High-rise pants (sometimes called high-waist or high-waisted pants) sit at or above your belly button. This lengthens the pant leg and creates an smooth line from your shoulders down to your feet, uninterrupted by a belt. As the waistline is at or above your abdomen you can breathe comfortably, without having a restricted belt dig into you each time you take a breath.
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| Notice how the high-rise pants elongate the legs and creates a smooth transition form bottom to top half |
Back to high-rise pants. I especially love vintage, high-rise pants. Sometimes referred to as “Hollywood waist”, these pants do not have a separate band of fabric circling around the waist. Instead, the pant fabric extends up the legs right to the top of the pants, with no cross fabric for a belt that would interrupt the line. If there are belt loops, they are below, rather than at the top of the pant waistline. There are generally darts to angle the difference between the hips and the lower rib-cage. And that’s where the top of Hollywood waist pants ends: at the bottom of your rib-cage. To maintain this height, braces are attached.
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| Note the Hollywood waist on these high-rise pants for both men and women |
Not only do high-rise pants make your look better, they make you feel better. Breathing is enjoyable! The pants sit comfortably above your waist, allowing your abdomen to expand and contract, all day long. You take a breath in, and your abdomen fills out your pants waist. High-rise pants are large enough to absorb the breathe; just tight enough to be comfortable. You then breathe out, and your abdomen shrinks back into your body. With the absence of your abdomen, your pants would start to slide downward due to the effects of gravity. But they don’t - if you are wearing high-rise pants as they should be worn. Braces come to the rescue to provide fantastic support. Your high-rise pants stay high all day long.
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| No matter how much bending or twisting, braces keep your pants in place |
The specific placement of the buttons along the waistline provides maximum support for this accomplishment. Brace buttons should be attached at the front above the center pant line and pocket above each leg (about 3-3.5 inches apart), and then equidistant from the center of the pants at the rear (about 1.5-1.75 inches from the center seam). It’s truly an enjoyment to sit, stand, bend, and twist - not to mention breathe - without having to adjust or pull up your pants. The braces do all the heavy lifting.
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| Proper button placement on these high-rise white pants worn by Farrah Fawcett |
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| Charlene Tilton with improper button placement - should be to the side to align with the pant line |
With this in mind, I’m constantly perplexed that people turn to belts. Belts restrict movement and circulation around your waist and result in pants slipping down all day long. They interrupt the smooth transition from the top of your body to the bottom.
Men have an unfortunate aversion to wearing pants at or above their hips - why? Is this an outdated style of a previous generation? Do the pants not stay up (without braces, hence the need for braces), or men don’t like braces? I have not solved this question yet. But I do know that they're missing out on the wonder of high-rise pants and braces. Historically, when men wore pants, they were high-rise and held up with braces.
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| Vintage photo of men wearing braces |
Current fashion trends are starting to take notice of the increase in rise of pants. Women’s fashion has emphasized high-rise pants for the past few years. In fact, check out this New Yorker article titled "How high can high-waisted pants go?" to understand that this rising trend will continue. It’s only a matter of time before it shifts to men’s clothing.
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| Courtshop James Jeans with braces |
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| She's lov'n her high-rise pants with braces! |
Discussion time:
- Do you wear high-rise pants? If not, why not?
- How do you find braces with high-rise pants?
- Have you worn Hollywood waist pants?
I was in a marching band in college and the uniform pants were similar tothe Hollywood waist that your mentioning. That's about the only time I've worn anything like what you described.
ReplyDeleteAfter due consideration I've about decided to recommend that you toss all your belts in the rubbish and wear suspenders for all your trouser suspension needs.
@theguyinsuspenders: I've also seen uniforms for marching bands that have the Hollywood waist. This allows the wearer to breathe while playing their instrument and there's no need to worry that their pants will fall down - braces keep the outfit looking sharp!
DeleteI do agree - throw out the belts and use braces for suspension needs!
Actually I meant that you should get rid of your belts. You seem like the type of person that (a) doesn't have to have suspenders to keep your pants up (ie not morbidly obese); (b) prefers suspenders to belts and (c) doesn't feel any anxiety about wearing them in public. That's a rare combination.
DeleteYes, I do fit that criteria!
DeleteWith a name like yours, it sounds like you do as well?
You just seemed like you really wanted to be a full time suspender wearer sort of guy to me, no idea why :). So I was just helping you along. Yes I am as well. Somewhere as a preschooler, I decided I didn't like belts, carrots, and broccoli . Lots of years later I still don't like them. Have you given all your belts to charity yet?
ReplyDelete@The guy in suspenders: thanks for sharing! Yes, it was also at an early age for me that I loved wearing suspenders and braces. I haven't given all my belts away, as I do wear them at times for jeans. My dress pants have buttons sewn in and I wear them with braces all the time.
DeleteYup, your a suspender sort of guy, just get rid of the belts, its only a matter of time. I never had a epiphany moment like you did. I kicked up a fuss about wearing a belt for some reason as a preschooler, not sure why, suspenders seemed to be OK so everyone got used to me wearing them. Somewhere after I started school I noticed that no one was wearing them so they became much less frequent but always had a pair or two around when the mood hit me or the hand me down jeans from my older brother didn't quite stay up where they needed to be. High school I got interested in girls and suspenders were definitely a hit with many of them. I took note, and started wearing them a lot more , since Id always worn them occasionally I could get away with it without getting much grief. Anyone else that wore them got grief if they wore them two days in a row and that was fine with me. They were my thing without being fetishy about it. The suspender wearing got noted by my family and I got them for Christmas and birthday presents from parents and family along with socks, underwear, cell phones and play stations. By the time I left for college I had a drawer full of them. They went with me to college, the belts stayed home. Eventually my parents converted my bedroom to a workout/office and everything I left behind went to Goodwill. Even though I never had epiphany moment like you did, I guess I did know what I was doing as a preschooler.
DeleteI do seem to be seeing more guys wearing braces these days, or perhaps it is just that they are no longer embarrassed at showing them. At Uni, I was always amongst a small minority who wore them, and suffered a degree of ribbing from my male mates, but the ladies loved them and still do. For a belt to be efficient, it needs to be too tight to be comfortable, and naturally its weight pulls your pants down otherwise. Cannot understand why more guys don't wear braces.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree! The more guys see other guys wearing braces, the more socially acceptable it will become. I've also found that the ladies do enjoy them!
DeleteBeing a woman my favorite pair of pants is high waisted wide leg pants. So wearing them with braces is my go to out fit for work. I think it looks classy and I can't think of high waisted pants with out braces. They are the most common styling for women
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. High waisted wide leg pants with braces are amazing on women.
DeleteMy wife makes alot of our clothes as she does it professionally for work. All of my work pants are high waisted which I wear with braces everytime. I absolutely love the high waisted and will always choose it over any other style
ReplyDeleteAgreed, high waisted pants are the best!
DeleteHi!
ReplyDeleteI have three pairs of high-waisted trousers with buttons inside and without belt loops. I will never wear normal trousers with belt again. These so much comfortable and stylish.
Thank you for this blog. I hope you would write more often :)