Let’s talk about stockings. It’s over forty-six years since I first acquired a suspender belt, purchased for me by a friend of my father, and to this day I still get a little thrill when I put on a belt and pull on a pair of stockings and I now own around thirty suspender belts. Of course, I’m best known for my love of fully fashioned nylons (FFNs), sometimes described as “vintage” and I don’t mean any stocking with a back seam, I mean proper, fully fashioned stockings which are woven flat and then stitched up the back, giving the lovely seam and keyhole and which are made from non-stretch nylon, and so will often give those delicious wrinkles some of us love so much. I still think they are both the most elegant and the sexiest type of nylons and it’s little wonder that I am known as “Lady in Seams”.

But just as oranges are not the only fruit, seamed stockings are not the only type of stockings that I wear and it’s some of those alternatives I’m mainly writing about today for this blog. Why wear anything else? Well, sometimes stockings of any variety are not a very practical choice. For example, when it’s very warm I’ll not wear stockings or tights at all (except when in the office, as I made an agreement with my boss to always wear FFNs while in the office, or for sex sessions with my boyfriend and for hand relief sessions). And if it’s very cold I will often choose tights or leggings rather than stockings.
There are another couple of reasons to leave my FFNs in my lingerie drawer. As most will know, they’ve become relatively rare, as they are difficult to make with a high reject rate and so the prices are now very high. When I began wearing them, they were pocket money prices but today a pair will normally cost around £30 to £40 and I’ve paid over £60 on occasion. And because they’re very fine, they snag and ladder easily, so while you might like to run your hands up my seams and feel my suspender straps and thighs, I’m left thinking “please don’t tear these stockings I’ve worn for the first time today!” Is it any wonder I ask admirers to gift me a pair if they wish to view all my videos?
The other issue follows on from their rarity. When I started work after graduating, seamed stockings were quite a common fashion look and I was one of many women in the office who wore seams regularly. Yes, I occasionally got a bit of hassle, especially late at night on the tube home but by and large it wasn’t an issue.
The opposite is true today and I have to be careful about when and where I go out in them. While I refuse to stop wearing them when I wish, it does take a certain level of courage to go shopping “fully tackled up” in a suspender belt, seamed stockings and very high heels. Of course, I enjoy the attention and most men are lovely about how I look but there is a fine line between welcome attention, a bit of hassle and feeling quite intimidated. It’s fine to say “I love your stockings” if you see me on your high street, it’s a lot less fine to follow me around, taking pictures without even asking me and it’s downright rude to ask me if I am a prostitute or if I’m “up for it”.
I almost certainly will not wear seams and heels if I’m out late at night on my own. Just to take an example, I recently met a male friend in London for drinks (and a bit of fun in the toilets). But when we said goodbye and he headed off home and I went to get my train, I removed my stockings, as experience has taught me this is the prudent thing to do. It’s sad but it’s the reality.
So what are the alternatives? The obvious choice is what are called reinforced heel and toe (or RHT) stockings, which are or can be essentially like FFNs but without the seam, as they are made from non-stretch nylon and many have the same or similar welt to FFNs. I’ve worn them quite often when seams are not appropriate but I’ll be honest, they always feel second best to the real thing and I don’t get the same thrill wearing RHTs as I do when I’m in a lovely pair of FFNs. I just don’t.
Another option are fishnet stockings and I like these and wear them quite often. Views differ on whether they are out and out “tarty” but I think they’re a sexy alternative to seams (I’ll come onto seamed fishnets in a moment). One variety that was a clear “fail” for me is whalenets, which you can see in the photo below. I tried them as someone gifted me pair but I just didn’t like them and thought they were quite ugly and they quickly found their way into the bin.
Another fail for me is the whole “hold ups” variety. I know some women prefer them as being less bother than a suspender belt but I’ve always found they’re either too tight on the leg, cutting off the blood flow or so loose they just fall down. I’ve even resorted to wearing them with a suspender belt, which seems to defeat the point. Added to which they often produce an unsightly “muffin top” above the elastic – yuk!
However, one alternative which was very popular in the mind 1980’s, perhaps through to the early 1990’s is lacy stockings and I wore them to work a lot, in various styles and colours. Some friends and colleagues preferred lacy tights but I’ve always been a suspender belt girl and so I wore the stockings. I don’t wear them any more as they’ve largely gone out of fashion but occasionally I’ll see a photo of a lady in lacy leg wear and I still like the look.
Another style I like and wear quite often is seamed fishnet stockings or – dare I say it – tights. If there is a question mark over whether fishnets per se are “tarty” or not I don’t think there is when a backseam is added – they’re out and out tarty and as a consequence they gain a lot of attention and as a consequence of that, you may often see me in a pub in my seamed fishnets. I think they go really well with a leather skirt and very high heels and they do give legs a very shapely look (unless the woman wearing them is noticeably overweight with fat legs, in which case all fishnets look terrible, in my view).
So there are plenty of options – fishnets, seamed fishnets, reinforced heel and toe, hold-ups, lacy, latex … and I haven’t even got onto plain stockings, opaque stockings and many other styles and types but for me nothing will ever displace a proper high quality pair of fully fashioned stockings, worn with high heel court shoes, sandals or boots. Now boots is a whole other topic which I shall try to write about one day – so much to say!
But meanwhile don’t forget to view my photos (there are currently 200 of them) on Flickr https://www.flickr.com/people/ladyinseams/
And remember if you want to win a place in my heart and gain access to over 100 very naughty videos of me enjoying myself in seams and heels all you need to do is gift me one pair of FFNs and thereby help keep gorgeous seamed stockings on our high streets and in our pubs.



















