Currently, all I want is for it to be warmer so I can go out with friends in a to-die-for party dress without being hindered by a winter coat or tights that make my feet slip out of my shoes.

However, sometimes after a couple months of hibernating, this winter-spring middle ground is what we need. We still have to throw our parkas over our skintight dresses, but the tights we wear to prevent hypothermia can sometimes do double or even triple duty.

Much to my surprise, Spanx, the brand best known for sucking in the post-holiday gut with their body-shapers, also has a line of stockings/tights perfect for this transitory period. Whether you want to go for the basic black tight or a sexier fishnet, you can play the fake-it-til-you-make-it game and hide those extra winter pounds until you’ve convinced yourself the gym isn’t your arch enemy— or is that just me.

I don’t own a pair of fishnet stockings, but I’ve always like the idea of them. They’re stereotypically sexy and femme fatale similar to the way a corset— of which I only own one and never wear— is a sexy allusion to the pin-up girl. So, why not splurge for the shape giving ‘Finally, Control Top Fishnets’ found on MyTights.com?

Does the added support via a control top make them less sexy? When worn under a Hervé Léger dress, absolutely not!

Plus, if ever I find myself in a situation where the ideal Hervé Léger dress is to be removed, I’m reassured by the knowledge that guys my age care more about taking garments off than how they actually look on.

I may be a fairly thin girl, but I am not averse to getting a little help from science a.k.a. Spanx— there’s even an ‘x’ at the end of the word, totally scientific— when I feel Mother Nature (i.e. mashed potatoes and apple strudel) has forsaken me.