HOT Leggings

Last night, Eady and I caught up with Sammy and his lovely wife Dine who was due to give birth to their first baby the day before. Yes, Dine was 9 months and one day pregnant. But luckily for us all, baby wasn't quite ready to venture out into the big, wide world so a final night of freedom (for Sammy and Dine at any rate) was in order by way of tapas at a local restaurant. Apart from a good dose of yummy tapas and catching up with friends for the last time pre-baby, the night out also gave me the opportunity to try out my latest favourite thing for keeping the winter chill at bay. Fleece-lined leggings. Yes, that's right, leggings that have a thin layer of fleece on the inside to keep my pins nice and warm. And let me tell you, they worked an absolute treat! I wore them with a thin merino wool dress and riding boots and despite the icy wind and winter temperatures, I was toasty warm on the walk to and back from our night out. Even better though, I didn't overheat or turn into a sweaty-betty indoors either. Bingo.

I had first heard about fleece-lined leggings a few months ago via some US shopping websites but the reviews seemed quite mixed and for the cost of them (about $70 USD per pair), I was a little reluctant to purchase in case I fell into the category of people who didn't rate them. Instead I did some investigation and found that there were some fleece-lined leggings available locally at a much cheaper price at Myer store in Pitt Street Mall. They are  Ambra fleece-lined leggings and cost $19.99 AUD and are very much worth the small outlay. They are opaque and not bulky at all, being only a teeny bit thicker than standard leggings. I can imagine wearing them with skirts and dresses, with boots or leggings-style with shoes and also under pants or jeans when one layer alone isn't enough to keep my chicken legs warm in the depths of winter.

Seriously, fleece-lined leggings are the best invention since sliced bread! A word of warning though, I am a firm believer in the cardinal rule that "leggings are not pants" and that there are no exceptions to this rule, even if your job title begins with "super" and ends with "model". Although the picture on the front of the package suggests that these fleece-lined tights could be worn out to yoga class or to the cafe with your converse trainers, the cotton gusset which is on plain display should be an extra incentive to remember that leggings are actually hoisery. Meaning, don't take the photo on the package literally - if you can't style tights like this then you can't do it with leggings either!