Ways to Keep Hosiery Lasting Longer

There's nothing worse than stepping out the door to go to work and realizing that your pantyhose has a run or snag. You're already running late for work and don't really have the time to run back inside to change. To keep this from happening again, try some of these tricks to ensure that your hosiery will stay in good condition and last longer.

Fixing a run

If it's already too late and your pantyhose has a run, try this to fix it quickly before it gets worse. Dab a little bit of clear nail polish on the start of the run. If you don't have any clear nail polish handy, run to the nearest bathroom and rub a small amount of liquid soap to the sides, top, and bottom of the run.

The liquid soap works great because as it dries it hardens causing a barrier, preventing the run from getting worse. If there isn't any liquid soap available, rubbing a wet bar of soap over the run will also work.

Preventing a run

To ensure that your pantyhose last longer, a trick to try is to soak them for about 30 minutes in a solution of ½ cup salt dissolved in 1 quart of warm water before the first wearing. After soaking them for 30 minutes, rinse them well and let them air dry.

If you need to wear them sooner and don't have time to soak them, just simply soak the pantyhose in the same solution as above after you wear them and before you wash them. It works either way because the salt helps to strengthen the nylon fibers, ensuring that they won't tear.

Prolonging the life

Here is an easy trick you can try to make your pantyhose last for quite some time; all you need to is lightly wet the pantyhose, just to the point where they are damp. Take a sealable plastic sandwich bag and place the damp pantyhose inside. Put them in the freezer and let sit overnight or just a few hours, enough time to freeze them completely.

When you take them out of the freezer, do not thaw them out in the microwave; just let them sit at room temperature to thaw. After they have thawed out completely, let them air dry. This trick works because freezing the pantyhose strengthens the fibers, making them last longer and you will be able to get more use out of them.

Soften to prevent runs

Next time you wash your pantyhose in the washing machine, don't forget to add a few drops of fabric softener. By adding softener to the load, the fabric softener makes the fibers more pliable and allows the hosiery to stretch, preventing tears and runs.

To dry the pantyhose, don't wring them out, instead place them on a dry towel and roll. When most of the excess water is removed, just hang to air dry.

These are all great tricks to try to help prolong the life of your hosiery, you'll be glad you did. No more wasted time in the mornings when rushing off to work because of runs and tears in your pantyhose.

Sources: Extraordinary Uses for Ordinary Things book