Hosiery Issues

My maternity tights have become tight. Actually, I think I mentioned before that one brand of opaque tights had shrunk. The other brand has not shrunk, but I have expanded. This means that the waistband has a tendency to roll itself down from where it was and constrict the very lowest part of my belly. In addition to not being terribly comfortable for me, the fetus does not like this one bit. How do I know this? I know this because invariably the fetus reacts to the increased pressure by pushing back very hard on that very hard. It's actually a little startling how hard a four pound fetus can push. Honestly, if I can somehow figure out how to get the fetus to push off from my ribs when the time comes labor should last all of five minutes. Of course, that would require the fetus to cooperate, so I'm not holding my breath. In the meantime, the opaque tights are being reserved for just the very coldest of days and I will try to phase them out entirely.

The sheer maternity tights still fit fine, but they have another issue. They disintegrate. OK, I know sheers are not generally know for their durability, but still, I don't expect them to sprout large holes on their first or second wearing. It's rather alarming. My normal brand (which sadly don't come in maternity sizes) I buy for $12 for a pack of three. My normal brand I generally wear at least a dozen times before they develop issues, and they commonly see a good six months of service before they get tossed. The maternity sheers are $10 each, and they seem to develop holes and runs if you look at them too hard. Honestly, if I'm paying 250% of the price of my regular brand, is it too much to ask that they withstand a few uses without running? Apparently it is.

Warren suggested thigh-highs. This is a great solution for about three hours. After that the stuff that keeps them up starts irritating my skin. So, thigh-highs are perfect for a quick trip, but sadly not a solution for work.

There is one other solution...



Socks work well, though sadly finding socks that go with my wardrobe is not an easy solution. I have knit some, but that is time-consuming. Warren asked me why I didn't just go out and buy socks. I realized that the answer is that I have been mind-controlled by Ravelry. Buy socks? That I would wear in public? I mean, I don't own any pants that currently fit me, so people would see my socks. You can't expect me to go out in public with just any old socks showing. Besides, if I actually start knitting socks I have an excuse to buy some sock yarn. I now have two paira of socks that I knit myself. I really like the Vogon sock pattern. It's perfect for summer, and they are quick and fun to make. The only issues is that a pair for me takes about 1.25 skeins of Koigu. This means that once I make my second pair I will have 0.75 skeins of Koigu in each of the two colors. That's far to much to let go to waste. The colors are harmonious, and twe suggested that making a baby surprise jacket from the leftovers would be a good idea. It probably would, but I need to borrow a copy of the pattern from someone first. The only place I found online that sold that pattern alone would charge me $3 for the pattern, but an additional $4.75 for the shipping. I have no objections to paying $3 for a pattern, but I balk at paying more in shipping than for the item I'm having shipped.