Pantyhose For Men   by hi joiney

History

There have been anecdotal stories of men wearing pantyhose for practical purposes nearly since their original introduction in the women’s market, but were typically difficult to verify because the men in question tended to be very tight-lipped about it. These have included:

NFL football players wearing them under uniforms in cold weather,

Hunters and campers wearing them as a base layer beneath other cold weather attire,

Men with varicose veins or other circulatory problems that did not require surgical hosiery,

Horseback riders wearing them to prevent chafing and saddle sores.

Most initially elected to wear them only beneath their bluejeans or dress trousers, fearing ridicule based on misplaced misconceptions about cross dressing, fetishism or homosexuality. With the growth of the internet, forums and discussion boards arose to address nearly every subject imaginable. This new medium allowed men to become increasingly aware of large numbers of compatriots who were also wearing pantyhose for non-sexual reasons. The anonymity of online discussion groups allowed them to discover that their situation was far from unique. This led some to begin wearing them more openly and acknowledging it to friends and family members.

In 1996 L’eggs, a US pantyhose company opened a storefront together with a product-related bulletin board on the web. They soon discovered that most of the visitors talking about their products were men. After conducting a survey in 1998, Steven Katz came to the conclusion that, in fact, many men were wearing pantyhose as a regular clothing item, and would buy a well-targeted male product range–if it existed.

Based on this survey and other market research, G. Lieberman & Sons (GLS Hosiery) began to manufacture and market ComfiLon in 1999, which became Activiskin in 2002. Comfilon/ActivSkin was so successful it inspired Levee, a German pantyhose manufacturer to create a unisex product line called WoMan in 2002. Wolford, a German luxury hosiery manufacturer also introduced ‘Waistsocks’ for men. Nearly every year since then at least one manufacturer has entered the market with a male product line, such as Collanto in Germany and Gerbe in France. A heretofore untapped market had been discovered.

The market for men’s pantyhose has continued to grow steadily since 1999. While ActivSkin, the leading seller of male pantyhose and tights, does not release specific sales data, they now sell to customers worldwide in 76 countries and have reported growth each year since their inception. An important component of that growth is continued expansion of public awareness of this phenomenon. A blog called The Nylon Gene was launched in early 2009 to provide background information on men’s pantyhose, as well as opinion pieces and sample photography. To manage public relations and serve as spokesman for issues related to men’s pantyhose in the U.S. media, GLS hired Steve Newman in 2009. The company expects to reach a tipping point in the near future with respect to public perception and growth of the male pantyhose and tights trend. As an addition to the constantly getting larger family of men legwear manufacturers, there is another producer in Eastern Europe called Tim Legwear that is testing the local market with men tights and leggings.

Uses

As normal clothing

Men who wear pantyhose as a regular item of clothing have come to the attention of the media with increasing frequency since 2002, beginning with a front page Wall Street Journal article on the subject, entitled “Kingsize, Not Queen: Many Men Are Taking to Wearing Pantyhose”. Some of the reasons for wearing them include:

to stimulate circulation if working in a profession that requires them to sit all day, or conversely, if on their feet for extended periods of time. In addition, compression can help reduce swelling and decrease the dangers of circulatory problems.

to improve athletic performance, energize and revitalize tired, aching leg muscles

One can find both sheer and opaque pantyhose for men, the denier ranging from 8 den (very sheer) to over 100 den (opaque). They usually come in black, brown, tan and navy blue colors. In the U.S., hosiery above 70 den are usually referred to as ‘tights’. This threshold is subjective, and hosiery of lesser denier may be considered tights in the U.S. vocabulary.

Some men wear male pantyhose under trousers, with or without socks, while an increasing number are now wearing them with shorts. They have found that it is not necessary to give up the benefits of leg support and comfort while wearing short pants. It is very difficult to notice pantyhose closely matching skin color, as long as leg hair is either removed or kept closely trimmed. As men’s pantyhose continues to move from the periphery toward mainstream acceptance, more men are also wearing colored legwear (black, blue, dark brown) with shorts. You can see a some examples of men wearing pantyhose with shorts by visiting The Nylon Gene or the eMANcipate website.

With regard to appearance, some men who wear pantyhose with shorts shave their legs, or practice other forms of hair removal. Others may simply trim leg hair with scissors or barber trimmers. Still others may practice no hair removal at all, but this tends to be limited mostly to those with thin or light-colored hair–or who wear pantyhose only under long pants. In contrast to women’s practice, shaving is not considered obligatory for men.

Fetish

Main articles: Pantyhose fetishism and Transvestic fetishism

Medical reasons

Pantyhose and other so-called “compression stockings” can be worn to provide relief from leg/ankle swelling and varicose veins. They provide warmth and support for men who have Raynaud’s phenomenon. They can also worn as supportive therapy for vein disorders such as lymphedema and deep vein thrombosis.

In Scuba Diving

Some scuba-diving men have been known to wear pantyhose or similar garments under their Wetsuits to get a bit of extra insulation against cold water.[citation needed] It also assists in putting on and taking off the wetsuit. Pantyhose are also an effective protection against box jellyfish stings.[citation needed]

Producing pantyhose for men

Reasons why manufacturers are now producing pantyhose for men:

Opportunities:

the female market has been in decline since the late 1990′s, while the male market is growing

online hosiery retailers have reported that the majority of their sales are to male customers

men require a different product from women on account of anatomical and lifestyle difference

men are likely to require a longer lifespan from their purchases and will therefore pay more per item for greater quality

surplus production plant and machinery may become available as manufacturers in the female sector outsource production to the countries in the emerging world

produce-on-demand methods allow the investment in stock to be minimized

considerable media coverage of the men’s pantyhose trend has evolved from early ridicule to one of acknowlegement of a legitimate trend, creating an opportunity to inform public perceptions to acknowledge the practical reasons for men wearing pantyhose.

Threats:

the male market is still small compared to the women’s hosiery market and at present cannot achieve economies of scale

unfavorable associations with cross dressing or fetishism still exist in some people’s minds

as a result of these associations, many men (and their wives) regard pantyhose for men as an abnormal fashion choice

hosiery manufacturers perceive that by embracing the male pantyhose market they may put off female buyers

See also

Compression garment

Men’s skirts

References

Sources

Lambert Stephen M., Hagan Melissa J “A randomised crossover study of low-ankle-pressure graduated-compression tights in reducing flight-induced ankle oedema” The Medical Journal of Australia, Sep 2007; MJA 2008; 188 (2): 81-84.

Bringard A, Perrey S, Belluye N. “Aerobic energy cost and sensation responses during submaximal running exercise–positive effects of wearing compression tights” Int. J. Sports Med. May 2006;27(5):373-8.

Norton, Amy “Compression tights may give runners a lift” Reuters Health/Medicine Online, May, 2006.

Preston, Shelley “Wearing Pantyhose Is Serious Business For Some Guys” The Ledger, September 18, 2006.

Annis, Elisa “An industry that lost its footing” International Herald Tribune, October 9, 2006.

Helliker, Kevin “Kingsize, Not Queen: Some Men Have Taken To Wearing Pantyhose” Wall Street Journal, February 19, 2002.

Temple, Matthew “Men in tights” FT.com, June 07, 2002.

Notes

^ http://forums.delphiforums.com/LegwearUF/start

^ http://groups.google.com/group/alt.fashion/browse_thread/thread/b6d1e23453c6f297/791438df49f4bafa

^ http://www.comfilon.com/dloads/20020607_FTLondon-MensPH.pdf

^ http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1138565

^ ComfiLon

^ ActivSkin

^ Steve Newman

^ “Kingsize, Not Queen: Many Men Are Taking to Wearing Pantyhose”

^ http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060918/NEWS/609180302&SearchID=73257245076374

^ http://www.medicineonline.com/news/12/4836/Compression-tights-may-give-runners-a-lift.html

^ The Nylon Gene

^ e-MANcipate

^ http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/09/reports/rhose.php

^ http://forums.delphiforums.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=LegwearUF&msg=4732.1

^ http://www.comfilon.com/FAQs.asp

External links

e-MANcipate.net, magazine and news site for the mantyhose / pantyhose for men issue since 2003

The Nylon Gene, A Men’s Legwear Blog designed to educate the general public on reasons why men wear pantyhose, and provide visual examples

Geraden’s blog, a fine community place

SheerGeek’s website – a blog about men’s legwear fashion, including: tights for men and pantyhose for men

Legwear as Unisex Fashion online forum

antyhose: Not your mom pantyhose

Categories: Lingerie | Hosiery | Sports clothing | Fashion freedomHidden categories: Articles that may contain original research from January 2010 | All articles that may contain original research | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements from January 2010

About the Author

I am Frbiz Site writer, reports some information about hydraulic shock absorber, bilstein shock absorbers.
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