Author: hilldong@yantaithriving.com

Ornamental hosiery is set to be the unsung style hero of 2024. For example, Sydney Sweeney’s thigh-high lace white tights are turning heads. Similarly, Nicola Peltz’s sheer stockings paired with a white mini dress are making a bold statement. Meanwhile, Camille Charriere’s fashion week fishnets are everywhere. Additionally, a new hosiery variation is gaining popularity among style icons like Kristen Stewart, Zendaya, and Julia Fox.

Knee-high tights and socks have long been associated with school uniforms, sophisticated Upper East Side grandmas, and nerdy college students. One thing is clear: knee-highs are versatile and inclusive, appealing to all styles and ages.

Knee-high tights have gained attention recently, thanks to Zendaya’s ultra-glam Schiaparelli Haute Couture look. She wore fishnet knee-highs from Wolford, setting a new trend in hosiery.

Since then, we’ve been eagerly watching for more celebrities embracing the knee-high trend. Recently, our wish was granted when Kristen Stewart (kudos to her stylist) and Julia Fox both stepped out wearing knee-highs earlier this week.

Are knee-high socks still in style?

Knee-high socks have come in and out of fashion over the years. However, they experienced a major comeback in the 1960s and 1970s. This resurgence was driven by the mod styles of the time, with knee-highs often paired with mini skirts and Mary Jane shoes, creating a youthful and playful look.

“The style waned in popularity in later decades but saw a revival in the 1990s and early 2000s,” explains Natalie Salmon, Editor at Hello! Fashion. “This resurgence was fueled by the schoolgirl look popularized by pop culture and celebrities. Since then, knee-high socks have become a fashion staple, frequently reappearing in transitional seasons as a chic way to add warmth and visual interest to outfits.”

How to Style Knee High Socks in 2024…

With A Cool-Girl Co-ord

Rosie expertly styled knee-high socks with a sleek skirt suit from Alo, perfectly complementing the dark, sheer socks. The socks add sophistication and create a striking contrast with her Prada heeled pumps, resulting in a chic, modern look.

With Chunky Boots

One of my favorite ways to wear knee-highs is with chunky boots. Bella Hadid’s look perfectly embodies goth-chic, with the knee-highs adding a feminine touch to her all-black ensemble.

With Heels in the Same Colour

With Trainers

With Ballet Flats

Julia Fox wore nude knee-highs with pink ballet flats, a striped turtleneck sweater, and secretary-core glasses, effortlessly channeling Y2K style.

With A LBD

Instagram’s chicest style mogul, Sarah Lysander, stunned at Paris Fashion Week earlier this month in a cute LBD paired with sheer black knee-highs. While an LBD is a statement on its own, the addition of sheer socks elevates the look to a whole new level of style.

Planning a night out but unsure what to wear? No worries! Queen Dua Lipa just shared the perfect outfit that’s sure to earn those fire emojis in your group chat.

Dua Lipa’s fashion game, both on and off the stage, is always impressive. Whether she’s dining with friends in Capri or gracing the red carpets during awards season, her style never disappoints.

Today, Dua Lipa proved her fashion icon status once again. She dazzled in a white leather co-ord while performing for thousands of fans in Lisbon. As usual, she went all out: pairing micro leather shorts with a matching bralette, knee-high boots, fishnet tights, and chunky silver necklaces from Tiffany & Co.

Unsurprisingly, this isn’t the first time the award-winning songstress has worn mini shorts this week. Just yesterday, Dua Lipa appeared at the Mad Cool Festival in Madrid, Spain, sporting a custom Miu Miu outfit. This look featured embellished shorts and a sheer black cropped t-shirt, decorated with bold sequins and pale blue crystals. Plus, she completed the look with fishnet tights, keeping her signature style consistent.

Clearly, tiny all-black outfits and fishnet tights have become Dua Lipa’s go-to stage look. At Glastonbury, she nailed punk glamour in a leather corseted top and mini skirt set from Chrome Hearts. As usual, she completed her ensemble with her favorite fishnet tights.

Earlier this year, the 28-year-old radiated sultry glamour in a v-neck wraparound dress that reinvented the classic LBD. Her black mini dress showcased daring lace panels and a thigh-high split. The standout feature was her fishnet tights, which added the perfect popstar edge to her look.

If Dua Lipa can rock all-black and tights in summer, then it’s definitely good enough for us too.

Although Bella Hadid is stepping back from modeling, she still made a major fashion statement at the Cannes Film Festival this year. Known for wearing gold lungs in 2021, Hadid remains a standout at the event, proving she hasn’t missed a beat.

Today, at The Apprentice premiere, she stunned in a sheer dress from Anthony Vaccarello’s Fall 2024 Saint Laurent collection.

Her dress, like many on the runway, was see-through and made of sheer, stretchy pantyhose material. She completed the look with Saint Laurent’s La Scandale wedge and styled her hair in a deep, Old Hollywood side part with polished waves.

The dress had a halter neckline and a sheer bodice. The thin material was ruched, knotted, and tucked at the midsection, flowing into a midi-length pencil skirt with visible seams and a thick hem.

Back in February, critics questioned how a garment made of delicate hosiery material would work in the real world. Vaccarrello responded, saying runway presentations are about fantasy, not reality. “So much fashion looks the same. I wanted to propose something new and exciting,” he said. “My job isn’t always to create something realistic.”

What ends up in Saint Laurent boutiques may differ from what Hadid wore. Like the runway, her unique Cannes creation was meant to inspire, not for everyday wear.

“Don’t even ask me about production, I can’t tell you,” Vaccarrelo finished.

Returning to Saint Laurent’s Fall 2024 presentation, some found it challenging to see beyond the craft or purpose of building a collection around hosiery. New York Times fashion critic Vanessa Friedman was shocked by the sight of so many breasts and skinny models on the runway. She remarked, “the pictures can’t even be shown in this family newspaper.” Friedman also criticized the collection as misjudged due to the politics of women’s bodies, suggesting that unlike children, breasts should not be seen.

On another note, Vaccarello’s ability to deviate from the brand’s commercial vision without input from sales teams’ data and analytics allows him to be an artist while leading a house that sells billions of euros in clothes, bags, and perfumes annually.

With most luxury brands showcasing four womenswear collections a year, do we really need to see purchasable clothes every time? Can’t designers have the space to create art? Whether the art is appreciated or not is irrelevant. Runway parameters shouldn’t measure wearability, breasts on show or not. Otherwise, brands like Comme des Garçons would have been out of business decades ago. The fashion industry needs visionaries like Rei Kawakubo and Anthony Vaccarello.

Anyway, Hadid knows the difference. Earlier this weekend, she strolled the streets of Cannes in a less-sheer but equally flirty minidress. The espresso-hued dress featured a structured, corset-inspired bodice, and she completed the look with a camel-colored Prada handbag. This proves she’s all about easy, breezy, monochrome dressing while soaking up the sun in the South of France.

This season’s hottest accessory among fashion’s cool girls is a pair of bright red tights. Amidst barely-there hosiery and warm wool tights, red stands out. Red has a rich fashion history, with red nails, lips, and shoes all being iconic attention-grabbers. The “tomato girl summer” trend in 2023 further showcased this vibrant hue online.

Now, it’s time for bright red legwear to take the spotlight.

Street stylists have been spotted adopting the trend at various fashion weeks. In February, Chloë Sevigny, known as “the It girl to end all It girls,” wore a full red outfit with hose while staring down the camera on the cover of British Vogue.

Many embrace the power of red by using vermilion nylons to create a seamless monochrome look. For a pro tip, opt for a short hem to show off your legs or wear darker colors on top for a bold contrast. Unlike hosiery designed to cover skin discreetly, bright tights highlight the legs and add a pop of color to simple outfits.

This trend started in high fashion with Valentino’s spring 2023 runway, known for their signature red. It continued with fall 2023 collections from Jacquemus and Dolce & Gabbana. The trend persisted into spring 2024 looks from Givenchy and Burberry, proving its staying power.

Red tights boast a formidable fashion pedigree dating back well before recent runways. In the sixties, mod styles embraced this accessory, while Princess Diana of Wales elegantly paired red hosiery with matching skirt suits on multiple occasions. Even Liza Minnelli famously sported a pair of red tights in the early ’70s while performing “Liza with a Z.

Fashionistas with an eye on recent history may remember red tights as an iconic piece in Blair Waldorf’s wardrobe, the Upper-East-Side elite from the CW’s “Gossip Girl,” or as a beloved staple in the early-aughts “indie sleaze” fashion scene.

Fashionistas in the 2020s have declared it’s time to bring back the trend. Personally, we’re more than ready to paint the town red.

 

Tights are back in style, offering a timeless, sleek, and sultry addition to any outfit. Perfect for light layering in tricky spring weather, tights bring an elegant touch that elevates your look. Once considered a grandma’s accessory, tights are now a must-have for modern fashionistas. From fun polka dots to bold statement pieces, sheer tights are everywhere.

“Sheer clothing is a major trend, and an easy way to implement it into their wardrobe is through tights,” says stylist Justine Logue. “It elevates a simpler outfit, making it a trend that many people can adopt with items already in their closet.” Indeed, incorporating sheer tights into your daily wardrobe opens up numerous outfit possibilities tailored to your style.

Looking for inspiration? Here are our 7 favorite ways to style sheer tights for any aesthetic and outfit.

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Bold Red

If you want to make a statement and capture everyone’s attention, cherry red is your color. With recent trends like “Tomato Girl Summer” and cherry red nails, bold and vibrant hues are in. It’s no surprise that red tights are now making their mark.

To embrace this trend, try a monochromatic look. For instance, take inspiration from Beatrice Granno. Pair sheer red tights with matching shorts. Add coordinating shoes and a blazer. The result is a stylish and elegant ensemble.

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Delicate Lace

A pop of lace adds a touch of elegance. Balance delicate, feminine lace tights with something edgier, like leather shorts. Leather and lace have always complemented each other, creating a timeless combination that always looks amazing, no matter how you style it.

For a bolder look, pair lace tights with patterned tops. Ensure your shoes are sleek and minimal to match the edgy shorts. Avoid too many conflicting patterns; instead, aim for a balanced and chic outfit.

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Fishnets

Is there anything sexier than fishnet tights? They’re the ultimate sheer legwear, adding an unmatched edge to any outfit. Fishnets aren’t just trendy—they also bring texture and depth, instantly elevating your look.

Pair them with a sleek black pump and an oversized blazer for a chic “I-just-threw-this-on” style. It’s the epitome of femme fatale allure.

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No Pants, No Problems

If you adore your classic black sheer tights, consider stepping out of your comfort zone. Ditch your pants and embrace tights as a stylish alternative. They’re increasingly replacing full pants or acting as a semi-covering for ultra-mini skirts.

To rock this bold trend, simply pair them with a bodysuit. It’s an effortless way to feel like a celebrity in seconds.

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Schoolgirl Aesthetic

If it’s good enough for Olivia Rodrigo, it’s perfect for us too. Embrace a touch of boarding school chic by layering sheer tights under a plaid skirt. Complete the look with ankle socks and loafers for the ultimate cool girl vibe.

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All About Boots

We might be biased, but shoes truly complete every outfit. For a seamless transition from dinner to a night out, knee-high boots paired with tights are essential. If it’s chilly, layer with a leather jacket for both warmth and added edge.

Accessorize with bold rings and a graphic tee to complete the look effortlessly!

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Say Pink? Say Less

For the maximalist who loves to make a statement, pairing pink tights with a floral ensemble is perfect for spring. Don’t forget to accessorize! Experiment with purses, earrings, and coats to add layers of dimension and whimsy to your look.

Are you ready for the next big thing in hosiery? We’ll give you a hint: much like red tights, this trend also owes props to “Gossip Girl’s” queen bee Blair Waldorf for being an early adopter. If you’re thinking of white tights, then you’re absolutely right.

This white-hot trend probably comes as no surprise to close followers of online aesthetics — hosiery is a staple in the coquette and balletcore styles, which have dominated in recent months. Brands whose influence is evident in these trends, like Miu Miu, Simone Rocha and Sandy Liang, use tights and stockings to add a playful twist to feminine silhouettes.

This trend has been a slow (but white-hot) burn. Back in 2020, white tights dominated Chanel’s spring couture show, appearing in dozens of looks. While they didn’t take off right away, they’re now leaping into the spotlight, including on our Alexa cover star Sarah Paulson.

Chanel has once again adopted the accessory as a mainstay in its spring 2024 couture collection — featured in most of the show’s looks, including the one worn by runway opener Margaret Qualley.

Last year, Gigi Hadid showed herself ahead of the curve when she wore Malaikaraiss in NYC, after rocking the tights for Chanel in 2020. Recent A-list wearers — from “Mean Girls” star Angourie Rice wearing Theory and Kristen Stewart in Chanel to street-style mavericks at New York Fashion Week — have proven that the trend is ready to strut its stuff in 2024.

There are two main schools of thought among fashionistas who rock the white-tight look. The first opts for a monochrome or near-monochrome look, where white tights — usually opaque — smooth the transition as the eye travels from outfit to shoes. Hadid, Rice, Stewart, and influencer Saskia Teje are all fans of this head-to-toe blanc look, which is a sleek and classy way to elevate an outfit.

The second option favors maximalism, where white tights are used as a fun, feminine accessory to highlight a short hem or playful shoes.

Fashion’s latest eyebrow-raising trend is ditching pants and daring you to say something about it. The liberation of legs and the air of sexual ownership that comes with it, however, stand on ground laid decades ago. So who’s wearing the pants here? Speaking literally, certainly not fashion’s tastemakers. On runways and red carpets, our most stylish stars have ditched their pants entirely—but don’t let that fool you into thinking they’re not taking charge. Quite the opposite is true.

In a maximally minimal moment, wide-leg jeans, the bigger the better, are in the mode—do not even speak the name of the skinny.

At the same time, celebrities and designers are somehow covering themselves entirely with tights and hose while simultaneously letting it all hang out. The fashion set has found a way to reframe that most staid accessory, a pair of tights, and turn it into a daring and, dare we say, sexy centerpiece. Who knew a little bit of nylon could make such a big statement?

Kristen Stewart has forgone pants, and so have Jenners both Kendall and Kylie, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Hailey Bieber, Emma Corrin, Bianca Censori, and a lot of models—for Bottega Veneta, Alaïa, Miu Miu, the list goes on. In high-fashion circles lately, it’s all upper thigh as far as the eye can see, a pandemic of pantslessness, with sheer tights and pantyhose standing in for trousers and skirts, underpinnings as outerwear.

Stewart’s stylist, Tara Swennen, who has been working with the actor ever since her Twilight days, is responsible for that daring, barely-there Bettter bodysuit that Stewart paired with sheer black hose—extremely visible control-top waistband and all—that 34-year-old Stewart wore last month to the premiere of Love Lies Bleeding.

That thick black waistband laid bare across Stewart’s midsection can be read as an in-your-face sort of saying the quiet part out loud, being in control of one’s own control top, the shaper of one’s own shapewear, commander of the commando, empowerer of the 20–30 denier, and all that, but the declarative statement look actually began as a happy accident.

Swennen and Stewart had fallen in love with the ultra-high-cut Bettter piece, which the design house had suggested be paired with tights or hose.

“It’s really hard to find hose these days that don’t have a control top” Swennen explained. “And I was like, I really need something where you don’t see that because this thing is so small. It became like Mission: Impossible. And then when we tried on the final pair that we wore, there was a little bit peeking out, and I looked at it and I was like, ‘Oh, man, all right. Well, that didn’t work.’”

And then we were like ‘…or did it?’”

Head tilt. Considered pause. Against all odds, the in-your-face swath of the waistband became an elegant juxtaposition with the minimalism of the barely-there sarong. Not long after the premiere, Stewart walked the streets of New York City in flesh-colored hose, complete with structural reinforcement around the thighs, topped with a pair of beige cashmere cable-knit briefs. As W magazine declared, “it’s one thing to pull off the no-pants trend in a photography studio and an entirely different beast to actually champion it during a random Tuesday afternoon.”

While the likes of Kendall Jenner have worn hosiery as part of a sort of street style mullet—chill sweater on top, “wait, where did your pants go?” on bottom—Stewart’s take, contrasting coquettish hosiery with draped chain mail tops or mesh bras, is decidedly more aggressive, in line with the noir film she just released.

Swennen pointed at shapewear and underpinnings as “something that used to bind, and now it’s something that women use as a voice of sexuality and freedom…. We really wanted to harness that.”

Think back to 2018 and all the brouhaha over whether Meghan Markle did or didn’t wear nude pantyhose on royal outings, and whether not wearing them was a sign of disrespect toward Queen Elizabeth. It wasn’t and still isn’t an actual royal rule to wear pantyhose, but the conversation generated by those glimpses of Meghan’s bare calves is matched in intensity by the chatter around Stewart’s presentation of herself through the sheer closed-toe-nylon filter of her own choosing.

With visions of drugstore L’eggs dancing in our heads, it’s tempting to say that these aren’t your grandmother’s pantyhose. Except, in more ways than one, they kind of are exactly that.

Stewart, the Jenners, Bieber, and the army of the pantsless not only share legacy brands with their predecessors, but a mindset. Mod fashion was inescapable in the ’60s and ’70s, with women embracing girlish silhouettes and trading the full girdle-slip-garter combo of their own mothers for tights and hose, celebrating their youth and trying to extend it however they could, sidestepping away in hosiery-clad feet from the expectation that they would get married and start having children.

In 1965, Life magazine wrote that Warhol muse Edie Sedgwick was “doing more for black tights than anyone since Hamlet.” Twiggy and Audrey Hepburn, too, divined the fashions of today, donning hot pants and miniskirts with their hosiery and walking so that Stewart could one day ditch the pants altogether and run.

Speaking of runs: Swennen acknowledged the risks of placing so much faith in one fragile pair of hose, where a single snag can spell disaster.

“I have backups, I’m a Virgo,” she said. Somehow, she said, none of Stewart’s tights-as-pants looks needed replacing on the fly, though given the actor’s ability to roll with the proverbial punches, she’d “probably just go with it” anyway. Even so: “I always carry backups.” Her emergency tool kit: “A bit of chapstick, a safety pin, and an extra backup in my bag wherever we go.”

There’s one more important voice from the past that must be heard on the matter: that of Blair Waldorf.

TV’s Gossip Girl was an early-aughts must-watch for the fashion-conscious and drama-thirsty set. In the season two episode “Chuck in Real Life,” Blair, (played by Leighton Meester), who rules the Upper East Side with an iron fist and a stylish headband, briefly subjects a peon to a sartorial “disciplinary hearing” in the courtyard of their tony private school.

“I didn’t realize—” a hapless girl named Kelsey begins murmuring.

Blair cuts her off, acid in her authority: “That tights are not pants? Honestly.”

Lenn K. Rosenfeld, who wrote the 2008 episode, affirmed the stance to Vanity Fair. “Women—people—can wear whatever they want, but Blair Waldorf’s words are timeless and still stand,” Rosenfeld explained via email. “Tights are not pants.”

Glow in the dark net stockings are quite hot recently. Is this a new technology? How does it work? This is a quite interesting story. Let’s dig this with Thriving, the leading hosiery manufacturer.

Traditional Way

First, glow materials on apparel is not a new thing. People did this for a long time. Mostly this is done by printing. To be specific, by screen printing. See the below(  https://www.ebay.com/itm/223480048651).

The theory behind this is simple. Mix the illuminate material in the printing and it will do the work. The side effect is also obvious. It is chemical. It does harm to human body. Maybe it won’t have too much affect on an outer cloth, say jacket or jeans. These are not next to human’s skin. However, if we are talking about pantyhose, or tights, it will be a different story. This remains as an issue till the new illuminate comes out.

New Illuminate Yarn

Before we move further on this yarn, let’s take some steps back to the production of nylon. See the below picture. Basically people boil nylon chips to liquid with heat. Then nylon fibers are extruded from it in a special device. This is the most simple way to describe the whole process.

Strontium aluminatemade from rare earth is luminescent. Scientist add strontium aluminate powder into nylon salt. In this way, we get the luminescent nylon salt. With the final extrusion process, illuminate nylon comes to the world as a result. Two main benefits for this way: the illuminate function is both permanent and healthy.

First, mixing the two in early chip stage ensures the permanent function. Unlike the screen printing way, this is done much earlier so the two is actually one thing. So no matter how you handle this yarn, wash or iron, this illuminate function will last for ever.

Second, this illuminate yarn is healthy. Healthy is not only in production site but also in materials.(See Thriving’s healthy production workshops https://ytthriving.com/)It is neither chemical nor radiation. All in all, it is just earth fundamentally. So whether they are in outer clothes or inner layer, it does no hard to human body.

Thriving, the leading hosiery manufacturer, makes glow in the dark net stockings in this illuminate nylon. Let’s enjoy some pictures of this style.

We have shared the history of yarns in stockings in last chapter. Now, let’s stay with Thriving, the leading stockings supplier, for the second part of this story: how it looks like nowsdays.

100% Nylon Way

Pure nylon stockings are still in the market. Two reasons for that. One is obviously for cheap cost. You can find these 100% nylon stockings either in stores or online shops. Usually brands sell them in multi-packs such as 3PP or 5PP.  Some brands give them nicer names: value packs or essential packs.

Nylon yarn in these multipacks is usually 100% draw textured yarn. Another name of it is DTY. DTY is the most elastic version of nylon.  This makes ladies won’t feel too rigid in wearing these stockings without spandex.

Another reason is for vintage purpose. Under this case, the price is actually not cheap. A famous example is Cervin’s Vintage Stockings (check here for more details: https://www.cervin-store.com/en/4-nylon-stockings) These are basically retro fashion products. In Cervin’s Vintague ranges, you can see lots of traditional garters or suspenders. This will easily bring you back to the golden times of stockings. More than 70 years ago!

50% Covered Yarn & 50% Nylon Yarn Way

This means stockings contain both covered yarn and nylon yarn. In professional way, the name is alternative course stockings. Normally there are 4 courses in the stockings.  For alternative course stockings, 2 courses are covered yarn and 2 courses are nylon.

This is a quite popular way in today’s stockings market. There are 2 benefits of doing so. First is for good transparency effect. This is more for sheer stockings styles. Covered yarn is thicker than pure nylon. With using half and half, the fabric turns to be uneven. This allows more light to go through. This is why the alternative course stockings look more transparent.

The second benefit is for cheaper cost. This is more for opaque stockings. Covered yarns are more expensive than nylon yarns. Using covered yarns in 2 courses are certainly cheaper than using them in 4 courses. Take a 40 denier stockings for example. The good quality one normally uses 2040/36(This is the covered yarn spec. It means 20 denier spandex covered by 40 denier nylon) in all 4 courses. To make the cost cheaper, some brands also use 2040/36 in 2 courses and 40/36 nylon in the other 2 courses. This sacrifices some on thickness but certainly improves the cost. “This is like a secret that no professionals want to share”, said Mr. Lee, technical manager of Thriving, the leading stockings supplier in China.

100% Covered Yarn Way

Another common way in today’s market. It means covered yarns are in all 4 courses. People also call this all courses stockings. It won’t be as transparent as alternative ones. On contrary, it gains more durability and elasticity.

It is easy to understand the extra durability. It is thicker by using 2 more covered yarns. At the same time, with all 4 courses in the same yarns, the fabric surface is everner and smoother. This helps to withstand more tension and pressure in wearing.

Extra elasticity comes from the 2 more spandexes. We’ve learned the story about spandex in last chapter. The more spandex, the more elasticity. You may have heard the compression stockings, support stockings or energising stockings. Different names but basically same thing. They all use thicker spandexes to create compression feeling. For example, normal sheer pantyhose will use 20 denier spandex. Compression ones will use 30 denier, 40 denier or even 70 denier.

Thriving, the leading stockings supplier, once designed an energising style. It used 30 denier spandex. Meanwhile, Thriving put different tensions on different parts. Thigh is looser. Knee is smoother. Calf is tighter. This brings extra support and comfor as it suits the nature of human body.

One more thing to add. Any functional stockings, if the functions are from yarns, are normally in all courses way. Why? Just because only this way can ensure sufficient content to perform the function. Take ladder resist stockings for example. Some brands also call it run resist. The function comes from the special spandex. It will be melted and work as as a glue to bond all fibers under 122 degrees on boarding machine(See the machine picture here: https://ytthriving.com/hosiery/)When this special spandex are made to covered yarns and used in all courses, it then creates the greatest ladder resist function.