's so perfectly straight and ever-so-shiny!

htp://fashionchalet.blogspot.com

[catherine]

Ooooh! They came out so nicely. All the hard work and scars were worth it!

[flatbrokefab Ashleigh]

I think they look excellent!

x

www.flatbrokefabulous.blogspot.com

[andrea]

Oh and I love your boots! What kind are they?

[Maddy]

I tried making similar looking tights with scissors at first, too, but I've had much better success with seam-rippers. Hard to explain without a visual, but seam-rippers give you much more of that "run-in-your-tights"/Alexander Wang Fall 08 look and more of an actual web than just holes.

[bestie]

i don't know, i actually really like how you did them...

[vanessa]

hear hear! "having no style is the new having style!" i agree!
i'm sick of all generic looking people and its so refreshing to see people like susie bubble and fopsanddandies

xoxo

[diana]

OMG I just wanted to wear a pair of tights like this recently, just because I accidentally made a hole in them, and when my boyfriend saw me he said he wouldn't go out with me wearing those tights, because they were over the top and horrible. So I changed. But if I would have seen you earlier I believe I would have dared! :)
Hugs,
diana

[Lolita]

brilliant!!

[charlotte]

DIY suggestion:
Put the tights on a wine bottle. then you can position the blade of the exacto knife/ utility knife or scissor as to get a long strip. Hold the tights with on hand and fix the blade with the other . pull the tights rather than pulling the knife. that should give you more control on the depth of the cut and thus not heavily nick the fibers of the cross-way on the tights. Yeah. used to do this when I was still a bit of a punk-er.

[susie_bubble]

That's really great advice Charlotte - thanks!

[edna]

as any one got any "BLACK OPAQUE" Tights they can sell me...Drusilla.. you say you have hundreds..how about selling a few pairs cheaply ..i would like to make a lot of these tights if possible ..so im looking for 20/ 40 pairs of at least 60 denier...

[nutMEG]

so, i was reading this post a while back, but i found some rodarte tights up on ebay!

if anyone finds out about those louboutin shoes, let me know!

[Anon]

Looks like someone put up a knock off version on eBay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=140275662387

[Carlo]

Hi, pls see our tights we knit by ourselves^^
http://picasaweb.google.com/juihung.tw/PaperPrintTightsFootless#5304793857314313010