Sometimes tights seem almost disposable, don’t they? Many women know the pain of spending good money on a great pair of new tights only to have them run during the first wear. Here are a few tips for keeping them lasting longer but after that, read some tips for things you can do with the tights that you won’t get a chance to wear again, either because of a run or ladder or because they’ve started to sag.
Avoid Runs in Your Tights:
- Don’t put on your rings until after your tights are on. Rings often catch in tights.
- Check your nails. Snags can happen with the brittle end of a nail, too. (Fingernails and toenails!)
- Gather them up before putting them on and do so slowly.
- Buy good quality tights. Cheaply made ones definitely don’t last as long.
- Hand wash. They don’t typically fare well through the dryer, especially when washed with other items.
Some Suggested Uses for Ruined Tights:
Just because you can’t wear them, this doesn’t mean you can’t find uses for them:
- Tie back your hair with it when around the house (for face-washing, cleaning, etcetera)
- Have trouble washing your back in the shower? Try putting the soap in the middle of a leg from a pair of tights. Grasp one end of the leg in one hand and one in the other. With the soap in the middle, you can now do a better job of getting your back washed.
- Tie tights up into a few knots and work great for use as a bath puff.
- Do as in #3 but use it for cleaning. It’ll do a nice job on things that need a scrub but that you don’t want scratched and it helps get things into a great lather.
- Put a leg over a long ruler and use it to clean behind and underneath the fridge. It works a lot like those static cloths that attract dirt.
- Fill a leg of a tight or a stocking with potpourri and use for a drawer or closet sachet.
- Use old nylons to store onions (they last longer) or garlic.
- A pair of tights or stockings often works great, in a pinch, as a lint remover or animal hair remover due to its static effect.
- A nylon tight with an elastic can work in lieu of a dryer vent for catching lint.
- Stretch them over a wire coat hanger and use to scoop dead bugs and leaves from your pool.
- They work great as a filter / strainer for things like paint.
Freelance blogger Sharon Hurley Hall invites you to check out Pamela Mann, which offers a wide variety of tights, stockings, holdups, socks, and legwarmers.
