A new technique to produce controlled stretched vortices is presented. The initial vorticity comes from a laminar boundary layer flow and the stretching is parallel to the initial vorticity. This low velocity flow enables direct observations of the formation and destabilization of vortices. Visualizations are combined with quasi-instantaneous measurements of a full velocity profile obtained with an ultrasonic pulsed Doppler velocimeter. Several modes of destabilization are observed and include pairing of two vortices, hairpin deformation, and vortex breakdown into a coil shape.