Job interview. If I do wear a skirt, do I wear pantyhose?

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Replies

  • Hoppymom
    Hoppymom Posts: 1,158 Member
    This is why I will wear pants to my interview today. If you chose a skirt than pantyhose are a must even if it's just for the interview and never again.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    Is there a difference between tights and pantyhose?

    Here in Ireland it is RARELY warm enough to go bare legged - but even on sunny days I'd feel under-dressed in the office if I had bare legs (plus I'm over 50, dont always shave my legs, and they usually have a bruise or 2 from my dogs' waggly tails, so trust me, they're better being covered!)

    Occasionally I might, with a longish skirt, well below the knee. But I always have the problem of what shoes to wear with bare legs/ feet that dont result in blisters?

    Today I'm wearing red tights, with a knee length red dress, and green high heeled brogues.

    And I'm a senior accountant.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    Exactly my thoughts! I work in a conservative office but I NEVER wear pantyhose. The word alone gives me the shivers. I'll wear tights (colored or black or patterned) in the winter so my legs don't freeze, but I think pantyhose are totally gross. Perhaps I need to rethink my position on them though since it seems that the overwhelming consensus in this thread is that they should be worn. *shrugs*

    Errr.. I thought pantyhose were tights?
    What are they then?!

    Tights tend to be a little thicker and more opaque. It's a subtle difference, but there is a difference.

    And if your pantyhose are uncomfortable, you're wearing the wrong size.

    And to reiterate: Even if you wouldn't wear pantyhose once you GOT the job, you don't HAVE the job yet. The dress code for the office is not the dress code for the interview. Dress to impress. Always.
  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    Hell yes. Skirt not too short (i.e. max 2 inches above the knee), natural tights (not sheer black or fishnet or patterned or coloured that's for evenings/weekends), top should be white / pink/ pale blue and not sleeveless and ideally a jacket to match the skirt.
  • ChaseAlder
    ChaseAlder Posts: 804 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    This.
  • ChaseAlder
    ChaseAlder Posts: 804 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    Exactly my thoughts! I work in a conservative office but I NEVER wear pantyhose. The word alone gives me the shivers. I'll wear tights (colored or black or patterned) in the winter so my legs don't freeze, but I think pantyhose are totally gross. Perhaps I need to rethink my position on them though since it seems that the overwhelming consensus in this thread is that they should be worn. *shrugs*

    I think the overwhelming consensus is to cover the leg skin in whatever way necessary. I'd wear tights over pantyhose anyday, and I'd wear pants instead of pantyhose were required. I'd get a run in them before I even got to work... they're useless.
  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    good old wikipedia:

    In American English, the difference between pantyhose and tights is determined in the weight of the yarn used and the thickness to which the garment is knitted. Generally, anything up to 40 denier is known as pantyhose and anything over can be classified as tights, as for example 'running tights' and 'cycling tights'. In the United Kingdom, the word "tights" is used in all cases when referring to pantyhose, and "leggings" for hosiery of heavier, normally opaque material. Tights can be sheer yet solid in colour, whereas leggings are opaque, not sheer.
  • MariaMariaM
    MariaMariaM Posts: 1,322 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    When they work in corporate America they do..

    I work in Corporate America and have worked for various Fortune 100 companies. I agree that to an interview you probably want to wear a pantyhose if wearing as skirt suit. On a daily basis, I don't wear them and I don't see people wearing them as much any more. I have been working in Finance for about 10 - 11 years now so I know what I am talking about.
    I wear pantyhose if giving presentations to upper management or to present at Offsites.
  • perfectingpatti
    perfectingpatti Posts: 1,037 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????
    I know right? They are so uncomfortable. >.<

    Agreed that pantyhose suck, and you may not have to wear them once you get the job, but you need to wear them to the interview.
  • mcjmommy
    mcjmommy Posts: 148 Member
    If you wear a skirt, wear pantyhose. My husband hires for the bank he works at and it is their dresscode.
    I hate wearing pantyhose, so I would wear a suit that has pants to get around them.
    Good Luck!
  • juliaamilee
    juliaamilee Posts: 262 Member
    Thank goodness I am a nurse! Wear scrubs, and comfy shoes. LOL no panty hose for me.. I am with the rest of the group in the "people still wear those" But i would guess what eer business you are in follow the path and look professional.
  • Dudagarcia
    Dudagarcia Posts: 849 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    Lol
  • murf19
    murf19 Posts: 453 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    I agree. I thought Pantyhose were out. I can't remember the last time I saw a female wearing them, even at formal events.
  • misscristie
    misscristie Posts: 643 Member
    I'd say screw the pantyhose/skirt idea and just wear a VERY well tailored pair of slacks.
  • Erisad
    Erisad Posts: 1,580
    People still wear pantyhose????
    I know right? They are so uncomfortable. >.<

    Agreed that pantyhose suck, and you may not have to wear them once you get the job, but you need to wear them to the interview.

    That's why I wear pants to the interview. That way I only need my little ankle-highs or knee-highs. Problem solved. :P
  • AliceNov2011
    AliceNov2011 Posts: 471 Member
    All you pantyhose proponents are setting the women's rights movement back 50 years! :sad:

    I've been on Executive Leadership Teams at Fortune 15 companies for 20+ years. Pantyhose are OUT. Tights in the winter are a fashion statement.

    When in doubt, wear black slacks.
  • Chapter3point6
    Chapter3point6 Posts: 1,233
    I work in corporate america in a relaxed environment. I dress in jeans every day. I have worked in departments were suits were the norm, and others where dress slacks, shirt & tie were sufficient. Of course I prefer being in an area where I can be comfortable in jeans.

    Despite enjoying a relaxed dress code and observing it in other departments, I would NEVER show up for an interview without wearing a suit.

    The only real answer you should be getting to this question is YES, WEAR THEM! The other answers really aren't given to HELP YOU, which is why you started this thread.
  • squigglypuff
    squigglypuff Posts: 279 Member
    i work in an office and i always wear pantyhose or tights. my legs are heavily tattooed and the head of the company is pretty conservative so i try to cover my legs up as much as i can by wearing slacks or opaque tights. occasionally i'll wear colored tights and everyone in the office gets a kick out of seeing my ink, but i try not to do it too often.
  • zombie_porno
    zombie_porno Posts: 199 Member
    I work in a large upscale law firm and most of the women do not wear pantyhose. But maybe finance is a whole different story.

    ...What city? Here in Chicago, if you showed up with bare legs to work in a law firm you'd be sent to Walgreens to buy a pair.
  • perfectingpatti
    perfectingpatti Posts: 1,037 Member
    I've been on Executive Leadership Teams at Fortune 15 companies for 20+ years. Pantyhose are OUT. Tights in the winter are a fashion statement.
    Ever work for Ross Perot?
    When in doubt, wear black slacks.
    But, if you DO wear a skirt, wear panty hose or tights to be safe.
  • chocolateandpb
    chocolateandpb Posts: 438 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    Exactly my thoughts! I work in a conservative office but I NEVER wear pantyhose. The word alone gives me the shivers. I'll wear tights (colored or black or patterned) in the winter so my legs don't freeze, but I think pantyhose are totally gross. Perhaps I need to rethink my position on them though since it seems that the overwhelming consensus in this thread is that they should be worn. *shrugs*

    Errr.. I thought pantyhose were tights?
    What are they then?!

    Tights are thicker and more opaque than pantyhose (and yet thinner and less opaque than leggings). They come in fun colors, textures and patterns so they're just like another accessory to my outfit.
  • diadojikohei
    diadojikohei Posts: 732 Member
    Wiki says i's the same thing! Tights are sheer and anything from 15 denier to 60+ denier. Personally I HATE tights but would wear them for an interview, my hubby interviews all the time and people do go first impressions, you'll look professional. Also, wear court shoes, or pumps, but not 4 inch heels, 1 and a half to 2 is fine.
    and...
    GOOD LUCK!
    :flowerforyou:
  • yksdoris
    yksdoris Posts: 327 Member
    For an interview, Dress to Impress.

    I have a permanent bruise on my calf (carting accident) so I always wear tights or panyhose whenever wearing a skirt; though so does every other female working in this office.

    However, for my previous job I'd show up in sneakers, jeans and a hoodie most days. The job before that had a rule "no blue jeans. ever" which some people interpreted as "but red jeans or a lime green über-mini skirt is fine, right?"

    This job is more... if I know there will be externals around, I'll wear something more official: a pencil skirt or basic black pants with high heels and a nice top/cardigan; if I know nobody will be around, I'll wear flats and jeans and a comfy t-shirt.

    Besides, wearing tights or pantyhose allows me to wear skirts well into the autumn. wouldn't be able to do that otherwise, and I tend to get tired of "the office pants"
  • Nikachelle
    Nikachelle Posts: 66 Member

    It is easy for women already working in corporate america to give their opinion based on what is acceptable in their job. Chances are their company has a more professional dress code policy that their managers just don't enforce.

    Absolutely not. I just re-read our HR policy on our employee site and it does not mention hose as a requirement for skirts. (Again, I'm at corporate headquarters for a national bank.)
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    People still wear pantyhose????

    :laugh:
  • beckajw
    beckajw Posts: 1,728 Member
    I work in a large upscale law firm and most of the women do not wear pantyhose. But maybe finance is a whole different story.

    ...What city? Here in Chicago, if you showed up with bare legs to work in a law firm you'd be sent to Walgreens to buy a pair.

    I work in a law firm too. You wear pantyhose if you are wearing a skirt.
  • Bentley2718
    Bentley2718 Posts: 1,689 Member
    Yes, or possibly tights, but you want something on your legs. It's a matter of hedging your bets, even if most women who work there don't wear pantyhose or tights, it seems very unlikely to me that someone will think less of you for wearing them (or that you will be uncomfortable mentally if you're the only woman in the room wearing them). On the other hand, if leg coverings are the norm in that office, and you don't wear them, it might raise eyebrows (and feel awkward).

    And then hope they don't take you out to breakfast someplace with chairs that will tear them. This happened to me on my last (all day) interview. By the middle of the day what had started as small holes were horrible runs. The chair of the department caught me in the bathroom fretting over them and kindly said "why don't you just take them off?" Which is what I ended up doing. I got the job anyway, so it obviously wasn't a huge deal. Since all day interviews are relatively rare, this shouldn't be a problem for most people.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    LOL -- If I were interviewing someone and she crossed her legs and I saw knee highs, the interview would be over due to poor judgment! ;c)

    If the skirt reaches her ankles, you won't see them. Obviously, you wouldn't wear them with a skirt that allowed them to be seen.

    If the skirt reaches her ankles, it's too long.

    Now we can't wear skirts to our ankles? WTH? :laugh: That's the only skirt length that I own. I guess I'm lucky that I always wear pants! :tongue:
  • Chapter3point6
    Chapter3point6 Posts: 1,233

    It is easy for women already working in corporate america to give their opinion based on what is acceptable in their job. Chances are their company has a more professional dress code policy that their managers just don't enforce.

    Absolutely not. I just re-read our HR policy on our employee site and it does not mention hose as a requirement for skirts. (Again, I'm at corporate headquarters for a national bank.)

    Similar employer and it is in our HR policy. I personally have had to send young women to Macy's to buy them to avoid being sent home.

    But the point is that a lot of women are sharing their opinion based on what is acceptable in the job THEY ALREADY HAVE! What is in a corporate policy and what is expected for an interview are two different things.
  • ctalimenti
    ctalimenti Posts: 865 Member
    Yes wear them. They are more professional.

    I have seen very few women who can get away with not wearing them. White women (like myself) are just too pale. Very few women have flawless legs.

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