So fun to read your descriptions. I’m sure the beautiful gowns were enhanced by the beautiful setting and even lovelier coat check lady. Did the men wear tuxes?

I can't imagine a long gown and an LLBean coat!

When my kids were in plays, i bought one of them ( I think it was my DS IIRC) a long black velvet cloak, silk lined, with frog closures, at Goodwill. It was terrific. I re-donated it to Goodwill after the play's run and have always regretted it. I have a long vintage persian lamb that suffices.

Ded, I was invisible to the guests. They barely noticed us which is probably the point.

The men all wore tuxes and looked very distinguished. Most of the women were in high open toe shoes which was probably the source of the foot pain. Was also surprised to see more than a few women with a pale green pedicure.

My takeaway from this? Be nice to the coat check people and know that they are probably silently judging your outfit. And two--DON'T LOSE YOUR NUMBER!

Yes to black dresses! I've been wearing the same LBD to just about every event for the past 5 years now. I am not into having tons of clothes. Generally I change up the accessories to keep it fresh.

Women don't wear hose anymoore.

I think sheer black hose is making a comeback for certain styles of dresses. But nude hose? Nobody wears that. I use "airbrush legs". It makes my legs flawless in a way that a faux tan does not, and it doesn't transfer onto clothes!

What a fun read. Thank you! Your descriptions are sharp and amusing.

Just chiming in that I so enjoyed reading your observations, Jojoco! Thanks for sharing.

So fun!! Thank you for posting this!

Is fur really making a comeback? Real fur, that is. I remember reading how PETA would throw paint if they saw someone wearing it.

schoolhouse, I was thinking the same thing. Real fur doesn't appear here much anymore. I had season tix to the ballet and opera in Seattle for many years and while the PNW can be much more casual, there is a well heeled element here, too. I don't recall ever seeing a real fur for at least the last (precovid) 15 -20 years. I like the reasons it's fallen out of favor, but it's kind of a shame that the vintage fur garments which already exist are just rotting away in closets.
There are now so many fabulous fakes, too.

How fun to see all of the guests in their finery. I saw someone in a fur in Austin recently. They are very rare here. I donated my mom’s furs years ago.

In my DDs' circles real fur is so out that fake fur is out too, lest it be mistaken for or appear to condone the former.

I wear furs daily from Nov to April as winter gears, it's pretty cold in the snow country. You can see furs often in grocery stores here.

mtn - I have a long black velvet cloak with frog closures! I love it. I bought it at Laura Ashley. Probably in the late 80s.

My mom has two beautiful mink coats. Dont know what i will do with them. Id feel weird wearing fur and cant think of the last time i could have worn one. They are super warm and i used to see women wearing them to work in the city.

The only people I know that wear fur wear mink-lined coats.

I live in one of the coldest cities in Canada and although I have kept my mother's mink coat, I have never worn it or any other fur in many years. I am thinking of donating my mother's coat to a volunteer organization in our city that makes mittens for the homeless or others in need of warmer clothing because of spending so much time outdoors. The mittens are sewn so that the fur is inside, making them nice and toasty.

My great aunt had a cedar lined closet filled with fur coats she collected from world travels (our family used to be rich-- we are not anymore). One of those coats was monkey fur! It was so gross. We didn't keep any of them.

Ive also heard ( maybe here) of having them made into a throw. Since the minks met their fate long ago, and I wouldnt be wearing it in public, that might be a good use for the coats .

The only people I know that wear fur wear mink-lined coats.

My mother took her old mink and had it turned into a lining for a raincoat, making it into what we used to call a storm coat. It was very warm and useful for NYC winters back in the day.

I love hearing about all this and living at vicariously. However, this sums up how I feel about most events :-)

I have a friend that had several beautiful fur coats that were fashionable in the '80's and '90's. She can't wear them in public now and had a few of them made into throws for the couch. She had mink, racoon, beaver and a sheared mink that was the most luxurious velvety thing with a sable collar. Gorgeous, but no one is wearing them anymore. I see old furs at flea markets but I don't think they sell well these days.

"Women don't wear hose anymoore. A few, more mature in years did, but the vast majority did not. " But how did the more mature look with their hose compared to those w/o? I remember well when this fashion statement was just beginning. It was a Prom Grand March. The young ladies with hose lookedpolished, beautiful. Those w/o --not so much. Legs ALWAYS look better with hose if you are hoping to look the best you can!

Legs only look better with hose because it covers up our flaws. There are newer ways to achieve that now with makeup, and it looks more natural (like the stuff I posted above). Compared to that, hose looks artificial and very old fashioned I'm afraid.

Hose that's not trying to look natural is making a comeback though. Like sheer black, or fun patterns. I like to wear plain black dresses with hose like this (for semi-formal, not black tie).

Interestingly, I've seen ads for "sheer nude tights", which of course are simply pantyhose, but with a new name to appeal to younger buyers. For example: https://www.wolfordshop.com/nude-and-sheer-legs.html

Just like foundation is primer or tinted moisturizer, and girdles are shapewear. We see what they did there.

Arcy, I think hose have an odd, off putting sheen that makes legs looks plastic-y. If one has toned legs that are uniform in color, I think bare does took better.

To echo Mtn's thoughts, bare legs looked better, however, the sheer black hose worked very well with the short black dresses.

It's really just a preference, though.

The really sheer ones don't have that plastic-y look. My legs are really, really pale and look 1000% better in nude hose. But for younger, tanner people I think bare legs look fine.

I think nice looking legs definitely look better than hose! but not splotchy, beat up or dry legs. a little self tanner can help too. i have always hated hose but

thankfully we attend very few formal affairs.

self tanner is good for legs that are otherwise flawless. but I have splotches and a few spider veins. that's why the leg makeup is so amazing. it seems to slightly firm up the skin too.

Wait, wait...leg makeup? I barely use it on my face and now I'm supposed to use it on my legs? ;-)

Old ladies have gotten shafted and that's why we're wearing pants and maxi skirts.

My legs are okay but they're not 25-year-old legs.!

I thought I clicked on the taking care of elders thread, hit comment to immediately scroll down, and started looking at the comments. About leg makeup?! Boy, some people are taking elder care too far if they’re wondering about leg makeup. Oh! wait, different thread. Whew.

@Bookwoman, I don't wear a lot of makeup, and never foundation. But seriously, the leg stuff is a godsend if you want to show your legs but not wear hose. I only use it for more formal occasions.

Do they make it in "Very Pale but Not Blindingly White" so that it doesn't look odd with the rest of my pale skin? I am off to investigate!

I used self tanner on my legs for our holiday last month. I was very pleased with it. My legs did not look tan at all, but I did not look like i needed resuscitation.

In winter I use the Jergens natural glow in medium, about every four of five days, just to reduce the ultraviolet white appearance of my legs. But in winter I also always wear tights or hose. I have very sheer stockings that have no sheen to speak of. I wear brown, black, gray, navy and charcoal in opaque tights and sheer stockings, and ivory and nude sheers. The “colorless“ ones are very pale nude and for me, give a finished appearance to a winter outfit. If it dates me hopelessly I’m not bothered because I feel more comfortable in them. IMO tan- looking legs have a lingerie model—catalog look that can ruin a classic

@Bookwoman - yes, I believe they do! I am also pale, and their "fairest" shade looks fine on me. They didn't always have that color. I wore a tea length dress for my wedding 11 years ago, and back then the palest Sally Hansen stuff didn't exist yet. I actually used Dior waterproof foundation in a spray can. It worked very well too, but it wasn't as smudge proof as well as the Sally Hansen stuff (and way more expensive).

But yeah, I'm the kind of person who doesn't tan at all. I get maybe a hint of a freckly glow on my arms, but that's about it.This shade matches me fine. It does make my legs one shade darker, but it doesn't look too dark compared to my arms.

For me pantyhose have a few assets: cover up the scars and pale color, make the shoes more comfortable to wear, and I get the control top so they hold me in and firm me up.

Thanks Seattle, I'll try it out!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder they say. As I said we were comparing TEENAGERS in the prime of their gams and consistently those with hose looked 100% more polished and put together. My daughters comment on the color--how it ends up not matching your arms. Ok so I got me some super sheer skin tone and moving forward with my legs properly adorned!!!! 100% with ya Annie, the wearing shoes issue alone keeps me in hose or tights.

Jojo, thank you for bringing back memories when I was a kid and our family would go out and there'd be a coat check girl.

I'm with the royal family, always wear hose with a dress, and dream of having Kate Middletons wardrobe. ;)

The color is everything WRT stockings and tights though. Tan hose are as bad if not worse than fake tan looking legs.

Always hose with a dress. But then I have to wear closed-toe shoes, which aren’t always easy to find in a hurry especially in summer. Yes, hose in summer. Funeral, wedding, need hose.

I so seldom wear a dress, but I did wear an above-the-knee dress to a holiday party and I wore hose. I actually started to go without, but the little bit of sheen to the hosiery gave the entire outfit a more polished look.

Does anyone have good hose recommendations that's practically invisible? Even when I find a shade that matches my fair skin, they all have a sheen that's a dead giveaway. A super sheer matte texture would be so much better. Maybe that doesn't really exist.

I like Donna Karan's hose - the ones I have have no sheen at all.

I hadn't caught up on this for a couple days. How the topic has progressed!

My first full-on varicose vein showed up at the old age of 15. More than 40 years and at least 8-10 rounds of vein treatments later, I am a red & purple road map. All the makeup I've tried looks terrible and gets on my clothes. With casual outfits for casual things, I will turn the other way. Anything slightly formal need hose. Wish it wasn't so....

I'm in the hose camp too although I would love to be able to go bare-legged as we used to call it. Alas there isn't a self tanner or magic cream that would allow me to feel comfortable exposing my legs.

Surgical scars, age, weight, three pregnancies and a genetic pre-disposition to varicosities have left their mark. I'd rather wear pants, maxi dresses or long skirts and I still wear hose with them. I try to wear hose as close to my skin color as possible and without a sheen or a black with a black dress.

Seattle, google ”matte nylon pantyhose” and you’ll find a variety of vendors. If you want as near to colorless as possible, look for ”cosmetic” color, which many companies have adopted to indicate lack of color. They can be pricey— the last Italian pair i bought cost about $35 plus shipping. The Individual 10 tights (pantyhose) on the Woolford site are $50+ each.

https://www.wolfordshop.com/hosiery/individual-10-tights/18382.4273.html