Elastic fibers are important components of the skin and are responsible for skin elasticity. Genetic defects are well-known in numerous hereditary elastic tissue disorders and skin biopsies are often the first step in the evaluation of those disorders. Verhoeff-Van Gieson elastic staining is a simple method that is used for visualizing elastic fibers. With the development of modern immunohistochemical methods, the value of routine histochemical staining is sometimes underestimated. Histochemical stains are less expensive, easy to perform and help to resolve numerous diagnostic quandaries in dermatopathology. This article focuses on the value of elastic tissue staining in dermatopathology, with a focus on primary elastic tissue disorders, alopecia, inflammatory skin disorders and neoplastic proliferations. Connective tissue comprises of three types of fibers: collagen fibers, reticular fibers and elastic fibers. These fibers are made of proteins and composed of long peptide chains. While the main function of collagen and reticular fibers is to provide tensile strength and support respectively, the elastic fibers are mainly there for providing stretchability and flexibility. Elastic fibers can stretch up to 1.5 times their length, and snap back to their original length when relaxed. The long and branching arrangement of fibers enables them to stretch and recoil thus providing flexibility to tissues. Elastic fibers are composed of two structural components: elastin and microfibrils, and include elastin, elaunin and oxytalan.