Dress: Leona Edmiston
Tights: Sonsee Woman
Shoes: Easy Spirit
Tights are a necessary evil in my world. They fit poorly; sagging around the ankles and squeezing uncomfortably around the thigh. The waistbands are too high (or too low) and cut in. Or roll. The cost per wear is abysmal, I always seem to put a finger through them, trying to pull them up. But you have to wear them, because, WINTER.
Quite a few months ago I was invited to the launch of a new range of hosiery that was being designed for plus-size women. I was hopeful that it might include some great patterned tights: polkadots, stripes, mock suspenders. Every season I seem to go hunting for these – trying new brand after new brand – and I always seem to end up slightly disappointed by the fit or the quality. Even the brands that are supposedly doing “plus sizes” seem to cater for the market by simply adding a few inches to the leg and a bum-panel to the brief. Not helpful at all for those of us with full thighs.
It turned out Sonsee Woman wasn’t doing printed hosiery… they were doing something better: pantyhose that FITS.
The team behind Sonsee are well experienced in the world of tights and hosiery – designing, sourcing and manufacturing “in-house” tights for a number of key Australian fashion labels – and in their travels around Italy they came across a new “ultra stretch” technology that they thought would revolutionise the hosiery market for plus-size women.
At the launch of Sonsee Woman the guests were invited to try the samples on for themselves in another room apart from the main event. I’m so glad they did, because when I tried the tights on for the first time I was blown away. Sonsee tights are absolutely amazing. Everything that they’d promised about the fit was absolute true.
The tights are waistband-free, so you can wear them high or low depending your own preference. The waistband doesn’t roll, and the top sits flush against your skin creating a smooth line with no lumps or bumps.
As you can see they don’t cut in at all. The brief is so comfortable that you actually don’t feel like you’re wearing anything – none of that squeezing around the abdomen…. and no bum panel! If you’re an apple shape there’s still plenty of stretch on the waistband.
Still don’t believe me about the stretch? Just for shits and giggles I thought I’d see exactly HOW “ultra” the “ultra stretch” was:
Yep. That’s BOTH of my legs fitting into just ONE of the legs on the smallest size available at Sonsee Woman. And – for the record – the tights bounced back to their original shape immediately and I wore them for the rest of the day without any sagging or bagging around the knees or ankles.
At the moment the range is limited to a few classics: Sheers in grey, black and nude; semi-opaques (what I’m wearing here) in grey, black, navy and turquoise; a full opaque in black, grey, navy and hot pink; and a footless tight in black, grey, purple and brown. I’d love to see more colours and some prints and textures in the future, but for the moment I’m pretty happy to have a pair of sheers that don’t feel like I’m being squeezed by a boa constrictor, and a pair of opaques that don’t turn into sheers the second they hit my thighs.
I have one or two very small niggles: the seam at the front is a little prominent, and could show under thin fabrics, and because I’m at the smaller end of the size scale I do find that I need to hoik the tights up once or twice during the day. Both issues would probably be eliminated if a size down was available, so I’d love to hear if you’ve tried the range and what you thought of them!
The tights range from $19.95 for the sheers to $24.95 for the leggings, which is about standard for good quality Italian hosiery. At the moment they’re only available from the online store, but Sonsee will sometimes offer special deals and competitions on their Facebook page and through Twitter. And they ship internationally, which is great news for Northern Hemisphericans who are about to head into the cooler months.
P.S. Can I just quickly add how much I love that the Sonsee Woman website shows their products on ACTUAL plus-sized women? What a novel idea!
I bought a few pairs after seeing your previous post, and i cannot sing the praises of Sonsee highly enough! No digging or rolling, no feeling like an over-stuffed sausage!
I’ve been in touch to tell them just how frigging awesome i think they are, and have already gone back for more. Thanks for pointing me in the Sonsee direction!
Yay! I’m so glad Lisa! I’m really happy with mine, and they’re such a lovely team too.
I have been hoping to find tights & leggings to wear this winter & fall, & I should’ve known you’d do it for me! I will definitely be ordering a few pairs, I’m so excited! And my jaw literally dropped at the first pic – you look AMAZING in that dress! Then the hair up & tousled, and the glasses? Holy moly, you look incredible!
Aw, thanks Molly! The hair was an attempt at a tousled bun tutorial that I saw on pinterest, and I’m loving my new “hipster” glasses!
winter… sigh… +31C in the shadow here 😀
huge HUG!
LOL, we’ll swap soon I guess, Lena! We got SUN today, which is lovely!
Just placed an order for three pairs. I have been looking EVERYWHERE for tights that fit me right, and I have never found anything that was completely comfortable. I was wearing a particularly atrocious Big W pair the other day, and I was miserable. These sound fantastic! I can’t wait to give them a go.
Yay! I’m glad! Let me know how you go 🙂
I have been lurking for a while and I finally decided this dress on you and YOU in general are SO CUTE that I couldn’t resist commenting. Your hair is beautiful, your skin is flawless, you have an adorably cute shape, and you’re hilarious! So THERE. Hope your week is a good one.
-Christie
P.S. I’m jealous of your cold weather – here in Arizona it’s the hot and humid days of summer . . .
Aw, you’re a sweetie & thank you for commenting! Swap you some hot for some cold?? We have plenty of wet already though 😉
I know the post is about the stockings/tights…but that dress is just perfect on you. I’ve been underwhelmed by Leona Edmiston’s collections (overpriced, lack of originality, not really scaled for plus size), and that dress wouldn’t suit my shape but on you – amazing.
It’s the print that pulled me in first…. and the buttons…. I didn’t think it would work on me because the fabric’s really thin, but it’s actually gorgeous.
That dress is to die for! And thanks for the Sonsee tip.
Thank you! I love it too. The buttons…!
I wonder how I would go with these as I am quite tall, yet like you, on the smaller end of the waist/hip size spectrum…??
I’d say you’d be OK – The stretch is 360 degrees, so up or out, apparently.
I could really care less about stockings, but I LOVE that dress. Want!
LOL, it’s definitely one of my favourites 🙂
I was just look at tights on the ASOS website and then I realized I hadn’t read your new blog post so I made my way over. What a funny coincidence. I’m waiting for the weather to turn cool in the US so I can wear tights! I will look into Sonsee. Great post, dear!
Oops. Looking* heehee
LOL, I’ve been holding off buying more tights until these launched. They’re so good!
I am always on the lookout for the perfect opaque tights and I found them at Sonsee! I have the basic black 100 denier tights and the quality is extremely high. I love that they don’t have the extra panel and the stretch is amazing – I don’t have to do the usual gymnastics to get into them. Highly recommended from someone at the upper end of the size scale. Thanks for putting us onto them – I would never have know about them otherwise. I love this blog!! Thank you.
Yay! I’m so glad you’re liking them too!
I recall a NZ company (I think) that makes great patterned/striped
/plain stockings too.
Can’t think of its name though.
Oh, let me know if you think of them!
Ooooo dream stockings! I wonder if they would work on my height? :O
Probably would, babe. The stretch is up AND around.
Firstly you look sooooo cute in glasses and I love the dress on you too. The tights though, WOW! I’m glad you did include the ‘silly’ pictures because it’s hard to believe quite how stretchy and fantabulous they are without those pics. I HATE plus size tights that just make them longer…that’s absolutely not what we need.
I know, right!? For petite plus size (me!) it’s the WORST combination. Baggy ankles, low riding crotches and squeezed thighs! Not good!
Love the opening about the evils of tights… my thoughts exactly!
They’re the WORST, aren’t they? And so expensive for something that only lasts a few wears!
MY MY! That dress is fabulous on you.
Aw, thank you! Me too!
LOVE LOVE LOVE THE DRESS!
Thank you!
These tights looks great but if anyone is looking for a cheaper alternative for everyday wear, I have discovered Target Essentials Opaques in X1 or X2 sizes. Pack of 2 for $10!! No nasty bum panel, very hard wearing and stretchy, no roll down at the waist….only in black though.
It’s been a while since I’ve tried the tights at Target. They’re doing some great prints these days, aren’t they?
Hi Lili, I just wondered what shoes you have from Easy Spirit? I keep seeing them on your blog and wondering if they would work for me. You look great in this dress btw, and I’m glad the tights are comfy 🙂
They’re these – in a wide size – http://www.easyspirit.com/Reeo/54659378,default,pd.html?variantSizeClass=&variantColor=JJ7ACF3&cgid=51503731&prefn1=catalog-id&prefv1=easyspirit-catalog
They’re ridiculously comfortable!
Thanks 🙂
Holy shitballs. I need to get some of these. Though this winter I have been wearing the best tights I’ve ever found. I wear a pair most days of the week. For the last 3-4 months. And not a single snag (I’m normally a ruin-er of tights on their first outing). No sag, no hoiking. Nothing. I am also one of those larger women with BIG bum and thighs (definite hourglass) and they still fit perfectly and are so comfy. These are them: http://shop.tabbisocks.com/opaque-color-tights/
I bought them from modcloth but I am planning to buy more direct from their site once I decide which colours I want 😉
So now I will be adding Sonsee to my wishlist too! If they are as good as or better than Tabbisocks I will be stoked. I actually don’t even own any black tights at the moment so I think those will be my first stop.
P.S. that dress is rad. You look ace.
Cute tights available there, Sami! I wish they did their cute printed range in the larger sizes too!
That frock is gorgeous on you. I think regardless of size/shape, tights and stockings are a nightmare. While there appears to be a vast array of choice in the “smaller” sizes, they are still plagued with the same problems; rolling tops, squeezing abdomen, tight thighs and ability to run at the slightest provocation. I spend a ridiculous amount of time on the hunt for tights (both sheers and opaque as I wear them to work every day) and I have yet to find a brand that I am really happy with, and I’ve been hunting for 25 years! For a while Woolworths were stocking an Italian made brand (Clio maybe??) that was pretty good but it has disappeared from my local Woolies. Sigh. The hunt continues. Yes FWP I know.
LOL! I heard somewhere that the original formula for nylons didn’t run, but the companies at the time forced the inventors to make them flawed so that they would have to be replaced regularly. Planned Obsolescence… Could be a ridiculous conspiracy theory, but I’m nothing if not gullible.
Oh…you are wearing the very Leona Edmiston dress I had my heart set on last year but couldn’t afford…looks wonderful on you.
As for the tights – I’m keen to try these and also to plug another amazing pair of tights I wore for the first time just today: Berlei No Dig Tights. They are fantastic – I didn’t have to hitch them up all day (except when I had to use the loo of course!), they didn’t dig in around the waist and make my stomach rumble, they didn’t roll down when I bent over (thank you, stomach roll) and they have no seams above the hip so sat across my tummy smoothly without being too “controlling”. Hardly knew I was wearing them.
The only down side is that they don’t come in true plus sizes, however I’m a size 18 and had no trouble getting into them or being comfortable in the Tall/X-Tall size and I assume you could fit as a size 20 as well. Plenty of room in the thighs (hate it when tights cut into you along the knickers line) and stretching in the waist too.
Have you tried them Lilli?
I did try them, actually! They slipped down a little on me, but I’m starting to suspect that I just have very slippy thighs! I liked the brief though! The seam on the hips spoiled the smooth line to start, but it loosened up quickly.
I love the dress too – I used two vouchers and a discount code, and still paid more for it than I should have, but I get a lot of wear out of it!
Hi Lilii, I’m a couple of inches taller than you, so maybe that made a difference as to the “slippery thighs” issue – you just made me giggle at that one! Keep rocking that gorgeous dress. 🙂
Me again. Just went to the website and bought the 60 denier opaques in Forest. Can’t wait for them to arrive. I live in a cold climate of Australia and wear tights 8 months of the year – can never get enough!
Yay! I hope you love them too! The forest colour is gorgeous!
Wish I could post a pic to show you – I’m really happy with them, but I’m not on other social media 🙁
Arrrrgh! That dress looks AMAZING on you! When I saw it on your blog the first time I was so sad when I realised I had only found your blog way after the dress was in the shops… and then my heart broke when I found one in a Leona end of line shop which was 3 sizes too small 🙁 Guess I’ll just have to live vicariously watching you wear it 😛
Tights are my nemesis. I keep nail polish in my desk at work just in case, but for some reason I always make runs way too big for the nail polish to help!!!
I haven’t read your blog for a while until tonight. You are noticeably skinnier!