Nylon Stockings

Nylon is a thermoplastic silky material which was first used for fishing line, surgical sutures and toothbrush bristles. Nylon was the first commercially successful synthetic polymer. Nylon fibers are also used in many applications, including fabrics, bridal veils, carpets, musical strings, rope etc. Traditionally, stockings were made of cotton, linen or wool. The finest were made of silk, far beyond the means of most. Stockings made out of Nylon evolved as a result of cheap substitute for silk. Nylon Stockings are a close-fitting, elastic garment covering the foot and lower part of the leg. They covered only about two-thirds of a woman’s leg, from the feet to mid-thigh and were fastened with garters and a belt. They were knitted on highly complex machines. At the time of their invention, women could only buy them in either 'Full-fashioned' form with seams at the back or 'Seamless'

History of the Invention

In the early 1930's a company called DuPont began experimenting on making a man-made substitute for silk. Wallace Carothers, Julian Hill, and other researchers working for the DuPont Company, started their research in this matter. They studied chains of molecules and called them Polymers. Pulling a heated rod from a beaker containing carbon-and alcohol-based molecules, they found the mixture stretched and, at room temperature, had a silky texture. This work culminated in the production of nylon marking the beginning of a new era in synthetic fibers. In 1935, nylon was invented and on October 27, 1938, Charles Stine, a vice president of E. I. du Pont de Nemours, Inc., announced that nylon had been invented. He unveiled the world's first synthetic fiber not to a scientific society but to three thousand women's club members gathered at the site of the 1939 New York World's Fair for the New York Herald Tribune's Eighth Annual Forum on Current Problems. DuPont touted its new fiber as being "as strong as steel, as fine as a spider's web

First Nylon PlantDuPont built the first full-scale nylon plant in Seaford, Delaware, and began commercial production in late 1939. The company decided not to register nylon as a trademark, according to Dupont they, "choose to allow the word to enter the American vocabulary as a synonym for stockings, and from the time it went on sale to the general public in May 1940, nylon hosiery was a huge success: women lined up at stores across the country to obtain the precious goods."

Development in the Invention of Nylon Stockings

From the time of their original inception back in 1940, stockings had changed little. They were created in a wide variety of sizes to fit the leg exactly and knitted together down the back showing a seam.

In 1959, Lycra was invented by DuPont which finished the need for Fully Fashioned Stockings. The same year Pantyhose was introduced which was a combination of underpants and stockings all in one garment. In the late 60's manufacturers found they could make nylon stretchy by crimping it under heat. Later, the seams too were to disappear as manufacturers moved away from knitting flat to circular knitting machines which eliminated the need to join the material.

Nylons remained popular until the 1960's where hem lines were raised again when Mary Quant's Mini Skirt Became the must have fashion accessory.

Role of the Invention of Nylon Stockings in the Improvement of Human Life

• It replaced silk in military applications such as parachutes and flak vests, and was used in many types of vehicle tires.

• Nylons, which were cheaper eventually replaced silk stockings

• Today, nylon is still used in all types of apparel and is the second most used synthetic fiber in the United States.