Patent Publication Number: US-2010107309-A1

Title: Footless pantyhose undergarment with two-ply legs

Description:
PRIORITY 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/195,829 titled “Footless Pantyhose Underwear”, which was filed Oct. 10, 2008, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/204,748 titled “Footless Pantyhose Underwear with Elastic”, which was filed Jan. 9, 2009, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/209,852 titled “Non-control Shapewear”, which was filed Mar. 11, 2009, and the subject matter of all three applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
    
    
     CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is related to concurrently filed U.S. patent applications titled: “Footless Pantyhose Undergarment” Ser. No. ______, “Footless Non-control Pantyhose Undergarment” Ser. No. ______, “Footless Non-control Pantyhose Undergarment with Modified Leg Bands” Ser. No. ______, 
     “Knitted-in Band” Ser. No. ______, “Footless reinforced Pantyhose Undergarment with Modified Leg Bands” Ser. No. ______, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. 
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a footless pantyhose undergarment, in particular to non-control undergarments or shapewear and modified reinforced undergarments or shapwear made of pantyhose material. 
     For years women have been concerned about visible panty lines when wearing tight clothing such as pants or clothing with delicate fabrics such as silk. There have been numerous attempts to resolve this problem, but each has its own disadvantages. 
     Typically designers assume that every woman wants to slim down and therefore, they use a great amount of elastic in the knitting process to crate control top shapewear and place a substantial amount of pressure on the body to sculpt it. However, sculpting creates a high level of discomfort. For occasional use tight undergarments or shapewears serve a purpose, but for working women who need to wear these types of undergarments for a long period of time like ten hours or more on daily basis, tight undergarments are not practical. 
     Pantyhose are typically made of a panty portion integrally knitted to two leg portions and each portion is knitted with a body yarn such as stretch nylon or textured nylon. The body yarn in the panty portion usually has a higher denier than the one used in the leg portions to create opacity in the panty portion. Typically the body yarn of the panty portion is 40-80 denier nylon and the body yarn of the legs is 20-40 denier nylon. A body yarn is the main yarn used to knit the pantyhose. 
     In control top pantyhose, a high denier elastic yarn, such as 70 or higher denier spandex, is coupled with the body yarn of the panty portion to create reinforcement and place compressive force onto the body for the purpose of sculpting and/or smoothing. Typically, the elastic yarn is used in every other course. However other variations have also been used. The leg portions either have an elastic yarn with a denier less than the one used in the panty portion, such as 10-30 denier spandex, or they are made of just the body yarn with out any additional elastic yarn. 
     In contrast to the control top pantyhose, footless pantyhose undergarment or shapwear may have even higher denier elastic yarns, such as 100 denier or higher in the panty and leg portions. The footless pantyhose or shapewear are also very thick which do not allow the body to easily breathe. 
     In addition, the single ply shapewear have leg bands which are made similar to the waistbands and have an elastic yarn with a high denier such as 150 denier spandex coupled to the body yarn during the knitting. The high denier spandex causes the waistband and the pantyhose to stay in place while the wearer moves. 
     However, the leg bands do not need such an excessive amount of elastic yarns. The conventional leg bands made with high elastic yarns such as 150 denier spandex, cause a lot of discomfort and may also cause blood circulation problems. In addition, the compressive force causes an indentation in the leg which is not desirable when worn with tight clothing. They also are usually thicker than the rest of the leg portion because they have two layers and therefore do not allow the body to easily breathe and also cause an uneven look. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a comfortable footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear to eliminate the panty line without placing excessive pressure on the wearer&#39;s body. 
     In addition, there is also a need for comfortable leg bands that do not place excessive pressure on the legs which could be used for both control and non-control footless pantyhose undergarments. 
     Furthermore, there is need for a thinner footless pantyhose undergarment or shapwear and thinner leg bands to allow the body to breathe easier and look even with the leg portion. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a footless pantyhose undergarment having a single panty portion and two two-ply leg portions. Each two-ply leg portion comprises a tubular folded segment connected to the panty. The fold line is where the leg ends. 
     The present invention eliminated the need for conventional leg bands and eliminates the undesirable features associated with conventional leg bands such as indentation and uneven thickness. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates the footless pantyhose undergarment of the present invention in accordance with one embodiment of this invention. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates the footless pantyhose undergarment of the present invention in accordance with an alternative embodiment of this invention. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a knitted-in band of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates the footless pantyhose undergarment of  FIG. 1  in combination with the knitted-in leg band of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  illustrates the footless pantyhose undergarment of  FIG. 2  in combination with the knitted-in leg band of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 6  illustrates footless reinforced pantyhose undergarment in combination with the knitted-in leg band of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 7  illustrates the footless pantyhose undergarment of the present invention with two-ply legs. 
         FIG. 8  illustrates two tubular pantyhose undergarment blanks used to create the footless pantyhose garment of  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 9  is a representation of different embodiments of this invention showing different possibilities for the placement of their waistband and leg bands. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , there is shown a footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear  10  of the present invention. The panty portion  12  covers the abdomen and the buttocks of the wearer and two leg portions  14  and  16  cover the legs. The panty portion  12  ends at a waist terminating portion  18 , hereinafter referred to as waistband  18 . Each one of the leg portions  14  and  16  end at their respective leg terminating portions  20 , hereinafter referred to as leg bands  20 . Each leg band is made of a two-ply knitted in band. However, the waistband  18  and leg bands  20  can be elastic bands, knitted-in welts, knitted-in bands, or can use any other knitting process which can create a terminating edge. Furthermore, the leg portions  14  and  16  are seamlessly knitted to the panty portion  12  along the line  21 . 
     It should be noted that, unlike fashion hosiery, the footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear discussed in this specification is strictly used as an undergarment and is not visible to the public. Furthermore, in this specification, “shapewear”, “footless pantyhose undergarment”, “footless pantyhose”, “pantyhose undergarment”, or “undergarment” have all been used interchangeably. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  10  is made with circular knitting process, which would create seamless legs  14  and  16  attached seamlessly to their corresponding panty segments  12   a  and  12   b.  Then the tubular panty segments  12   a  and  12   b  are slit and attached to each other along the line  23  which extends from the front of waistband  18  down to the crotch and then up to the waist band  18 . Alternatively, the crotch section  19  can be made as a separate piece from a cotton yarn or with a cotton lining to eliminate the need for wearing a panty. However, the crotch portion may or may not be included. 
     It should be noted that the footless pantyhose undergarment  10  is made with circular knitting process, but any other type of knitting process, such as flat-bed knitting process, can also be used. 
     The panty portion  12  and the leg portions  14  and  16  of this invention are made of a stretch yarns, such as nylon to provide a relatively small amount of compressive force against the body of the wearer. In other words, the panty portion  12  and the leg portions  14  and  16  are made entirely with a stretch yarn without the use of elastic yarns. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  10  of this invention has a stretch nylon with a denier of 80 or less. However for a thinner footless pantyhose undergarment  10 , a stretch nylon with a denier of 60 or less should be used. 
     Stretch yarns such as nylon, stretch and recover, but can&#39;t create a great amount of compressive force. In contrast, elastic yarns stretch and recover, but in higher deniers such as 70 denier or more, can place a great amount of compressive force on the body. Conventional shapewears and control top pantyhose have high denier elastic to create a sculpting compressive force. Since this embodiment does not use any elastic yarn in the panty and the leg portions  12 ,  14 , and  16 . Therefore, the footless pantyhose undergarment  10  is non-control. Furthermore, the two-ply leg bands  20  are also made entirely with a stretch yarn such as stretch nylon without the use of elastic yarns. Since the leg bands do not have elastic yarns, the cross stitch can be tightened to cause the leg band to stay in place. 
     In this specification stretch yarns are defined as any yarn that can stretch excluding the elastic yarns. 
     The waistband  18  is a knitted-in welt or knitted-in band made of a body yarn such as nylon coupled with an elastic yarn such as 120 or higher denier spandex during the knitting. The high denier spandex causes the waistband and the pantyhose to stay in place while the wearer moves. If one desires, an elastic band can be used for the waistband  18  or the leg bands  20  or for both the waistband  18  and leg bands  20 . 
     The panty  12  and the legs  14  and  16  can be made with different denier nylon yarns to incorporate different thickness such as an opaque panty and sheer legs or visa versa. They can also be made with different stitch patterns. Alternatively, the panty  12  and the legs  14  and  16  can be made with the same yarns and stitch patterns. As a result, the panty portion extends into the leg portions with the same thickness without any transition line. This would create a uniform thickness and look for the panty  12  and the leg portions  14  and  16 . Furthermore, the panty portion  12  and the leg portions  14  and  16  can be made to be all sheer or all opaque and can be knitted with any stitch pattern. 
     The present invention substantially reduces the compressive force placed on the body by the conventional footless pantyhose and provides a comfortable solution to eliminate panty lines. 
     It should be noted that the footless pantyhose undergarment  10  can also be made with the leg band  60  which is described in detail in reference to  FIG. 3  and the combination of the footless pantyhose  10  with the leg band  60  is shown as footless pantyhose  10 ′ in  FIG. 4 . The leg band  60 , shown in  FIG. 3 , has elastic yarns to provide a clinging effect to the leg band to keep it in place. The footless pantyhose undergarment  10  can be combined with either the comfort leg band  60  to provide more comfort or can be combined with grip and comfort leg band  60  to provide more snug fit with comfort. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , there is shown an alternative embodiment of the footless pantyhose undergarment  40  of this invention. The panty portion  42 , which is seamlessly connected to the leg portions  44  and  46 , ends at a waistband  48 . Each leg portion  44  and  46  ends at one of the leg bands  50 . The waistband  48  and leg bands  50  can be elastic bands, knitted-in welts, knitted-in bands, or can use any other knitting process which can create a terminating edge. Furthermore, the leg portions  44  and  46  are seamlessly knitted to the panty portion  42  along the line  51 . 
     Any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear can be used for anyone of the embodiments of this invention. However for a thinner undergarment, the body yarn should have a denier of 60 or less, e.g., 6.0 or 6.6 nylon with a denier of 60 or less. Thinner footless pantyhose are desirable because they allow the body to breath and move easier. 
     The panty portion  42  and the leg portions  44  and  46  have a common body yarn of about 40 denier nylon. As a result, the panty extends into the legs with the same thickness without any transition line to create a unity between the panty and the legs. Alternatively, the panty portion  42  can have a body yarn with a higher denier than the body yarn of the legs  44  and  46  to create opacity. In either case of the common body yarn or different body yarns, each body yarn should have a denier in the range of about 60 or less. Alternatively, the panty portion  42  and the leg portions  44  and  46  can be made to be all sheer or all opaque and can be knitted with any stitch pattern. 
     To create a clinging effect in the footless pantyhose undergarment  40 , elastic yarns with a denier of about 60 or less have been coupled with the body yarns of the panty portion  42  and leg portions  44  and  46 . The clinging effect is a desirable feature because it causes the undergarment to stay in place during the body movement. However, the amount of elastic in yarns with a denier of about 60 or less is sufficiently low to create a relatively small amount of compressive force against the body of the wearer. In other words, the panty portion  42  and the leg portions  44  and  46  are non-control. 
     It should be noted that in this specification, the non-control embodiments either do not have elastic yarns or have elastic yarns with a denier that is below the typical range used for control top or support pantyhose. Therefore, in this specification “non-control”, “without reinforcement” “without support”, shall all mean a type of pantyhose/footless pantyhose knitted either without elastic yarns or with elastic yarns having a denier of about 60 or less. 
     The panty portion  42  and the leg portions  44  and  46  have a common elastic yarn of about 40 denier spandex to create a uniform thin undergarment. The elastic yarn used for the panty portion  42  and the leg portions  44  and  46  can be the same or the panty portion  42  can have an elastic yarn with a different denier than the elastic yarn used for the leg portions  44  and  46 . However in both cases of the common elastic yarn or different elastic yarns, each elastic yarn should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     The elastic yarn is coupled with the body yarns of the panty and the legs at every other course. However, the elastic yarn can be coupled with the body yarn in any manner other than every other course. Furthermore, the elastic yarn used in different embodiments of this invention can be a covered elastic yarn or a bare elastic yarn. 
     Alternatively, the panty portion  42  can have elastic yarn in addition to the body yarn, but the leg portions  44  and  46  can be made of only the body yarn without any additional elastic yarns. Yet in another embodiment, the panty portion  42  can be made of only the body yarn and the leg portions  44  and  46  can have elastic yarn. In any of the embodiments the elastic should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     Depending on the design of the undergarment  40 , there might be a need to use multiple types of elastic yarns with different deniers in each one of the panty portion, the leg portions, or in both the panty and the leg portions. In which case, the elastic yarn with the highest denier should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     The present invention provides a comfortable solution with a clinging effect to eliminate panty lines. 
     It is well known in the industry that the best and preferred way to create control top pantyhose is to increase the denier of the elastic yarns. However, in some occasions, one might try to use a low denier elastic yarn and use high tension during stitching to create reinforced pantyhose. 
     It should be noted that in all the non-control embodiments of this invention, to keep the footless pantyhose as non-control a tension of about 3 grams or less has been used. 
     The knitted-in waistband  48  has a high denier elastic yarn coupled with a body yarn during the knitting. The body yarn is a yarn such as 40 denier nylon and the elastic is a yarn such as 120 denier spandex. The high denier spandex causes the waistband and the pantyhose to stay in place while the wearer moves. If one desires, the knitted-in waistband can be replaced with an elastic band. 
     The leg bands  50  can be similar to the waistband or each can be an elastic band. 
     However, it should be noted that the footless pantyhose undergarment  40  can also be made with the leg band  60  which is described in detail in reference to  FIG. 3  and the combination of the footless pantyhose  40  with the leg band  60  is shown as footless pantyhose  40 ′ in  FIG. 4 . The leg band  60 , shown in  FIG. 3 , has a low denier elastic yarn to provide a clinging effect to the leg band to keep it in place. The footless pantyhose undergarment  40  can be combined with either the comfort leg band  60  to provide more comfort or it can be combined with grip and comfort leg band  60  to provide more snug fit with comfort. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , there is shown an enlarged view of an alternative knitted-in leg band  60  partially lifted to expose the inside or the bottom layer  62 . The knitted-in leg band  60  is a two-ply band made of a continuous segment which has been folded along the edge  64  and attached to each other along the line  66 . The body yarn used in the leg band  60  is nylon with a denier of about 60 or less to create thin leg bands. However, it should be noted that any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose or shapewear can also be used. 
     Contrary to the conventional practice of using high denier elastic yarns, such as 120 denier or higher spandex, the leg bands  60  of this invention are made of elastic yarns with a denier of about 60 or less to create a small amount of compressive force to reduce the indentation created by the leg bands on the wearer&#39;s legs and provide a comfortable feel for extended wear. Since the leg bands  60  have a low drier body yarn and lower denier elastic compared to conventional leg bands, they provide a thinner and softer feel which is a very desirable feature for many women. For the purpose of clarity in this specification the leg bands  60  with the elastic yarn of about 60 or less denier are called “comfort leg band  60 .” 
     However, some women prefer a bit more snug fit, but still soft and comfortable feel. for a more snug fit, the leg band  60  can have elastic yarns with a denier of 60-80, which is still substantially less than the typical denier of 120 or higher, and therefore it can still provide a comfortable feel without the excess pressure. The snug fit of the leg bands  60  is much less tight compared to conventional leg bands. Therefore, the combination of the low denier body yarn with the snug fit provides a good grip with a comfortable feel. For the purpose of clarity in this specification the leg bands  60  with the elastic yarn of about 60 to 80 denier are called “grip and comfort leg band  60 .” 
     It should be noted that the following alternative embodiments equally apply to the comfort leg band  60  and the grip and comfort leg band  60 . 
     The outside or the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62  can have a common elastic yarn or each can have an elastic yarn with a different denier. Alternatively, only either the top layer  68  or bottom layer  62  has elastic yarn. In another embodiment, the elastic yarn of the top layer  68  has a denier greater than the denier of the elastic yarn in the bottom layer  62 . 
     Alternatively, either the top layer  68  or both the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62  of the folded segment are knitted with the same stitch pattern, same body yarn, and same elastic yarn as the ones in the leg portion  65 . In other words, the same stitch pattern and yarns of the leg portion continue into the knitted in leg band to create a uniform look between the top layer  68  and the leg portion  65 . However, if one desires, the stitch pattern and the body yarn can be modified to create a different look or opacity on the leg band. 
     The bottom layer  62  can be knitted with any appropriate stitch pattern with or without an elastic yarn. To create a more comfortable leg band, each one of the elastic yarn used in the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62  should have a denier equal or less than the denier of the elastic yarn used in the leg portion  65 . 
     In the leg band  60  of  FIG. 3 , both the top and the bottom layers  68  and  62  have a common body yarn such as 40 denier nylon. Alternatively, the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62  can have different body yarns. In either case of the common body yarn or different body yarns, the body yarn should have a denier in the range of about 60 or less. However, any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment can also be used. 
     It is desirable to have a leg band  60  with a stretch factor similar to the stretch factor of the leg portions  65  to substantially reduce the indentations caused by the leg bands. Since the leg bands  60  have two layers, the stretch factor of each leg band is the combination of the stretch factors of the two layers. Therefore, the top and bottom layers together create a stretch factor for the leg band. 
     In order to create a approximately equal stretch factor between the stretch factor of the single layer leg  65  and the stretch factors of the two-ply leg band  60 , the sum of the deniers of the elastic yarn of the top layer  68  and the elastic yarn of the bottom layer  62  should be substantially equal or less than the denier of the elastic yarn used in the leg portion  65 . For example, if the elastic yarn of the leg portion  65  has a denier of  40 , the top layer  68  can have an elastic yarn with a denier of 30 and the bottom layer  62  can have an elastic yarn with a denier of 10. Alternatively the top layer  68  can have an elastic yarn with a denier of 40 and the bottom layer  62  can be knitted without an elastic yarn. 
     It is also desirable to create a leg band  60  with the same thickness as the thickness of the leg portion  65  to create an even look between the leg potions  65  and the leg bands  60 . Since the leg bands  60  have two layers, the thickness of each leg band  60  is the combination of thickness of the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62 . 
     Therefore, in order to create a n approximately equal thickness between the leg bands  60  the leg portions  65 , the sum of the deniers of the body yarn of the top layer  68  and the body yarn of the bottom layer  62  should be substantially equal or less than the denier of the body yarn used in the leg portions  65 . For example, if the body yarn of the leg portion  65  has a denier of 40, the top layer  68  can have a body yarn with a denier of 30 and the bottom layer  62  can have a body yarn with a denier of 10 or alternatively each one of the top layer  68  and the bottom layer  62  can have a body yarn with a denier of 20. 
     It should also be noted that the leg band  60  can be made of different stitch patterns. For example the leg band can be a knitted-in welt or it can be made with any other stitch pattern such as jersey. Furthermore, the leg band  60  can be used to terminate any footless pantyhose leg with a raw edge regardless of the denier of the yarns used in the leg portion. In other words, the leg band  60  can be used with reinforced, non-control, sheer, or thick footless pantyhose leg. In this specification, a raw edge is defined as an edge where the knitting ends. 
     Referring To  FIG. 4 , there is shown the footless pantyhose undergarment  10 ′ which is the footless pantyhose  10  of  FIG. 1  in combination with the leg band  60  of  FIG. 3 . Referring to  FIG. 5 , there is shown the footless pantyhose undergarment  40 ′ which is the footless pantyhose undergarment  40  of  FIG. 2  in combination with the leg band  60  of  FIG. 3 . The same numerals depict the like elements in  FIGS. 1 ,  2 ,  4 , and  5 . 
     It should be noted that both embodiments  10 ′ and  40 ′ can be combined with both comfort leg band  60  to provide a more comfortable feel or with the grip and comfort leg band  60  to provide a snug fit with comfort. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  10 ′ with comfort leg band  60  has the following yarn combinations: the panty portion and the leg portions have only stretch yarns with a denier of about 80 or less, and each layer of the leg band has an elastic yarn with a denier in the range of 60 or less. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  10 ′ with grip and comfort leg band  60  has the following yarn combinations: the panty portion and the leg portions have only stretch yarns with a denier of about 80 or less, and each layer of the leg band has an elastic yarn with a denier in the range of about 60 to about 80. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  40 ′ with comfort leg band  60  has the following yarn combinations: the panty portion, the leg portions, and each layer of the leg band has an elastic yarn with a denier in the range of 60 or less. Within the range of 60 or less, it is possible to have the elastic yarn of the panty to be higher than the elastic yarn in the legs. Although not necessary, it is desirable to keep the denier of the elastic yarns of each layer of the leg band substantially equal or less than the denier of the elastic yarn used in the leg portions to provide closer characteristics between the legs and the leg bands. 
     The footless pantyhose undergarment  40 ′ with grip and comfort leg band  60  has the following yarn combinations: the panty portion and the leg portions each has an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 or less, and each layer of the leg band has an elastic yarn with a denier in the range of about 60 to about 80. 
     It should be noted that all the alternative embodiments of the leg band  60  can equally be applied to the footless pantyhose undergarments  10 ′ and  40 ′. 
     It should also be noted that the footless pantyhose  10  and  10 ′ can be made with any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear. However, for a thinner undergarment, the body yarn should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     It should further be noted that the elastic yarn used in all the embodiments of this invention is spandex. However any other type of elastic yarns can also be used. 
     In all the embodiments of this invention, 7 denier yarns can be used with microscopic knitting process to create a finer sheer effect. 
     The leg band  60  with all the above alternatives can also be applied to reinforced footless pantyhose undergarment, in which case the legs can have elastic yarns with a denier of above 60 to about 150. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , there is shown a footless reinforced pantyhose undergarment  70  with leg band  60  of  FIG. 3  to provide softer and more comfortable feel. The panty portion  72  is seamlessly knitted to the two leg portions  74  and  76  along the line  71 . The panty portion  72  ends at a waistband  78  and the leg portions  74  and  76  end at leg bands  60 . The waistband  78  can be an elastic band, knitted-in welt, or can use any other knitting process which can create a terminating edge. 
     The panty portion  72  and the leg portions  74  and  76  have a common body yarn of about 40 denier nylon. As a result, the panty extends into the legs with the same thickness without any transition line to create a unity between the panty and the legs. Alternatively, the panty portion  72  can have a body yarn with a higher denier than the body yarn of the legs  74  and  76  to create opaque panty and sheer legs. In either case of the common body yarn or different body yarns, the body yarns should have a denier in the range of about 80 or less. However, it should be noted that any body yarn with any denier suitable for a shapewear can also be used. For a thinner undergarment, the body yarn should have a denier of 60 or less. Alternatively, the panty and the legs can be made to be all sheer or all opaque and can be knitted with any type of stitch pattern. 
     The panty  72  has an 80 denier spandex and the legs  74  and  76  have a 40 denier spandex. The elastic yarn used for the panty portion  72  and the leg portions  74  and  76  can be the same or different. In the case of common elastic yarn, the elastic yarn should have a denier in the range of above 60 to about 150. Using a common elastic yarn in both the panty portion and the leg portions creates reinforced panty and reinforced legs. However, to keep the legs non-control, the legs can be made without elastic or can have an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 or less. 
     The waistband  78  is a knitted-in welt made of a high denier elastic yarn such as 120 or higher denier spandex coupled with a body yarn such as nylon during the knitting process. The high denier spandex causes the waistband and the pantyhose to stay in place while the wearer moves. If one desires, the knitted-in waistband can be replaced with an elastic band. A crotch  79  may or may not be included. 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose undergarment  70  can be combined with both the comfort leg band  60  to provide a more comfortable feel for women who prefer a lighter clinging effect on the leg band. 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose  70  with reinforced panty portion, non-control leg portions, and comfort leg band  60  have the following yarn combinations: the panty portion has an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, the leg portions have an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 or less, and each layer of the leg band has a denier in the range of 60 or less. 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose  70  with reinforced panty portion, reinforced leg portions, and comfort leg band  60  have the following yarn combinations: the panty portion has an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, the leg portions have an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, and each layer of the leg band has a denier in the range of 60 or less. 
     The comfort leg band  60  can be further modified to provide approximately equal stretch factor between the leg band and the leg portion. So, in the above two embodiments, the sum of the deniers of the elastic yarn in the top and bottom layers should be substantially equal or less than the denier of the elastic in the leg portions. In the same manner to provide approximately equal thickness as the one in the leg portion, the sum of the deniers of the body yarn in the top and bottom layers should be substantially equal or less than the denier of the body in the leg portions 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose undergarment  70  can also be combined with the grip and comfort leg band  60  to provide a snug fit with comfort for women who prefer a bit tighter grip on the leg bands. 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose  70  with reinforced panty portion, non-control leg portions, and grip and comfort leg band  60  have the following yarn combinations: the panty portion has an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, the leg portions have an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 or less, and each layer of the leg band has a denier in the range of about 60 to about 80. 
     The footless reinforced pantyhose  70  with reinforced panty portion, reinforced leg portions, and grip and comfort leg band  60  have the following yarn combinations: the panty portion has an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, the leg portions have an elastic yarn with a denier of about 60 to about 150, and each layer of the leg band has a denier in the range of about 60 to about 80. 
     It should be noted that the above embodiments can be made with any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear. However, for a thinner undergarment, the body yarn should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     Tow Ply Legs 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , there is shown a footless pantyhose undergarment or shapewear  80  which does not have leg bands. The panty portion  82  is seamlessly knitted to two leg portions  84  and  86  along the line  81 . The waistband  88  can be an elastic band, knitted-in welts, knitted-in bands, or can use any other knitting process which can create a terminating edge. 
     Conventional designs have an integrally knitted-in leg band knitted to each leg portion to finish the leg portion. 
     Departing from the conventional methods, the entire leg portions  84  and  86  of the undergarment  80  of  FIG. 7  are made of two-ply segments. Each two-ply segment of the leg bands  84  and  86  is made of a tubular segment folded to create two plies and attached to each other where the legs connect to the panty portion along the line  81 . In other words, the panty portion  82  has a single layer, but each leg portion  84  and  86  has two plies made of a folded tubular segment connected to the panty portion during the knitting process. The fold line  89  is where the leg portions end and therefore the leg portions  84  and  86  don&#39;t need leg bands. The folded segment can be made of jersey knit, knitted-in welt or any other stitch pattern. 
     In one embodiment, the footless pantyhose undergarment  80  is made with circular knitting process, which would create seamless legs  84  and  86  attached seamlessly to the panty portion  82 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , there are shown two tubular pantyhose blanks  90  and  92  which create the footless pantyhose undergarment  80  of  FIG. 7 . In  FIGS. 7 and 8  the identical numerals depict the like elements. The tubular pantyhose blanks  90  and  92  each includes a panty segment  82   a  and  82   b  respectively and a leg segment shown as an unfolded segment  95  in the tubular pantyhose blank  90  and as a folded segment  86  in the tubular pantyhose blank  92 . Each panty segment  82   a  and  82   b  is knitted to its respective leg segment shown as unfolded segment  95  and shown as folded segment  86  as one piece in their respective pantyhose blanks. 
     The tubular panty segments  82   a  and  82   b  and are slit and shown by U shapes  94 . The two tubular panty segments  82   a  and  82   b  will be attached to each other along the U shapes  94  to create the panty portion  82  of  FIG. 7 . The tubular pantyhose blank  90  is shown as one ply. The edge  96  of each one of the tubular pantyhose blanks  90  and  92  will be pulled inside the tubular pantyhose blank and pulled up to create a folded segment with two plies. Once the edge  96  is pulled up all the way to line  81 , as shown on tubular pantyhose blank  92 , then it will be attached to the top layer along the line  81 . This process creates a single layer panty  82  with two-ply legs  84  and  86 , as shown in  FIG. 7 , and eliminates the need for any leg bands. 
     It should be noted that in each tubular pantyhose blank  90  and, the yarns can be changed in each segment. Therefore, in each tubular pantyhose blank  90  and  92 , each panty portions  82   a  and  82   b  can have its own body yarn and elastic yarns and each segment  93  and  97  which represent the top and bottom layers respectively of each leg portion can have its own body yarn and elastic yarn. For example panty portion  82   a  can have a first body yarn and a first elastic yarn. Segment  93  which is to the top layer of the leg portion  84  can have a second body yarn and a second elastic yarn while segment  97  can have a third body yarn and a third elastic yarn. However, the identical segments in each tubular pantyhose blank should be kept the same to create symmetrical pantyhose. 
     The footless pantyhose  80  eliminates the need for leg bands and as a result, eliminates the problems associated with leg bands such as indentation and uneven thickness created by conventional leg bands. 
     Referring back to  FIG. 7 , it should be noted that alternatively, the two-ply legs  84  and  86  can also be made of two separate pieces that are connected to each other and then connected to the panty portion. 
     Alternatively, the crotch section can be made as a separate piece from a cotton yarn or with a cotton lining to eliminate the need for wearing a panty. Yet a crotch may or may not be included. 
     The embodiment of  FIG. 7  can be used for dual purposes. One purpose would be to provide comfort and the second would be to provide reinforcement for slimming down in which case either the panty portion or both the panty and the leg portions will be reinforced. 
     In the non-control embodiment, the panty portion  82  and the leg portions  84  and  86  each has a body yarn of about 80 or less denier nylon. However, any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment can also be used. The body yarns of the panty portion  82  and the leg portions  84  and  86  can be the same or can be different. In addition, elastic yarns can be coupled with the body yarn of the panty portion  82  and/or the leg portions  84  and  86 . However, the elastic yarn with the highest denier should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     In the reinforced embodiment, the panty  82  and the leg portions  84  and  86  each has a body yarn of about 80 or less denier nylon. However, any body yarn with any denier suitable for footless pantyhose undergarment can also be used. The body yarns of the panty portion  82  and the leg portions  84  and  86  can be the same or can be different. 
     In addition, in the reinforced embodiment, high denier elastic yarns are coupled with the body yarn of at least the panty portion  82  to create the footless control top pantyhose undergarment  80 . The elastic yarns, used to create reinforcement should have a denier of above 60 to about 150. The leg portions  84  and  86  can have the same elastic yarn as the one in the panty portion  82  or can have an elastic yarn with a lower or higher denier. If the same elastic yarn is used in both panty portion  82  and the leg portions  84  and  86  or if an elastic yarn with a higher denier than the one in the panty portion is used in the leg portions, the leg portions  84  and  86  will be reinforced. To create non-control legs the elastic yarn used in the leg portions should have a denier of about 60 or less. 
     The panty  82  and leg portions  84  and  86  can be designed to have different opacity. The panty and the legs can be all sheer or all opaque. Alternatively, the panty portion can be opaque and the legs can be sheer or visa versa. 
     To provide an approximately equal stretch factor between the panty portion and the leg portions, the sum of the deniers of the elastic yarns used in each layer of the two-ply leg portion should be equal or less than the denier of the elastic yarn used in the panty portion. 
     To provide an approximately equal thickness between the panty portion and the leg portions, the sum of the deniers of the body yarn used in each layer of the two-ply leg portion should be equal or less than the denier of the body yarn used in the panty portion. 
     It should be noted in this specification, the terms “control”, “support”, and “reinforced” have been used interchangeably and they all mean a pantyhose made with elastic yarns having a denier of above 60 to about 150. 
     In one embodiment, the body yarn used for the panty portion  82  is about 40 denier and the body yarn used for the legs is about 30. However, any body yarn suitable for a shapewear can also be used. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , due to the changes in fashion, the waistline of clothes move up and down. In any of the above embodiments  10 ,  10 ′,  40 ,  40 ′,  70  and  80 , the panty portions  12 ,  42 , 72  and  82  (shown by  112  in  FIG. 9 ) can be designed to have the waistband  18 ,  48 ,  78  and  88  (shown by  118  in  FIG. 9 ) end somewhere from above the waistline  100  to below the waistline  102 . In the same manner, the leg bands  20 ,  40 ,  50 ,  60 , and the fold line  89  (shown by  120  in  FIG. 8 ) can be designed to terminate anywhere from above the knee  104  to anywhere below the knee  106 . 
     It should be noted that numerous changes in details of construction, combination, and arrangement of elements may be resorted to without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.