Wednesday, September 1, 2010

How to Wear Braces



Suspenders are designed to make pants more fashionable and emphasize your good form. As Alan Fusser points out in “Dressing the Man” (2002) “In the last twenty years, the popularity of jeans and European-style pants has unfortunately accustomed most young men to wearing trousers that are too tight and rest on their hips. Trousers were originally made to be worn with suspenders, which held them on the waist, not the hips, and that is where they look and hang best. No well-dressed man would wear trousers that rested anywhere else. This is not an arbitrary gesture. Every man, no matter how thin, has a slight bulge in his stomach area. When trousers are worn on the waist, they pass smoothly over this bulge in an even drape. Furthermore, waist-worn trousers emphasize the smallness of the waist. They sit there comfortable, supported by the hips. Trousers worn on the hip, however, must be belted tightly, for there is nothing to hold them up. In consort with a vested suit, trousers resting on the hip can only detract from the overall appearance, particularly when there is a gap between vest and trouser top. There is nothing more unsightly - and nothing that draws more attention to the waist - than to have a visible bunching of the shirt or the belt sticking out from between the vest and trousers. The solution is to reaccustom yourself to the way men used to wear trousers. It made sense then and it still does today.”

This applies to all kinds of pants – from dress pants to jeans to kakis. As jeans are a staple to any person's wardrobe, why not wear them with braces? The look is fashionable and makes complete sense functionally. So go ahead and attach them to your favorite pair of denim pants!





Discussion time:
  • Do you find it difficult to hold up your pants? Is the belt not sufficient?
  • Have you tried wearing your pants at your natural waist and not the hips? Have you noticed any difference in comfort?
  • What pants do you wear them with?
Note: all photos are used solely for non-commercial use and to illustrate braces in fashion. No plagiarism is intended.

13 comments:

  1. Im lucky with my body shape and have hips but not to big to where only one style of pant suits me and im 5ft 11 so im lucky that i have a wide range of styles i can wear which im greatful for my mothers side for my features. I am a big fan of high waisted items and have a big range of skirts, trousers and a couple of pairs of jeans in that style. so usualy a good belt is worn if braces or suspenders are not being used. with some jeans they are hipster style so belts are mainly just for show and not for their purpose and i dont usualy wear suspenders or braces as it changes the style to much but i have worn them just hanging down to give it a different look. i love wide leg trousers and do usualy wear on a daily basis to work and also with a high waist on some days. i like yhe flowyness of the wideleg style and they are mostly a thin fabric then i would add braces or suspenders alot just to add abit more "wall street" look. which most women i see wearing them and i see so many on a daily basis do go for that higher waist with the wideleg as it looks great and is so comfortable.

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    1. @Rachel: Thanks for posting - its great to hear that ladies like to wear braces with skirts and high waisted pants. I agree that the flow of wide-leg pants is very stylish. Do you have any photos or pictures to share?
      What comments have you received from people when you wear braces at work?

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    2. Im finding it hard to find any photos of myself wearing my braces as im not the biggest fan of having my picture taken. regarding comments from others towards myself wearing braces to work has been nothing but pleasing. At my work females are 70% of the staff but even the males have only made great comments. Im lucky i have only good people that i work with on a daily basis so it would not matter what i was wearing and i would only receive good comments. there would not be one person at my work that does not wear a pair of braces at least once a week. my boss even does daily. she has some stunning outfits that she adds even more stunning braces to which is always jaw dropping. but all the women wear braces very often and some even swap pairs with each other to match something new that they have purchessed. work friends have been to mine and seen my collection of outfits and my collection of braces and are amazed to how many pairs of braces i have. i love wearing them and have for some time and wear a different pair everyday if its to work or on weekends.

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    3. @Rachel: if you don't have photos of yourself, that's fine.
      Glad to hear that your work colleagues like wearing braces! Hope that it will encourage others to wear braces.

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  2. I love wearing braces. I have a good collection that keeps me trying new ways to wear them. 5 days a week I'm at work so corporate attire is a must so I'm pretty tame with my choices. Your typical pants braces and shirt combo is my normal. There is a work mate that is very out there with her choices but as long as she is happy and enjoys wearing braces the good for her. My bold choices of braces are kept for around the house. I enjoy wearing braves to the office as I find wearing them a confidence builder.

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    1. Yes, braces do build confidence and perfect for the office

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  3. I have just started wearing braces and would have to say I love them. One day I borrowed a pair my husband had and loved the look straight away.

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    1. Thanks for sharing Kate! It is handy to have a husband who has braces lying around. Glad to hear you loved them right away! They are a wonderful look. Do you wear them with high-waisted pants or a skirt? Can I ask what was the colors and style?

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    2. The one's I borrowed from my husband were a pair of blue with white polka dots elastic clip on braces. Recently I have bought a pair of black satin button on braces which I wear very often. But I still want to buy a few more yet

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    3. Get bright colored ones, it looks better on women.

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  4. I'm new to wearing braces but do so a couple of times a week. I love wearing extremely wide leg style pants and have come to pair them with button on braces. I absolutely love the whole look of braces on men and especially women. I wore my first pair to a formal event with a suit I hired and fell in love with them. I think they look amazing with the very wide pants I wear. I have several pairs. A black satin pair which have the elastic back strap and then my other pairs are white elastic one's and brown leather buckle style one's. I've been wanting to try a pair of red one's but am unsure to if they are to bright. I have a sixteen year old daughter that wears them to but she has a denim pair which she wears with jeans and a pair of rainbow coloured one's. Occasionally we both wear our braces together and go out for lunch. I'm trying to get her to start wearing mine with a pair of dress pants but that's not her style

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    1. Im sure you and your daughter look great together both wearing braces.All the children in our family wore braces.My 4 sisters would always wear jeans or pants with matching braces.As the only boy,I would always stand out amongst 4 girls.Particularly as unlike my sisters,my parents always had me dressed in shorts.These were always worn with braces and teamed with long grey socks and black lace up shoes.But the 5 of us always looked great together in our braces.

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