Can you imagine a store that only sold ladies’ stockings? Helen Kirsch worked in one such store.
Helen is 4th from the left
Why did hosiery stores exist? People could purchase stockings in department stores, but stores dedicated only to stockings offered a wider assortment of hosiery types and colors, expert fitting advice, and attention to the quality and durability of their products. Also, before World War II, respectable women did not leave the house without covering their legs with hose (stockings). Women had to have more than one pair so they could wash and dry a pair and still have others to go out in. Stockings were considered a necessity and were in demand.
Before I tell you what happened to Helen, here is a little history of ladies’ stockings.
Up until 1939, ladies wore stockings made of rayon, cotton, or silk. As you will see, there were issues with all these materials.
In 1938, the DuPont company invented nylon and then displayed their newly invented nylon stockings at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. After that, everyone wanted nylon stockings. They were more durable and looked nicer than rayon or cotton ones. In 1939, a pair of Nylon stockings cost $1.15. In 2023 that would be equal to $24.37. That was a lot of money back then, so stockings were something you were very careful with and proud to own.
During World War II, silk was in short supply since the main supplier was Japan. Besides stockings, silk was also used for parachutes and other supplies. Nylon was also a war material and nylon stockings jumped to as much as $10 a pair. That would equate in 2023 to $210.49 for a pair of stockings. Because of the supply shortage, starting in 1941, stores limited the number of stockings people could buy to two or three pairs at a time.
Because of the skyrocketing prices, women started wearing stockings only for special occasions or reverted to less expensive ones made of rayon or cotton. However, these would sag and bunch up around the knees and ankles and were therefore not desirable.
Another fad was painting stockings on their legs using cosmetics from Max Factor and other companies. The painted stockings could last a couple of days if the wearer did not bathe. However, they had to stay out of the rain and had to be careful not to rub their legs together when sitting down.
During the war, there were also collection boxes set up so women could donate old stockings which were then melted down and reused for war supplies such as parachutes.
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It was a hassle to get your stockings on. First, you had to pull on a tight girdle. (Think of getting on Spanx today) You put one stocking on at a time, first one leg, then the other, hoping you would not stick your finger through them causing a run (tear). To begin the process, you would roll the stocking down and slip it over your toe, and then over the rest of your foot.
Slowly you would unravel the stocking while pulling it up your leg until it reached your thigh. Then you would carefully attach the stocking to the garter belt clips.
If your stocking had seams, you had to be even more careful to make sure the seam formed a straight line up your leg. If it didn’t, you had to roll the stocking back down and start the process over again.
Getting stockings that fit well and were lasting provided more reason for shopping at a hosiery-only store.
If hosiery stores were so popular and in demand, why did Helen lose her job?
One day it was near closing time. Helen saw her date walking down the street. He was coming to meet her by the store. There were no customers in the store, so Helen decided she would sneak out a few minutes early. She closed out her cash register and asked the girls standing next to her if they could cover for her if anyone came in. They said, of course, as it was only a few minutes to closing time.
Helen left the store and caught up with her date, Abe Warren.
The next day, when she got to the store, her supervisor told her she was fired for leaving early. Luckily, the story had a happy ending as Helen married her date in 1946 after Abe returned home from the war. While he was away, though, Helen must have been working somewhere, but we know it was not in the hosiery store.
Sources
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