Sheer tights have always portrayed an image of
feminism, elegance and poise within fashion. Sheer tights were initially
created as a way for a woman to cover her legs due to the unacceptance of the
legs on show in public, but became a §wardrobe accessory in the 70’s and 80’s.
The revolution of Nylon, gave consumers a bigger opportunity to be able to
buy tights at a reasonable price, as silk was very expensive, so finding this
alternative had a huge impact on the fashion industry at this time, and being
the 1930’s, and the beginning of world war II, it was important to find something
as cheap as possible as it was the start of the rationing.
The 1950’s saw the development of stretch nylon, the
fibre was developed to be crimped under heat pressure that would allow more
stretch of the fabric; extreme stretch to improve comfort and mobility.
The 80’s saw a lot more use of sheer fabrics, and the
acceptance of the body being on show, and nudity becoming a part of the
fashionable image.
Sheer garments are now becoming a huge part of current
trends, not only nylon garments, but chiffon and organza. Initially tights were
designed to hide a part of the body, where as now sheer materials are being
used to advertise and show off areas. What is too sheer? Does it exist?
Does the transparency of a garment make it too
provocative? Are tights as elegant and feminine as they were once before? These
are the areas I wanted to explore. Could the concept of sheer tights be altered?
Could I create something diverse and juxtaposed and unlike anything that has
been seen before? I want people to see tights with a broader imagination, and
show how fashion can change the portrayal of a garment or object.
I wanted to explore other means of incorporating
tights into fashion pieces, and removing the image we have on tights currently.
Tights are known for being worn on the legs but I wanted to use various body
parts to show how they can be manipulated into something completely different.
Femininity is something that tights always represented, but I feel that
transforming them into something that is the opposite, would create a
diverse opinion. I experimented with not just tights, incorporating stuffing and other materials. I
wanted to make something quite 2D, more 3D, creating a bigger statement. The
Idea of putting the tights on the head was to create something quite
uncomfortable and quite aggressive which completely opposes the concept of
elegant tights. The scarf piece created though could still be seen as quite
elegant and chic, so when put together creates a confusing image. The fact that
tights are almost transparent show that something is still on view, but
stuffing the tights removes the transparency, and putting the tights on the
face almost removes and hides any identity, which makes an elegant fashion
object change into something quite intimidating.
