Leggings,not a substitute for trousers...but!

In a recent survey, I read that only 26% of the female public felt that is was appropriate to wear leggings to work and yet I live and die in them! So, I have been having a think about this one and of course, as I say to you all, no matter what the style dilemma, there is RARELY an absolute right or wrong!

A few absolute no, no’s may include no skimpy shorts in the corporate or medical world, no acres of flesh showing and no huge clanky jewellery or hair in everything!

But leggings, maybe they sometimes get too harsh a press! After all, if you are comfortable wearing a dress with tights, can it be so very wrong to don leggings instead? I prefer to save money and instead of buying footless tights, I would wear my leggings and I even layer them under skirts, a trick I learnt from ballerinas, who wear them rather better!

I think the angst about leggings may come from the picture, that some of us remember from the eighties, when the blouses were not so flattering or long and left rather dubious rear ends on display, with little left to the imagination!

Leggings are just so practical and warm, why would you buy thermal underwear to ski or do sport in when you can wear your leggings. Why would you buy tight trews to run in when you can wear your leggings? Why would you wear tight fitting jeans with an uncomfortable belt, when you can wear leggings? Why would you keep pulling your dress down for decency when you could wear your leggings underneath. Tuck ‘em in your long boots and you can pretend you are wearing tights when you are wearing leggings!

Ladies used to wear leggings under their crinolines to prevent chafing, as do soldiers and we all know how uncomfortable “chub rub” is!  Cowboys wore leggings of buckskin to protect from chapping caused by riding, wear and tear to their pants, and bites from animals, such as snakes or insects in the scruff, such as ticks.

Indian ladies wear their version with beautiful exotic tunic dresses and no-one could argue how glamorous this look is! And now, leggings are coming into the shops in all colours and slinkiness and shininess and yes, some maybe a bit tacky, but maybe we are just a bit envious of those beautiful young girls who wear them so well! 

No, I will not move with the times, this time my leggings are with me to stay!

What to wear with leggings

Something that covers your bottom
Long shirts that end a little bit below your hips/upper-mid thigh
Over-sized sweaters and tunics
Mini-skirts/skirts

Dresses

They can be worn with ballerina pumps, high heels and most boots, but please don't allow the flesh to peak out if wearing ankle boots!

Layering up to give them extra weight but always cover your crotch area!

Only the really young and brave get away with wearing something tight-fitting with  leggings!

And REMEMBER, they are leggings not trousers so they are not to be equally substituted!

The Magic of Girl Talk

Taken from an excerpt of presentation given at Stamford University...it is often said, among other things, that one of the best things that a man could do for his health is to be married to a woman whereas for a woman, one of the best things she could do for her health was to nurture her relationships with her girlfriends. At first everyone laughed at the presenter, but he was serious.

Women connect with each other differently and provide support systems that help each other to deal with stress and difficult life experiences. Physically, this quality “girlfriend time" help to create more serotonin - a neurotransmitter that helps combat depression and can create a general feeling of well-being. Women share feelings whereas men often form relationships around activities. We share from our souls with our sisters/mothers, and evidently that is very GOOD for our health. The lecturer stated that spending time with a friend is just as important to our general health as jogging or working out at a gym.

There's a tendency to think that when we are "exercising" we are doing something good for our bodies, but when we are hanging out with friends, we are wasting our time and should be more productively engaged—not true. In fact, it is the failure to create and maintain quality personal relationships with other humans that is as dangerous to our physical health as smoking!

So every time you hang out to schmooze with a gal pal, just pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for doing something good for your health, well, I suppose as long as you aren’t overdoing the drinking and smoking at the same time!