Nylon Stockings/Hosiery Care Suggestions

If you take care of your beautiful fine hosiery it can last a long time. Putting on your stockings and removing them should be done wearing soft, preferably cotton, gloves. Some people prefer rubber gloves for this purpose. Using hand cream and foot cream before handling your stockings and hosiery is a good idea. If you aren't wearing gloves, remove all jewellery, and check fingernails and toenails for rough edges before you handle the stockings. Stockings should be put on gently, do not to pull them up vigorously, rolling them carefully over the foot and up the leg. Greatest care needs to be taken when pulling the stocking over the heel, as this is when the stocking is subjected to the greatest stress, and is most likely to rupture. Don't forget that the stockings are just as likely to be damaged when taking them off, so take off your hosiery just as carefully as you put them on.

Boots can be bad news for stockings: there is a tendency for wear to occur at the top of the boot, so we suggest that you don't wear your 'best' stockings with boots!!

We suggest that you look after your feet. Spend a little time removing hard skin which may excessively abrade the nylon and cause premature failure. Rubbing a small quantity of a good moisturiser on your feet on a regular basis will keep your skin supple, make your stockings last longer and look better for longer — and make your feet feel wonderful!!

To wash your nylon stockings, do not use hot water or bleach. Vintage nylon stockings should be washed by hand in the sink using a mild detergent such as a good hosiery wash which is manufactured exclusively for hosiery. Most specialist washes have a special silicone (or similar) additive which will actually make your hosiery stronger.  The one notable exception to hand washing would be opaque hosiery. While it is best to hand wash all hosiery, with opaque stockings you can use a washing machine. However, when you use a washing machine, put your stockings in a hosiery bag or a pillowcase so they don’t get caught on the zippers and buttons of other clothes in the wash load. Don’t set the temperature on high, cold water is best if at all possible for nylon hosiery products. Use the delicate cycle in the washing machine if you can.

Separate hosiery colours! Don't put dark-coloured nylons and stockings in the sink with lighter colours, you generally won't like the results. Coloured hosiery should, of course, be kept separate to maintain the colour integrity.

To dry your nylon hosiery, roll your stockings in a towel — never wring nylon hosiery, you might stretch or break the delicate fibres. After removing as much moisture as possible, lie your hosiery flat to dry. Never put any nylon hosiery in a mechanical dryer.

Although we haven't tried this, and therefore cannot vouch for its efficacy, we have been told that placing the nylons in a tightly-sealed freezer bag overnight prior to wearing them can improve the stockings' longevity.

For further guidance on how to put on - with illustrations - and wash your nylons, please refer to the 'Pretty Polly' booklet.