Thank you for the great tip Angie! I think I have been doing this already. I am usually off the charts on hosiery sizing sheets, based on my weight it would be a smaller size and on the height a bigger one, so I always go for bigger one. This is especially true for very delicate sheer silky hosiery.

Good advice! I always size up – at 5′10 I am often at the edge of the height charts, but like Tanya, lower on the weight. I always buy the largest size, even if it’s supposedly way too big and this is the only way I have ever had long enough hosiery.

This post reminds me of an embarassing moment. Several years ago my SIL had seen on Oprah or someplace that every woman should wear Queen sized stockings for comfort and the reasons you cite for sizing up. She gifted me with some nice Queens. I wore them to teach sixth graders one day and they seemed comfy until at morning recess they fell around my ankles. It wasn’t acceptable to go without stockings in those days in my miniskirt, so at lunchtime I put them back on with my panties over them hoping the whole business wouldn’t fall down in front of the class. There are risks in sizing up too much!

Tanya, I’m in the same boat and do the same thing. Going up a size has proved to be the best thing to do with hose if you are regular height or taller.

Joy, how funny. I don’t mean to laugh at your expense Joy, but your story illustrates how sizing up too much is simply a bad idea. Hope those elephant leg days are over!

What is laddering?

I also once tried sizing up and they kept rolling off all day! I have that problem a lot in general with hose. They just don’t seem to stay up and I constantly have to yank them in place throughout the day, but I am petite so sizing up just made it worse rather than better.

Joy that story is a classic!!!

Laddering is getting runs, Cedar.

I’ve been doing this for years, and it always guarantees a great fit. Another recommendation I would make is to buy your tights and hose in control top, even if you don’t need it. Control top keeps your hose from falling down (like Joy’s), and it enables you to tuck any camis or blouses into it to keep a nice smooth line under your clothes. If you buy the bigger size, like Angie says, the control top won’t be uncomfortable.

Thanks for clarifying what “laddering means” for Cedar, Sheila. That’s interesting. Is this not a commonly used American term? How would you describe the act of “laddering your stockings”?

Maya, I’ve found that better quality hose does not sag at all. It stays taut against your legs the entire day (no pulling or panty plucking). I wish this weren’t the case as I’d be much happier spending less for hose seeing as their lifespan is short. Unfortunately this remains my perception.

“Laddering” is more UK usage than American – it’s still used in parts of Canada too (I’m just north of you, Angie, in Victoria).

In the US, they’d say, “I have a run in my nylons.” Stockings are usually the kind that are just legs (stay-ups or for use with a garter belt). Nylons or pantyhose are the usual terms.

Thanks, Sheila and good to know you’re quite close by. We’ve been to Victoria. A sweet and quaint place. It took us about 2 hours by ferry from one of the Seattle waterfront piers. You make FABULOUS tea.

“Nylons” is a word I do not hear much anymore. I should blog about the semantics of hosiery. It could be fun hearing how differently people use their terms.

[...] the mix-up. Interestingly, I thought that “laddering” was a universal term (for example, see my recent post on hosiery sizes). Apparently, in the US, people say something along the lines of “I have a run in my nylons” [...]