Situation: #runintightsproblems

Update on the America East basketball tournament: six two-hour bus trips later, my dance team and I survived.  I think that's what's most important here.  This picture at 7am this morning sums up our weekend pretty well:

Thanks for modeling for me, Mickey.  #not.  Back to some fashion emergency problems.

Since I started taking dance classes at the age of three, I can’t even begin to explain the number of tights my dear parents had to buy me.  I probably went through about four pairs a year – a combination of tan, black, footless, convertible, you name it, I had that pair of tights at some point of my dance career.  Four pairs a year, and I’ve been dancing for about 18 years.  I’m bringing out the calculator for this one.  I’ve had approximately 72 pairs of tights.  Tights cost about $10 per pair… drumroll please: $720.  Approximately.  And that's not including countless dance costumes, stage props, competition bills, dance studio dues, dance shoes, hair supplies, makeup...  my parents really must hate me.  Mom and Dad, if you’re reading this, looooove you!

If you’re anything like me (i.e. a total klutz), I run through tights faster than Snooki runs through fake eyelashes.  And that's pretty fast.  As a banquet server at the Union Club, tights are required as part of our uniform, so I have to wear them more often than I would like.  The process of putting them on is a #situation (read: hashtag situation) in and of itself, but checking for runs in my tights is ALWAYS necessary.  I don't know if I struggle to put them on too fast and use my nails to pull my tights up or my toenails rip through them, but runs in tights are inevitable.  It doesn't matter if they're expensive department store tights, competition dance tights or drug store tights, I manage to create runs in them all.

But HAVE NO FEAR: There's a makeshift solution to hold the beginnings of a run if you're out and about - hairspray!  A few quick sprays will hold a run until you can go home and change into a new pair of tights.  The trick is to catch a run in tights at the earliest possible.  Even if you see a small hole in the bottom of your tights - beware!  That small hole will eventually become larger and turn into a run the more times you wash them and put them on.  Clear nail polish also does the trick, but it takes longer to dry, and carrying around a mini bottle of hairspray is useful in more ways than one.

My favorite hairspray is Aqua Net Professional Hairspray Extra Super Hold 3 (unscented), sold at most stores like CVS for a dirt-cheap $2.99.  The aerosol can looks a bit like something you'd find at Grandma's house, but it does the job (and works great for hair too!).

For a travel-size hairspray, I use Tresemme Tres Two Hairspray Extra Hold, a small, 1.5 oz. aerosol can.  The size of the picture doesn't do it justice, it's mini and cute and the perfect size for a purse or tote bag.

Don't get caught with a run in the back of your tights - it's trashy and unattractive.  The time you don't see it creeping up from the back of your heel is going to be the day you go in for a job interview and your potential future employer eyes it and POOF.  There goes your credibility.  Use this quick fashion fix for the days you see the beginning of a run, and make sure you don't go spraying away until your tights are soaked.  A few quick sprays, let the hairspray dry, and a few more quick sprays just in case.

What other ways are there to fix a run in tights?  Does nail polish last longer than hairspray for this quick fix?  Comment away!