Fully fashioned stockings (FFS), are

stockings Stockings (also known as hose, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transparen ...

with characteristic reinforcements on the

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg. Structure To distribute the compressive for ...

and top, a so-called keyhole at the back of the top, and a stitched back seam in between. They are made to be worn with a garter belt and are today considered a vintage design of hosiery after largely having been replaced by seamless stockings and pantyhose from the

1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong and Buzz ...

onwards. Fully fashioned stockings are usually made from nylon and thus have very little stretch compared with modern stockings and pantyhose.

Description

Fully fashioned stockings are usually knitted from sheer nylon yarn. To support the attachment of

suspenders Suspenders (American English, Canadian English), or braces (British English, Australian English) are fabric or leather straps worn over the shoulders to hold up skirts or trousers. The straps may be elasticated, either entirely or only at attach ...

, they have a darker section of double fabric at the top, called the welt. This is followed by a lighter transitional section called the shadow welt. The keyhole is visible in the middle of the seam at the back of the welt. The back seam is an integral part of the stocking and not sewn on afterwards. Fully fashioned stockings are sized to the height and shoe size (generally) of the wearer and have little or no stretch in them as they have no

lycra Spandex, Lycra, or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is a polyether-polyurea copolymer that was invented in 1958 by chemist Joseph Shivers at DuPont's Benger Laboratory in Waynesboro, Virginia, US. The g ...

(spandex) contained within the yarn. In addition to the distinctive seam they also come in a number of

designs. The most common are the ''French'' or ''Point'' ''Heel'', where the reinforcement ends in a sharp point, and the ''Cuban Heel'', which ends in a truncated point.

Manufacturing

Fully fashioned knitting means that a garment is shaped by increasing and decreasing the number of stitches in a row. Fully fashioned stockings are made from sections of nylon fabric that are knitted flat from the top down in the shape of a profile view of a leg. These are then sewn together in the back forming the

seam Seam may refer to: Science and technology * Seam (geology), a stratum of coal or mineral that is economically viable; a bed or a distinct layer of vein of rock in other layers of rock * Seam (metallurgy), a metalworking process the joins the ends ...

. The top is folded and sewn back on itself forming the welt and the shadow welt, with a finishing loop applied, forming the keyhole, to allow the

needle Needle may refer to: Crafting * Crochet needle, a tool for making loops in thread or yarn * Knitting needle, a tool for knitting, not as sharp as a sewing needle * Sewing needle, a long slender tool with a pointed tip * Trussing needle, a long sl ...

sewing the seam to be withdrawn. Additional layers of nylon are added to reinforce the sole and heel. Fully fashioned stockings are becoming increasingly rare; only a handful of manufacturers worldwide now make them regularly.

History

Fully fashioned stockings rose to prominence in the market during the 1940s (peaking in the 1950s) with the introduction of Nylon, with over 780,000 pairs sold on the first day and 64 million in the first year of North American sales alone. They remained popular until the introduction of

Lycra Spandex, Lycra, or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is a polyether-polyurea copolymer that was invented in 1958 by chemist Joseph Shivers at DuPont's Benger Laboratory in Waynesboro, Virginia, US. The g ...

in 1958 and mini-skirts shortly after. Heel styles now vary from the original French (pyramidal) or point heel which was made most famous by the Aristoc Point Heel design to the Cuban and Havana heels – darkened reinforced heel design finishing in a square top rather than pointed top – the Cuban heel being defined by being much thinner and finishing higher up the

calf Calf most often refers to: * Calf (animal), the young of domestic cattle. * Calf (leg), in humans (and other primates), the back portion of the lower leg Calf or calves may also refer to: Biology and animal byproducts *Veal, meat from calves ...

than the Havana heel. More recently a number of manufacturers have also started manufacturing different heel styles – most specifically the Manhattan heel which is a cross between the two above and French brand Gerbe coming out with some more distinctive designs around the heel.

References

{{Hosiery Hosiery