I feel sorry for men who have to wear pants
I can wear a dress to work and nobody criticizes me. I’d be really sad if I had to wear pants all the time, they’re just not as comfortable. Let’s normalize pretty dresses for dudes!
Yea, but let's design some to work on male bodies. Dresses are generally built for female body shapes, and rely on curves most guys just don't have in order to complete the shape - so we end up looking like Graveyard Barbie in them.
Guys tend to be a lot more oblong, and the overall design would need a rethink in order to actively work with that shape, instead of unsuccessfully trying to compensate for it.
No, I don't know how to do this.
I was a slutty nun for Halloween and looking cute in a skirt is definitely possible, but man does it take a lot of work to find anything that fits decently. Dresses are simply impossible to find of course because, as you said, the shape is not at all made for men.
Also that outfit made me want to go full f1nn5ter and dress up in feminine clothes all the time lol. It's so much fun! I'm so down for people to figure out how to make the shape work for masculine body shapes.
My first thought when I read op was that trousers are a relative new development.
The Romans made fun of the Gauls for wearing them.
So if you decide to wear traditional Roman dress, trousers shouldn't be included.
But it's still designed for men.
Dudes in parts of Africa and the Middle East have already got it figured out. Djellabas look fantastic on most men. I'd love to see more people wearing them.
Consider: kilts.
Consider also: The bahag
It wouldn't be that hard, I think. Just make it more square on top and drop the accentuating part from the waist to either halfway between the belly button and hips or all the way to the hips. Or you could raise it to chest height and have a long, straight bottom part, more robe-ish.
You're coming dangerously close to re-inventing the kilt
Robes like from solar opposites
A lot of Muslim men wear what appear to me to be long white skirts, especially in the middle east and north Africa where wearing a flowing, loose garment that reflects lots of light is a practical measure for staying cool. I think it's called a Kandora?
My point is that such garments DO exist, they just aren't common in the west because of western views of male gender norms and Islam.
Honestly, one thing I hate about being biologically male is that men's clothes all look so goddamn generic.
Oh, you're wearing a suit. It's. A suit. I guess. They all look the same.
You're wearing jeans. And a t-shirt. And they all look basically the same.
Khakis and a polo? You madlad. Well, you and everybody else at the country club. Who all look exactly the fucking same.
The thing that really gets me is, it didn't used to be this way. You look at pictures of people in paintings and whatnot and men had some wild shit going on. There was variety, if somewhat less, even into the early 20th. But... seriously tell me if I'm wrong here... it feels like we got to WWII and men's fashion just stopped. Like an entire generation of men put on uniforms and eighty years later we still haven't completely taken them off.
They don't ALL look the same. It's just that the stuff that actually looks non-generic are either super expensive or super uncomfortable.
Or, just bad. There's nothing generic about Ed Hardy. Most people elect to look generic rather than be caught dead in that mess.
True that! I have some awesome looking denim pants, that are literally painted with colorful paint. I always get compliments from both men and women when I wear them. I also got them basically for free at the store, since no one were buying them.
But, they're about as comfortable as you would expect denim pants painted with thick paint to be: stiff and scratchy.
or make you look like a stand user
Mainstream clothes for sure, but I feel the same way about mainstream women's clothes. Waist high jeans, an inoffensively colored top and a vest or blazer. Switch out the jeans for beige linen pants in the summer. Yawn. If you want inspiration for some more interesting clothes in general but men in particular, you gotta look to non-mainstream subcultures. Especially ones that don't give shit about gender. I hung out with hippies for years and men and women alike are dressed in cool, colorful and interesting clothes. Both genders wear pants, dresses, and skirts. It heavily inspired my style and believe me, I stand out a lot among other women. If you want more variety you have got to look further than what's mainstream. Because that'll always trend towards boring and basic.
Even mainstream clothes are better in the woman's section. I was in Peacocks (fairly small cheap clothes shop - you can see most of what they've got by standing near the centre) and you can just tell where the men's clothes are by the sea of dull, boring shades with not a single thing showing any sign of colour at all, like the brightness is turned down to 1 on the telly. The style differences are minimal. Even the material is just awful scratchy fabric for the most part. Look over to the woman's section and it's a sea of colour, many more different styles (not that many, as I said, this is a small cheap shop), and if you touch anything it's instantly noticeable that the material is much better quality, softer. I don't get woman who wear men's clothes - why would you put yourself through that?
I wholeheartedly agree with your assessment. I think what we should do is learn how to sew. I already bought a sewing machine but I haven't had time to learn how to use it. Hopefully I will be able to learn the basics in the few work-free days I will have in the summer. My point being, we (men) need to take fashion into our own hands and start designing what we want to wear.
I (woman) have been learning to sew for a while mostly due to the indignity of never having pockets unless I put them in myself. But I also took the plunge and made my husband a novelty Christmas shirt last year and honestly even though it seemed like it would be terrifying it was surprisingly straightforward! Now he can have all the ridiculous colorful shirts he wants.
Basically I'm saying yes, learn to sew, it's bloody brilliant.
What does this have to do with being biologically male?
Aren’t males born wearing cargo shorts and a blue polo?
And they are only available in about three colours - black, dark blue and grey. yawn
That's good IMO
Not sure about other places but most women around here wear clothes that are mostly the same as well it's not exclusive to "masculine" clothes
Tbh, I just want to blend in.. but of course be as pompous as you want!
70s? Those are just summer work clothes in Australia.
Oh man I wish, I was stuck in shoe length cotton blend for three years of my life and I dreaded February coming around
But they’re so classy and adorable! Your boss is a monster.
I can barely contain myself
That what happens when the shorts are too short
Those are some ridiculously short shorts, especially on the left. How is he not hanging out the bottom?
Don't get me started on shorts. Modern shorts which go down to the knee - what's the point?!
Oh look, I know what hell will be like now.
There were so many adventurous men's fashions in the 70s - I like watching old shows like Columbo partly because of that. It feels like we lost a lot going into the 80s and beyond in that respect - I'm glad to see men trying more diverse clothing now.
Those only work if you also have the 1970s sexual-predator combover and/or pornstache as well as a The Mask necktie.
As a man I never considered pants to be uncomfortable. They are the perfect mix of range of motion, hiding the private parts. and support. Dresses, skirts, and robes seem like a nightmare to wear. You either restrict your range of motion or have to constantly worry about showing your underwear. And I would wear boxer briefs underneath by choice anyhow, so I still end up wearing pants.
I think the bigger issue is that most of us men are too lazy to look for different kinds of pants and end up wearing the same stuff year-round. Which can indeed become uncomfortable due to changes in temperature. But that issue wouldn't be fixed by having access to dresses or robes. As again, some would either be too cold or too hot.
I used to have a pretty intense not-like-the-other-girls fase in my teens, and I never wore skirts or dresses, and felt the same way you do. Then I got over that internalized misogyny and started experimenting with clothes a little, and the first time I put on a dress it was like a hallelujah moment. The most comfortable thing in the goddamn world. They do not restrict your movement at all, that's only a problem if you wear knee-high pencil skirts of stiff fabric. In colder seasons you wear leggings under them which are equally comfortable. It was so incredibly comfy I did a complete 180 and it took me 10 years to wear a pair of pants again, and that's only because the waist high mom jeans in style now are so loose and non-restricting. Any other style of pants I won't touch with a 10 feet pole.
What are these magic cooling pants you speak of that are acceptable in a professional setting? Or are you British and think we are talking about undergarments? We are talking about trousers.
Nah no pity here, we got pockets best thing in the world you should probably feel more envious really
Jokes on you, my dresses all have pockets
All my dresses have far better pockets than most pants, too.
I knew a woman who often wore dresses with pockets.
I wouldn't mind dressing in tunic+toga.
A toga is my go too outfit when I can’t be bothered to get dressed to walk around the house, I just grab a blanket and drape it over myself.
A friend has a degree in fashion design and her senior project was a clothing line that you ordered by measurement instead of men's/women's sizing so it was supposed to fit a person not a gender.
So cool!
I think those are called kilts, and some of the cooler ones come with pockets (just like the cool lady dresses.
I've worn a kilt to participate in Scottish heritage festivals and the Highland Games. It's a far, far better garment than pants or shorts in hot weather and super comfy in general. Pants are great, but for just hanging around and casual wear kilts are amazing.
Utilikilts (the ones with pockets) are awesome, but with a traditional kilt you can accesorize with a nice belt and sporran (the little pouch in front).
All in all, I'd be really happy to see more kilts and similar garments in day to day men's fashion.
I personally don't like utilikilts because the sort of folk who wear them at faire aren't always the most savory, but I fuck heavily with a traditional tartan and a sporran.
Where are you getting lady dresses with pockets?!
Completely agree. While both pants and dresses have their pros and cons, it should be everybody's own choice which one they want to wear. I hope that this is something that will change over time.
A few summers ago I brought up the idea that men should be allowed to wear shorts to the office if women can wear dresses and my boss literally laughed in my face. We work in a small-ish office and are not client facing so who tf cares what we wear? A while later they made a whole big deal about us being allowed to wear jeans to the office ever day (vs only on Fridays) you could hear a pin drop at the staff meeting. It was painful but satisfying to watch. Fuck those assholes…
Always thought this guy was a boss!
Boxers-while-working gang rise up.
Boxer is great, but I assume dresses are better
While I can appreciate the freedom of boxers, I don't like the gentlemen down below wandering all day long. A nice mesh boxer-brief is where it's at. If I were rich, I'd have a full set of the Saxx Quest Ballpark™ Pouch boxers - those are my go-to for travel days. Sadly, they're also $30+ a pair.
Wear whatever the hell you want, right? Screw genders and made up rules around them.
Gender Abolitionism/Accelerationism ✊😤
Right? I'm on this train. Hell if you want to be naked do it. But hell...being naked is uncomfortable and impractical.
Yes. But. Not sexual nudity. Nudity is fine in itself, but the fact that most people see it as sexually explicit, sexually suggestive, or an actual sexual activity, is the problem. Consciously I am for this, but subconsciously I'd still react to nudity as sexual (as most other people), because I've not yet encountered enough non-sexual nudity to get used to it. It's like going to a beach - at first it's "niiice sexy bodies", but on the second day it's like "meh, people making it hard to get to the water". It's the novelty.
This is why I am nude 100% of the time.
You have discovered Ultimate Comfort!
I tried to remain nude for 24 hours for shits and giggles. Was not particularly comfortable.
Im pro men wearing whatever the f they want. Im not pro shaming men wearing pans to promote men wearing dresses
Not trying to shame anyone. I feel sad that men seem to have fewer choices is all. I’m pro-pants, and also pro- skirts and shorts and dresses and jumpsuits and strategically arranged utility belts.
Here's a little secret. We have all the options in the world. No one is stopping me from wearing a skirt or dress.
I just simply don't want to. I love pants. I think they feel great. Adds another layer of protection for my balls.
You don't have to be sad for anyone.
Edit: just to add... just underwear is not enough for me. Just like some girls don't like it when their boobs bounce around, I don't like it when my balls bounce around.
Pants help keep them in place. Gotta take care of those. My entire bloodline depends on it.
I am okay with pants
Slacks are legitimately comfy as hell
I mean, I don’t have to wear pants…
WFH gang flexin'
Haha, we have been bottomless since the beginning.
Pants are optional when entering my house however underwear is mandatory lol.
A lot of comments here are not wrong. Men’s clothing in general doesn’t have a lot of variety. 4 different colors of the same style shirt or more doesn’t count as variety. Look in a big box clothing store and you’ll see that the women’s section is almost always 2 to nearly 3x larger.
renormalize tunics
The Romans saw the Gaulic northerners as savages because they wore pants rather than the esteemed and unfettered skirts and robes
An elegant garment, for a more civilized age
Kilts.
Kilts or skirts. Both beat pants by miles.
Kilts are great. I find them much better than shorts as well.
my only issue with kilts is that you can't really have significant pockets on them, lest things bounce around and give you bruises on the legs.
I feel the opposite. I wouldn't wear a dress even if it was socially acceptable, they don't look comfy.
They look comfy as hell when it's hot out. I don't think I could swing wearing a dress in the office, but I bet they'd let me wear a kilt...
With ya there. I would totally wear sweatpants to work if I were allowed to though.
They are insanely comfy BUT you're gonna want to have things tucked away down there. If you walk into the wind...I've never felt so exposed in public in my life.
I'm cool with pants. It's one less thing to worry about, not having my crotch exposed or readily available.
Plus, if I fall, my legs are more protected
I agree with your overall sentiment, but I'm good keeping my ugly knees and hairy legs covered.
Any links to dress fashion for men?
I’m all for it. I hate wearing pants in the summer, but we’re not allowed to wear shorts. However, no one can refuse me wearing a long skirt or dress!
Why arent you allowed to wear shorts?
Sexist rules in most companies, men are not allowed to show their legs nor feet, but women are, guess why.
Capitalism, old dress standards, tradition....
I wear my kilt all the time, most comfortable thing ever
And skirts. They are soooo comfy, but it's not socially acceptable to go outside in one.
Unless you are a Scot
Getting my kilt ready as we speak…
Men, let me introduce you to sarongs. My cousin was roommates with a Ukrainian guy and after he tried wearing it he basically got converted. He bought a dozen to be brought back to Ukraine. With the conflict going on I hope he's safe now.
Even shorts would be a great first step!
Why don't we call pants longs instead, given shorts?
This is a shower thought on its own.
Change approved!
I don't think skirts are gender for me personally (cis man), but if it wouldn't draw any extra attention to me, I'd consider trying them.
Maya Kern's skirts have pockets that can fit a Nintendo Switch in them. Consider the pocket possibilities if they made "men's skirts" (or just reasonable pockets for everyone). Imagine... Being able to adjust how you're sitting without your remote car keys setting off your car alarm.
Technology in pants has gotten so good that jeans which used to be uncomfortable have now gotten thin, stretchy, and soft while still looking the same
Reminder that guys can wear Kilts if they want to
As someone who wears kilts to the office regularly. I second this.
The kilt maker that I buy from sews in pockets. But, a sporran is pretty great for carrying the small necessary things.
Agreed, 100%. I grew up in a hot area and worked in offices where long pants were the standard. I was always jealous that ladies could get all that ventilation and I was stuck with boiler pipes on my legs.
I tried to use this argument with a boss during the summer, when she told me shorts weren't "professional"... She didn't bite when I pointed out the variety of "professional" female vs male attire, and that no summer male alternative to pants exists. I pointed out the skirt she was wearing during that scorching day as an example.
But I worked primarily in the field and none of my Clients nor their care facilities cared, so joke's on her and I wore what I wanted anyway. Dressed in pants on days I went into the office or brought Clients to one of my (former) organization's facilities.
But I am totally okay with this trade-off given that men's clothes actually have pockets! I'll sweat my balls off in exchange for functional pockets any day..
Got it. Utilikilts for all!
This. Not Scottish, but I wear a kilt whole summer everywhere. Fortunately our company does not have a dress code at the office.
All clothes should be accepted based on functionality and practicality regardless of gender.
Shorts are also comfy though.
I can't wear that at work either.
It was funny when I came to work at clients offices with suit except a tshirt instead but still jacket.
My client came in with shorts and tshirt. We sitting next to each other was hilarious. Next time i came in with a mote casual long trousers and tshirt no jacket. My colleagues still came with suits but I stopped
And easy to wear!
skirts and tunics were good enough for ancients, sure, but they had no bikes or OSHA
As a man I appreciate your concerns. However, in my country the problem is much larger on the women's side as female professionals are struggling for their rights to wear trousers in professional settings. The recent progress? The lawyers just got allowed to wear pants instead of skirts only.
Why the fuck is this something that must be permitted in the first place? My rights to wear a kilt can wait until women can wear pants.
It already exists and is called a sarong. That is a traditional Sri Lankan dress for males that slowly went away after western colonization. Bonus fun fact: Arthur C. Clarke used to rock this style.
India wears it all; be it dhoti, lungi, or the mundu. And we wear both the lungi (aka sarong) and the mundu (the unstitched sarong) at half-mast with full pride, never mind our thunder thighs and skinny legs.
Now if only someone could take away the rice belly and the mosquitoes, both women and men would be happier.
Proud of him!