Tuesday 19 August 2008

Men In Tights

I hate to spring this on you without so much as a by your leave, but I heard it on the BBC World Service, so it must be true: 50 percent of German men wear tights. Yes that's one in two, every other German man. Pose the question 'Are you wearing tights?' on a German factory floor or in a German office, and not only will all the female hands go up (apart perhaps from a saucy minority), but every other male hand will also rise. What on earth are these men thinking of? And it's not just the Germans - sales of male tights are soaring in the UK too, and a quick Google of 'men's tights' is an eye-opening experience...
Gentlemen of a certain age still recall those dark days when, with shocking suddenness, stockings and suspenders gave way to the all-encasing synthetic horror of 'pantyhose' (ghastly word). But now, it seems, men are following the same route. Of course they attempt to link this aberrant behaviour to such manly outdoor pursuits as motorcycling - yeah sure, and of course you have to shave your legs so they go on smoothly...
No, I fear it's all part of the feminisation of the western male, as reflected in the surging market for male skincare products. This is not in itself a bad thing, but come on, we've got to draw the line somewhere. I draw it at tights.
Cravats? Yes! (I was out in mine again last night, looking one hell of a fellow). Tights? Nein danke!

36 comments:

  1. Nige, sorry to be a bother but could I borrow you cravat? I've told Bryan that I'll be wearing mine when I interview him on tonight's show but I seem to have mislaid it.

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    Replies
    1. Tights for men and women from around the world here .. It's informative website.
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      Delete
    2. Tights for men and women from around the world here .. It's informative website.
      www.pantyhose8.weblahko.sk

      Delete
  2. Well Dick I'd love to help you out - but two problems. One, I'm at Nigecorp today and the cravat is hanging up at home. Two, it is made, to my shame, of polyester (it was an emergency purchase)- and the silk cravats I'm getting off eBay haven't yet come in. The Madeley neck demands silk, I'm sure.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tights for men and women from around the world. web Information
      These are my photos. All summer dress tights under shorts and it's great !!! My colleagues and family surrounding me I dress and high heels fandia..ale health reasons.
      https://picasaweb.google.com/hkey22/JaNosimSilonkyVerejne?authkey=Gv1sRgCImV_f-eg56h-AE

      Delete
    2. Tights for men and women from around the world. web Information
      These are my photos. All summer dress tights under shorts and it's great !!! My colleagues and family surrounding me I dress and high heels fandia..ale health reasons.
      https://picasaweb.google.com/hkey22/JaNosimSilonkyVerejne?authkey=Gv1sRgCImV_f-eg56h-AE

      Delete
  3. Thanks, Nige. I agree. Silk or nothing. I might have to go with nothing but I did want to make an effort for Bryan. It's a shame that I still don't have the cravats that the late Derek Nimmo once gave me.

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  4. Ah Derek - now there was a cravat man! There aren't many of us left - Nicholas Parsons, Charles Collingwood, me...

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  5. This is just bizarre. Why would men be wearing panty hose? Personally, I can't stand to wear them *ever* unless it's the dead of winter and I have to wear a dress (and then they're suitably black and warm).

    Is it a vascular thing? Like, to stop varicose veins or something? 'Cause, otherwise, seems like it would be a very UNWISE thing to do for the male anatomy elsewhere.

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  6. Germans in tights are as nothing compared with bloggers appearing on the telly in their pajama tops. I would comment more but I have to nip out for some celery.

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  7. And what a spry young blade he looked. I had the subtitles on, to hilarious effect...

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  8. Can't be long before cardigans are back in fashion....hurrah!

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  9. Es lebt die Strumpfhose!

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  10. Well this is nonsense. We could of course have a discussion about why so many German men shave their pubic region. But that's a horse of a different colour...

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  11. I'm most concerned, like Anonymous said on 21 August at 09:27, that there are a significant number of men who think that it is okay to shave their whole body, including underarms, trim their pubes in some fantastic shape, believe that body hair is in someway disgusting or un sexy and then allow women to dictate that view of a man's body to him. Jeeeez.

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  12. Second anonymous, I am with you totally. I absolutely love a man's hairy chest and it astonishes me that the fashion now is for men with hairless torsos. What is UP with that? Some desire to make men look like boys, methinks. My daughter (19) is completely into this hairless look, which shows how the media's brainwashing really works.

    I even noticed, while watching "Iron Man," that Robert Downey Jr. must have had every follicle on his torso waxed. There's a scene where his shirt rides up and there is NO line of hair between his belly button and, well, lower. I love babies and their soft hairless skin, but men like that are just creepy.

    Men, let your testosterone show. Real women like hairy men.

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  13. And we care what other people wear under their pants or how they deal with their body hair why?? It's too hard to acknowledge that people have different tastes?

    Susan B., are you saying your daughter's not a "real woman" because she likes the hairless look?

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  14. She's only 19, Philip, and blissfully innocent in many ways. I'm hoping she falls for a tall, dark, and (hairily) handsome guy like her dad, not a waxed chihuahua of a man.

    However, she did say she thought your Becks had the best male body she'd ever seen. He's the rare exception I'll make -- a good looking hairless fellow. Kicks a ball pretty good, too.

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  15. "(...) every other male hand will also rise" - depends largely on the season. You will probably find many German men wearing their cotton tights in cold winters (instead of long underpants), but during other seasons German men don't wear tights.

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  16. Where did you get the information from, that 50% of all German men wear tights?
    Did you make a poll on the streets or ask a manufacturer?
    By the way: Germany has a population of more than 80 Million
    50% would be like 10 to 20 Million adult men!

    Looking forward to your answer!

    Holger

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  17. Chest hair is so 1970s porn star. Tights on a men are okay, but are we making a distinction between tights=leggings and tight=pantyhose? because pantyhose =no. Leggings (athletic) =acceptable.

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  18. Nothing wrong or surprising about this. Men wearing tights (that's leggings for Americans) is perfectly fine. Don't forget that was very "manly" clothing for several centuries before women took over the fashion after giving up dresses in the 1900s. They are comfortable, hold male anatomy better than boxers and work very well as long underwear, easily transitions into athletic endeavors such as the bikeride home from work.

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  19. I think it should be OK to wear tights. Especially in winter. They are warm and comfortable, if got the right size.

    I have to dress up as Zwarte Piet on the fifth of december so I wear them then.



    I must say, I onley wear them then.

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  20. all those against this are nothing but a bunch of judgmental, insecure, pigs. life is for the living so live it to its fullest. That's what i believe. To him his own. Plus just because you look down on this, doesn't mean any body who does this cares...

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  21. Perfume aftershave makes the difference

    It is actually something else to use a good perfume aftershave, because this is a product that will enhance the best features in you, and of course, as you might know, our face is our personal presentation card, in other words, our face is the first thing that someone is always going to be looking at, and therefore you want to look as good as possible, and to have a clean shave you are going to need some extra products, and one of these extra products that really makes a difference is Perfume aftershave.

    I say that this product makes a difference cause it is really something else what you get from this, in other words, there are many advantages, and trust me, you are going to be loving each and everyone of these differences. For example, when you buy a good Perfume aftershave you might want to start off with the smell, the scent of these products is really important, since the smell of a product like this is also going to be your smell, and trust me, that is a really important factor for whenever you want to not only look good, but to attract someone’s attention because of the way you smell. Other then that, you might like to learn about the benefits, good smell isn’t everything, so I advice you to look for a good Perfume aftershave that will also clear up you skin from dirtiness, this is to ensure that you are not going to be catching a nasty infection due to a cut, nor that you get an ugly rash which is a real common thing to happen to all of us that shave each day. And finally, get a Perfume aftershave that is also going to take good care of your skin, something that functions as a humectant, that is also going to be able to smooth your skin.

    Do this and I assure you that the change is going to be significant, you are going to look better, with a real good shaved faced and also, with a magnificent scent women just adore. http://www.bestaftershaveformen.com

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  22. It's cool to see that men wearing tights thing is catching on sort of... plenty of people out there with a weird quirk or two.

    Yes I wear, there are pics on my site if you don't believe me.

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  23. Ok,I have read all the comments people have posted in response to this and....I think you are all mad..It's perfectly fine for men to wear tights or pantyhose as you say in the usa, they are an item of clothing..that's it, women wear them to show of their legs, men can wear them because they feel nice and are a comfortable alternative to socks and boxers.I think the embarrising aspect shinning through here is peoples attitudes and behaviours in society today towards one another...always a busybody somewhere to tell you why you can't do this or wear that...it's victimization on a grand scale. No individual should ever look outside of him/herself to consider how to dress or act, be yourself..always.The fact is tights being sold to men is begining to overtake women, online sales at least, many hosiery websites are now confirming that 50%of all sales are going to male customers and were not talking about "mens tights", these are womens style tights that men are buying and wearing...why? because they simply like the feel of them..what's wrong with that?

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  24. Sorry for commenting on an old article....

    I think a part of the confusion is that what they're wearing is more like long underwear with feet (built-in socks) than "tights." See:
    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Strickstrumpfhose_2.jpg
    http://www.german-hosiery-museum.de/herrenstruempfe/herrenstruempfe5.html

    I also think they'd be much more popular outside of Germany if they were sold that way, too.

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  25. i love wearing pantyhose and tights the way they make my legs look the warmth the support but as u know only takes bad apples to give us males that just loves wearing a bad image the ones that talk about turn ons and sexual gratification when wearing rather than the love to wear hate to blame men but those that express wearing in that way gives women the wrong idea about men wearing and is a shame that women get the wrong idea about men wearing

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    ReplyDelete
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  28. tights wearing men why not we can wear tights no matter the color its fashion after all and if worn correctly as fashion they look great on

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  29. I think its just fine for men to wear tights I have 50 pair, for whatever temp or mood I'm feeling. If I'm not at work I'm in leggings, were not all Al Bundy sit around in thick Jean's, hand in your pants with a beer type. I can't wait till it's a social norm and until the I'm going to help promote that. Women want equality well we do to. If your making fun of me in my leggings you might as well be calling out racial slurs.

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  30. Wearing pantyhose is beneficial for both boys and girls. It is better to wear pantyhose on long trips for sports or work. It is more comfortable in winter. Some fashionable manufacturers make pantyhose for men. If you don't know how to choose and buy men pantyhose suitable for men's wearing than I suggest you read this men pantyhose .

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