LEGS ! LEGS ! LEGS !
Not since the miniskirted ‘60s have legs been so exuberant, with hosiery the essential accessory for this season’s shorter skirts. Leggings and tights, the body-closest wrapping of fall’s multilayered look, fit smoothly under anything from a big sweater or jacket to a tailored suit. They can even be worn over each other: Oscar de la Renta mixed new colors by layering three pairs of semisheer tights.
When combined with an outfit of the same shade, opaque tights in new autumnal colors--old gold, bark brown, loden and berry--define a long, flattering silhouette. Casual leggings come in sweater-like ribs and cables or plush-velvet textures. For the more adventurous, a riotous palette of ‘60s psychedelic colors--acid pink, chartreuse and purple--make legs shimmer. Novelty tights in bold colors--inspired by couture’s enfant terrible Christian Lacroix, whose collection kicked off the printed leg earlier this year--are not for the faint of heart. How much you cover--or uncover--depends on your age, shape and destination.
This season, one thing seems certain: Without tights, you don’t have a leg to stand on.
Model: Heidi Risser / Nina Blanchard Agency.
Tights: Resources
Border, clockwise from top left: Hue black Velvet Legging, $75, at Nordstrom. Dolci Calze Scacchi, $17; Pois, $17, and Hilda, $22, at The Broadway Century City. DKNY Opaque Coverage, $10.50, at Bullock’s Beverly Center. Hue Cotton Capri, $13, at Neiman Marcus. Hue Capri Lace, $15, at Bullock’s. Hue Antique Rosette, $14, at Neiman Marcus. Fogal of Switzerland Covent Garden, $135, at Fogal of Switzerland, Beverly Hills. Hue Foulard, $14 , at Neiman Marcus. Floral Lace Capri, $14, at Bullock’s. Hue Net, $18.50, at Nordstrom South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa. Hue Antique Rosette, $14, at Nordstom. Hue Capri Lace, $15, at Bullock’s. Hue Rib, $12, at I. Magnin. Hue Granite, $14; Hue Granite, $14, both at Neiman Marcus. Hue Rib, $12, at I. Magnin. DKNY Opaque Coverage, $10.50, at Bullock’s. Fogal of Switzerland Kreta, $135. Center photos, clockwise from top left: Expo, $60, at Neiman Marcus. Betsey Johnson Schoolgirl, $63; Tattoo, $63, both at Betsey Johnson. Baryshnikov Bodywear, $29, at Neiman Marcus. Betsey Johnson Very Victorian, $65, and Mosaic, $71, both at Betsey Johnson.
