Figure 1.--This German boy in a 1966 ad wears tights well over the knee. It is unclear why the pattern comes so high up. They may have been made to have been worn with short pants. |
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Patterned tights appeared very soon after tights began to become popular in Germany. While most tights were flat weaves with solid colors, a variety of different patterns have been worn. These have varied from polkadots, flowers, other designs, and stripes. There seems to have been some gender differences with patterned tights. Generally patterned tights with floral designs and perhaps polkadots were more popular with girls than boys. Sheer white tights with floral designs were almost entirely for girls. Some of the tights with bold stripes appear to have been more common with boys. There were a variety of pattern arrangements. In some cases the patterns only appearing at about the knee and at various other leg heights. HBC is not sure if age affected the patterns. The specialized ballet tights were almost always plain. Gynastic tights, especially in Germany may have bold patterns.
Patterned tights appeared very soon after tights began to become popular in Germany. HBC had thought that the tights were a relatively recent development, but this does not appear to have been the case. Tights are believed to have first been widely marketed about 1959. The ad in figure 1 appeared about 1960, only about a year after tights began to become popular.
While most tights were flat weaves with solid colors, a variety of different patterns have been worn. These have varied from polkadots, flowers, other designs, plaid, and stripes. While we have seem many patterned tights in commercial catalogs, we do not seem them being worn very commonly. An exception here is stripped tights which at times seem to have been popular with girls. We note girls wearing them in the 1970s. They seem less common for boys. It is difficult to tell how popular patterned tights were with boys because they are often worj with long pants or even ski knickers, but much less commonly with short pants.
There seems to have been some gender differences with patterned tights. Generally patterned tights with floral designs and perhaps polkadots were more popular with girls than boys. Sheer white tights with floral designs were almost entirely for girls. We note girls wearing them in the 1970s. We have notice them subsequently, but they dp not seem to be as popular as they were in the 1970s.
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There were a variety of pattern arrangements. In some cases the patterns only appearing at about the knee and at various other leg heights. HBC has noted the patterns covering the entire tights to various lerngths beginning and short, short panrts length down to ankle length. The most common appears to have been with the pattern beginning at about kneesock length. HBC is not entirely sure why tights were made with the patterns at varying height. A HBC contributor notes, "If you notice, all of the boys' tights with either plaid, cable stitch or other design seems to end mid thigh or higher and the rest of the tight
is plain. I suspect that heights where the pattern ends may have more to do with where the tights were manufactured than anything else. I have spoken to importers dealing with Asian manufacturers of clothing for sale in Europe and the United States. They have all stated that body sizes in Asia are smaller and as a result sometimes sizing differences occurs because of this. I do not have any information specific to tights, but this may be related. "
HBC is not sure if age affected the patterns. It does not appear as if older or younger boys wore the patterend tights.
There appear to have been some conventions covering if specialized tights were patterned.
Tights are required by many dance schools. The specialized ballet tights were almost always plain. HBC has not noted patterned ballet tights. Several ballet schools expressly prohibit them.
Tights are also commonly worn for gymnastics. The first gymnastics tights were not form fitting like ballet tights, but rather more like leggings. They were usually white. Moedern gynastic tights, especially in Germany, may have patterns--some boys like bold patterns.
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