Stockings up: A brief history of hosiery

The humble sock – and stocking – that unmissable, dependable wardrobe staple, took centre stage as we celebrated its infinite iterations in our February-March issue. We revelled in the at-home comforts of cotton, layered for an unexpected flourish, and knee-reaching cable knits stuffed into easy sandals. Not to mention sheer and shimmery hosiery, more fit to put on the Ritz; a sartorial staple for the most festive of soirees.

Socks and stockings are no-brainer additions to our everyday ensembles. They follow us from cozy mornings on the couch, wearing chunky knit foot-warmers, to never-ending evenings out. But while we rarely think about the past of these wardrobe essentials, they have a fascinating place in fashion history.

As with most fashion items we consider quintessentially female today, pantyhose were originally made for men. Before the 18th century, the two long socks called 'hose' were popular with the nobility. Made from fine knit wool or silk, the decorative –and often calf-enhancing – wardrobe staple lacked elasticity and had to be kept in place by garters. By the early 1800s, thanks to industrial production, machine-knitted stockings became more readily available. At the time, men had moved moved on to wear pants and socks with the pantyhose being adopted by women instead, typically hidden under sweeping skirts.

As the hemlines started to rise in the early 20th century, hosiery soared in popularity. At the time, the garment still lacked elasticity, meaning the stockings reached above the knee and were held in place by garters. By the 1920s, flappers adopted the phrase 'roll your stockings down', a scandalous proposal in line with the subculture's rebellious and liberated ideologies. With the knees now on full display, young women would 'rouge' or paint intricate designs on their knees. No passing fad, this particular movement in fashion even inspired Paramount picture Rolled Stockings starring Louise Brooks.

Related: Salacious or suitable: a tale of tailored controversy and women in suits

In 1935, nylon revolutionised the stocking industry. The material, invented by DuPont, meant that there was no longer a need for garters to keep the stockings in place. On May 16, 1940, officially known as “Nylon Day,” four million pairs of brown nylons landed on department store shelves throughout the United States at about $1.15 per pair. They sold out within two days. Silk stockings—which didn’t stretch, were challenging to clean, and ripped easily – which had been standard, were quickly superseded.

World War II increased the demand for nylon, resulting in strict rationing of nylon stockings. On the black market one pair could cost you up to €18 (Around €340 today), resulting in desperate women seeking out creative alternatives using whatever means they could come up with to mimic the look. Self-tanners or "liquid stockings" were used to fake the seam up the back of legs, while some women resorted to rubbing their legs with gravy to create the illusion that they were wearing hosiery.

After the war ended, when the rationing were finally lifted, the soaring demand led to riots. Occurring between August 1945 and March 1946, the Nylon Riots spread across the world, but was most notable in the USA. In one of the worst disturbances, in Pittsburgh, 40,000 women queued up for 13,000 pairs of stockings, leading to fights breaking out in the street.

Related: The history of the tote

Pierre Cardin became the first designer who offered tights to women in the 1960s. They were opaque, reaching up to the waist making the use of garters redundant. Mary Quant and Emilio Pucci quickly followed, producing tights in numerous colours or sporting signature prints. A potential cause for the refreshed interest in hosiery could be found in the ever rising hemlines – The decade of the mini and the mods required stockings to match.

Fishnets became a staple in the counterculture of the 1970s, appearing in films such as the gender-bending Rocky Horror Picture Show and onstage with punk icons like Siouxsie Sioux (of The Banshees fame) and Debbie Harry of Blondie. These fashion icons wearing fishnets were in a way symbolic of rebellion – revealing skin while still covering up – and a rejection of cookie-cutter femininity.

In the nineties, as we entered the era of the supermodel, sheer black tights rose in popularity. Woman were embracing the sexier iteration of the wardrobe staple, which led them to dark or black opaque tights combined with tight miniskirts – not to mention the certified lace craze of the time. Leading fashion designers like Azzedine Alaïa also started to notice the benefits of Lycra for underwear and hosiery, working with stretchy fabrics to create figure hugging stretch dresses and bodysuits.

Fast forward to the 2010s. Normcore was on the map, popularised by a New York Magazine article on the phenomenon. One of the first ‘core’ aesthetics, it paved the path for the likes of 'cottage core'. The Nordic version saw Birkenstock sandals paired with chunky socks. Often referred to as a fashion faux pas, the combination has found new popularity in recent seasons.

From 18th century menswear, to the socks and sandals of Nordic cottage core, today the multifaceted and ever relevant stockings and socks have a cemented place in our closets. Printed, patterned and playful, they have been stuffed into everything from Prada loafers to Nodaleto Mary Janes on the spring/summer pre-autumn runways of 2022.

Whether sleek and sexy, with the revival of the supermodel era, or moderately mod in opaque 1960s tights, we're embracing socks and stockings season after season.