Swiss Dot Tights!

For as much as I love fashion, I rarely buy new clothing to jazz up my own wardrobe. Some readers may recall that line from SATC where Carries says that she likes her money where she can see it: hanging in her closet. Well, I like my money where I can see it too: stamped in my passport. So, when it comes times to buy a few pieces for fall, my favorite season (for both the weather and the RTW collections), I'm generally pretty miserly. However, this season, the trend that was all over the fall 2009 RTW runways is something that I can easily afford to incorporate into my wardrobe: tights, glorious tights!

My favorite incarnation of the tights trend is without a doubt the swiss dot tight, a sheer tight with tiny black dots. Spotted all over the Balenciaga runway (see four looks from the runway above) and subsequent photo editorials in Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, it is the perfect way to wear a texturized tight without being too severe or heavy. The only downside is that I've only been able to find this specific tight on the website for Gerbe (http://www.gerbe.com/), the same brand of the Balenciaga tights and every tight in the August and September layouts. A French brand, the tights are naturally priced in Euros and are, sadly, way beyond my budget for something as ephemeral as tights. They'll inevitably snag, so why spend $58 on a single pair?

I simply must have these tights. I have a wedding later in the month where I'll be wearing a dress that is practically begging to be accessorized with swiss dot tights. Not content to relinquish $60 for tights, I scoured the usual mall suspects for stylish tights: Macy's, Banana Republic, J.Crew, Gap, The Limited, Express, etc., etc. No such luck. I haven't wandered into Forever 21 yet (that's a full afternoon's work!) or Saks, but they might be my last resort. If you should happen to come across swiss dot tights, for less than $60, please send the tip my way!