My Ride or Die Clothing Item Forever; Stockings

I’ll be talking about one of my best guilty pleasures, a critical and packable part of my everyday wear. Part of the hype in the traveling space right now is getting shots of your trip abroad in a big romantic dress in front of some picturesque scene. That sounds like a great idea on paper but in a practical sense, it may not be. You may have very limited space in your carry-on or you may be crazy like me and only rock a personal item while you travel. For me, stuffing a big romantic dress in my Cotopaxi backpack is not viable, though buying one abroad and mailing it home is not out of the question. Anyway, you don’t have enough room to pack a dress and you want to show off your feminine style goddamn it.

That’s why stockings are just perfect—strangely casual, oddly formal. Somehow they’re perfect for both summer and winter; essential and minimalist. I wear stockings almost daily, whether I’m traveling, at a house party or club, or at some event around town. I love them and will love them forever. I will never go back to wearing pants all the time. That being said, I do usually wear super short skirts (and thin booty shorts underneath for freedom’s sake - I’m not a masochist) so if you have none, you will have to go buy some (oh no an excuse to buy clothes) and make sure you have room for two skirts in your luggage. Two skirts are still less than one puffy dress.

So you’re entertaining this idea. Maybe you’re experienced or maybe you’re new. Regardless, this is going to be a rant on sustainability and buying quality items. This will help you avoid stockings that fall, pill, tear or lack support. It will also help you avoid contributing to the negative impacts of fast fashion.

If you’ve seen the documentary, The True Cost, you’ve learned that fast fashion is destroying the planet, as well as exploiting garment workers in developing countries who fall victim to the unethical practices of corporations. Often these corporations justify their actions by stating they’re “providing jobs where there would be none”, however they are completely aware that the lack of jobs and competition gives them the freedom to provide criminally low wages and enable severely abusive working conditions, some that even result in death. To learn more, watch the documentary.

I recently discovered Swedish Stockings, a sustainable hosiery company, and was shocked to read the following on their website:

“Each year, 8 billion pairs of tights are produced, worn once and then discarded. This makes hosiery women’s biggest wear-and-tear clothing item.”

It occurred to me that even though I try to avoid contributing to fast fashion, my super staple item is one of the biggest offenders. I’m so thankful Swedish Stockings exist because now I can be more conscious in my stocking purchases. I would have been very sad to sacrifice a critical part of my personal style. So I made an order and I completely recommend them. I’ve listed two items below that work with my personal style—a pair of thigh highs and ribbed tights. They fit into the tiniest of luggage pockets and instantly make my outfits look more feminine.

More reasons to buy from Swedish Stockings over other sellers:

• They’re transparent in their practices, their factories and where they source

• They find new ways to use nylon waste and create new strategies to focus on circularity

• They are made with organic wool, organic cotton, cashmere and other high-quality, recycled materials

• Products include tights, knee-highs, leggings, and socks

• They are superior quality, sustainable and made in Italy

Quotes from the Swedish Stockings website:

“After learning that traditional pantyhose are petroleum products planned for obsolescence, we started Swedish Stockings with the mission to change and influence the entire hosiery industry towards sustainable production overall.”

“Pantyhose are women's biggest consumable garment and also incredibly harmful to the environment. We started Swedish Stockings because we believed we could make a change. Sustainability and quality goes hand in hand. If we can create a product that women can wear for a longer time, then we can also buy less.”