The Question You Didn’t Know Needed To Be Asked: Are Tights Pants?

As a community, we still haven’t yet been able to answer the question, “Are leggings pants?” Usually, the response isn’t definitive, and comes as a “yes, but…” with a slew of caveats (you have to be wearing something that at least covers your crotch, they have to be black or 100% opaque). But even those who are hardcore pro-leggings-as-pants might pause when answering the question Prada posed Thursday evening: Are tights pants?

Well, sort of. The Prada tights in question were warm knits that were slightly transparent in the way a skintight sweater would be. They were black, navy, and heather gray, spotted with harlequin diamonds and argyle, and worn with tropical Aloha shirts, sailor hats, and waterlogged hair. The hosiery gave off a nerdy first mate Gilligan vibe (if Gilligan were also a bag lady who kept all her possessions worn in miniature purses strapped to her waist, neck, and other handbags). Some looks featured tights worn with hip-grazing jackets and shirts; others were paired with longer coats that were unbuttoned from the waist down, making them de facto pants. Tights were also worn with embellished, mid-thigh-length skirts and dresses that covered the derriere and crotch, but left the sides sheer — making them sort-of-pants. Then there were outfits where tights were just tights, and were worn in the way you'd expect, underneath buttery skirts and flowing dresses.

The jury's still out on this one, and we expect that it'll go even more toward the negative side than the leggings debate. But if your tights-pants outfit comes close to the magic that was the Prada fall '16 collection, even if the pearl clutchers come after you, you'll be able to respond with, "Does it matter when I look this good?"