The use of stockings isn’t limited to workplace and street style fashion. You can also use them for formal events and other special occasions. Slay your date night, rock a concert or party event, and strut your style in other formal functions. Here are a few tips on how hosiery can be incorporated in chic and elegant formal wear.

1. Stick to sheer nude and opaque black for your hosiery shade options. 
   If you’re looking into rocking a formal event, your hosiery classics are the only way to go--nude and tan shades or opaque black. Stockings of other colors might make your outfit look too playful and overwhelming. Whatever color of dress or outfit you’re wearing, the classic hosiery hues will surely work well with your current look. These shades add depth in any formal outfit, making the overall attire more stylish and sophisticated. Oohlalaa Hosiery offers these stockings staples in shades Bronte Bronze, Bondi Tan, and After Dark. When in doubt, you can always go for these shades.
   
   
2. Wear it under a dress or a mini skirt.
   For formal occasions, it’s perfect to pair stockings with short dresses and skirts. Of course you also have the option to dress in long gowns and dresses or wear slacks. But if you’re leaning towards wearing a fancy short dress, or sporting a formal pencil skirt in your outfit, you can definitely wear them with stockings. If you’re covering up in an elegant coat, a pair of stockings will also work well with it. You may choose from thigh high stockings to full length depending on the length of your skirt or dress.
   
3. Sheer nude stockings over bare legs.
   If you think that wearing sheer nude stockings beneath your outfit will do nothing, think again. You’re going to a formal event, whether it’s date night, a gala, an awards night, a red carpet event, or an opening night. There will be photographers, you’ll surely be exposed from head to toe in one way or another. And you can’t really avoid flaw in your legs--bruises, goosebumps, or red spots from the weather or from insect bites. You don’t really want that in your whole body event picture, do you? Nude hosiery can still give the illusion of bare legs while maintaining the look of your lower body flawless throughout the event.
   
   For more, wearing nude stockings can also double as a shapewear! When you’re wearing a body-fit dress, you’ll want to have a shapewear beneath in order to keep the figure of your waist shaped and maintained. This is important for lunch and dinner galas, you don’t want your food belly popping out for the rest of the event photos (especially since most shots are taken candidly by photographers!).
   
   
4. Choose the right pair of heels to match your stockings with.
   Any type of high heel will definitely look great with stockings, but there are specific types that work best when it comes to formal wear. Pumps, stilettos, and platforms are the three best options when you wear stockings with a dress or a short skirt. Open-toed heels such as pins, peep toes, and sandals could also look great with sheer nude hosiery. Boots, of course, look great as well with stockings regardless of the height. It can also be a comfortable alternative especially if you will be walking and standing a lot during the event.
   
   Another hack when it comes to choosing footwear is to make sure the color of your hosiery matches your shoe color. This creates an element of continuity in your outfit (see photos above), elongating your legs and making you look taller.
   
   
   
   
   
5. Don’t be afraid to try out patterned stockings.
   Going solid isn’t the only way to go when it comes to styling for formal events. You can experiment with fishnet tights, stockings with lines, and even polka-dotted ones. There’s a wide range of leggings and tights for you to choose from. Depending on the textures and patterns you wear on your outfit, you can choose to wear patterned stockings as long as it won’t make your overall look too complex and overwhelming.
   

The most important thing when going out for a formal event is confidence in how you present and carry yourself and your style. Show off your character and confidence through these formal wear styling tips and make sure you’re also comfortable with your look. Choosing the right pair of stockings to go with your outfit will surely ease your worries during the event, because you don’t just look amazing, you also feel great.