How tight do you wear your braces or suspenders? Are they lax and falling off your shoulders? Or are they firmly pulling up your pants and giving you a constant wedge? How do you find the right balance?
Braces and suspenders have different material – elastic, boxcloth, leather, and more (see Brace Materials). You can find the balance of tautness versus slack in the tension of braces over a short period of time simply by wearing them.
If the material is boxcloth, braided leather, or cloth, there is very minimal tension so the straps should remain at the same tension when you are standing as to when you are sitting. Set the length that you find most comfortable standing, sitting, and bending. You should be able to determine this within 10-20 minutes of wearing the braces.
If the material is elastic then there can be anywhere from minimal to super-stretch tension in the straps. If your pants are bobbing up and down every time you move, then the elastic could be worn out and you will need a new pair. If your braces are too tight and do not provide sufficient stretch when you bend down, you should loosen the straps. Firm suspender straps can cause stiffness in your shoulders, so be careful when wearing a new pair of elastic braces.
Generally, the wider the braces strap, the stiffer the tension, and the narrower the strap, the more stretch will be in the strap.
Avoid super-stretchy suspender straps, like these...
To find what works for you, try a few different brace materials (elastic, boxcloth, leather). Wear them for a day to determine their comfort and feel. You may discover that you prefer boxcloth over elastic straps.
Discussion time:
- How do you find the tension in your braces/suspenders?
- Do you find your pants ride up by wearing braces?
Note: all photos are used solely for non-commercial use and to illustrate braces in fashion. No plagiarism is intended.
I find that folks who are new to braces often have the tension too slack - saggy braces look untidy, can slip off your shoulders or catch on things. It an also means that the waist of your trousers sit too low, and your trousers dont "move with you" as they should. Therefore, I find that you are better off setting the tension tight enough to feel the straps on your shoulders (although, not too tight so they are uncomfirtable or to give your waist band an unnaturally "hitched up" look). To avoid a "wedgy", two straps at the back are mandatory.
ReplyDeleteDo western pants require suspenders that are extra wide or tougher than my regular braces?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: It is true that western pants generally are worn with wider braces and heavier materials. This is because they were designed for rugged work on the land. The pants, and braces holding them up, needed to withstand the pulls and strains of daily life of working in the country. In the country, when you are out for most of the day, you can not afford to have your braces fail - either from a button popping off or a strap tearing. When you are out in the country you don't have the supplies to repair it. As a result, braces for western pants are generally wider (about 3-4 cm). The wider brace width provides more comfort over time compared to narrow braces (1 cm), as the straps do not "cut in" to your shoulders. Refer to a previous post on the topic of brace widths.
DeleteAdditionally, the braces may be made of leather to provide extra strength. However, leather is not very flexible. I would recommend elastic materials for western-wear, given the stretching, pulling, and tugging that the braces will need to endure all day.
Enjoy wearing western pants with braces, knowing that they are held comfortably in place!
I like mine taught but not too tight or too slack. I like to feel supported by my braces!!
ReplyDeleteAndie
I like mine to be quite tight not too slack!! I really like the way they hold my trousers up and if they were slack I would not enjoy the sensation at all. I have the adjusters just below my shoulders and they are incredibly comfortable!!! I seem to have re-kindled my love affair with braces recently !!!
ReplyDeleteCannot stand any slackness with my braces - pointless wearing them! I like to feel they are hitching my pants up just a bit higher than I would wear them with a belt, Just wish more guys would wear braces, as I wouldn't feel so self conscious when in my shirtsleeves!
ReplyDeleteI am male and I wear my braces so that they pull my jeans up tight so I get a permanent tight wedgie. that way I feel the braces are doing their job holding my jeans up and therefore get no bagginess in the jeans. I cannot stand slack jeans. Don't know what you good people out there thinks about it.
Deletewearing loose fitting braces seems pointless to me.I prefer wearing my braces tight so that they actually support my trousers or shorts.
DeleteI agree with the comments above. The straps should be tight enough that I can feel them (lightly) on the shoulders and the pants' waistband slightly higher than with a belt, but not by much or uncomfortable. Still self-conscious about wearing suspenders/braces without a suit jacket or sweater...
ReplyDeleteI'm wearing a stretch red polka dot pair of clip on suspenders . They are super stretchy, had them for years but they always seem to snap back fine !!! I think ideal tension for me is holding your pants in place so they don't move whilst not restricting your movements. There is no point in wearing slack braces i.m.h.o . I'm a woman and I like they way braces and suspenders hold your trousers up. I also dont want to be told (by some people) that just because I have hips I should wear skin tight waisted trousers with a belt . Anyone who scoffs at brace wearers clearly hasn't tried wearing a pair themselves!!
ReplyDeleteAndie
Cant handle slackness in my braces.I prefer to wear my jeans and shorts a little high waisted and therefore wear my braces on the tight side.And it is way more comfortable than any belt I have ever worn.Men and women alike should all try wearing braces-you will be amazed how comfortable they are.
ReplyDeleteI wear high waisted trousers all the time and I like to adjust my braces quite tightly. I like the feeling of the straps over my shoulders and I really like the look of them.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: Agreed, high waisted trousers demand braces. They look and feel best that way. Enjoy wearing them!
DeleteI always liked the look of braces but never got up the guts to wear them myself until about a year ago, I ordered myself some clip on black suspenders. It took some getting used to at first as is often wear them so tight, with the clasps at my shoulder that they'd pop off but I eventually got a proper balance.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: good to hear you took the step out and are wearing suspenders now, and with the right tension. It sometimes takes time to get it right. Enjoy wearing them!
DeleteI also wear highwaisted trousers and like my suspenders quite tight.
ReplyDeleteNo point wear slack suspenders.
Yup! Taught suspenders work best
DeleteHigh-waisted trousers are the best. If you haven't read it already, I did a post on high-waisted pants here
There's something I prefer about wearing braces as tight as possible, they make me feel more secure. It's all good until someone comes and tries to snap them and my buttons or clips go flying so at work I wear them a bit looser because I don't mind people snapping them.
ReplyDeleteI had a schoolfreind and with his jeans he wore large leather end suspenders with big metal buttons to fix them!,wich I liked very much,a lot of times as a girl I took pleasure of pulling and holding him by his suspenders and unbuttoning them then rebutonning them back again,It really excited me !Often he said to me ;but why don't you get yourself a pair and wear them like me ,,? but It's true that I never did it !Until one day when my freind knew that it was my birthday he gave me a packet very well rapped and told me here this is for your birthday ,I was surprised and openedthe package up,and to my surprise I found out that it was a brand new of pant suspenders with leather ends and even the 6 buttons to sew them on!I gave him a big hug and a big kiss and said thank you very much for the idea!In that evening I asked my mother to sew them on my jeans,saying to me Oh you want to wear braces now ,I replied Yes!,and in the evening it was done,then I tried them on buttoning them on the buttons and I pulled them quite high up too ,Honestly loved it especially feeling my jeand being pulled up by them,and it kind of excited me too,!Of course the next dat was saturday we had no school but I went to my freinds house and showed them to him,and he said ,wow !you really look gret ,and since then both of us went aroung wearing our pant suspenders,latter on we got married ans we had 2 children but I kept wearing braces all the timme ,and and soon as our kids were big enough they too were wearingpant suspenders just like ours ,but beleive me especially for women pant suspenders even at what age you wear them it does give yo an extra look and feeling,once again at whatver age ,so ladies do like me don't be afraid of wearing them!
ReplyDeleteYes me too because as a young girl then getting married ,on sundays I liked very much to wear my 2 piece suit wich was composed of an short Jacket and a skirt in thick wollen patterns and my skirt was held up by thin black leather clip suspenders wich I liked very much to wear ,In fact underneath my black leather suspenders were on top of a white blouse buttoned in the back by big plastic buttons,and I remember that in summer when it was hot ,that I liked to go on my bike ,just wearing my suit skirt held up by my suspenders and with my blouse with those big plastic buttons in the back,especially on my bike they seemed to pull my skirt up even more,A lot of times cycling around the villages quiet a lot of boys and men exclamed Wow you realy look good with your leather suspenders,wich gave me a lot of courage to keep on wearing them,Especially in the hot summer I liked to feal those thick leather suspenders diggig into my skin !Plus under my skirt I wore stockings with suspenders too wich I liked also wearing,and my mother encouraged me to wear all of this,,Plus my mother had my hair cut very short ,a crewcut to wich added the sexy women side of it! In any case I do remember that every body told me how good I looked !I answerd to my boyfreind who latter became my husband yes a mater of factI's my mother who got this suit made for me and found and bought me my leather black suspenders too!!My boyfreind who latter on became my husband answerd well she's got good taste and you sure look good clothed up this way !Unfortunatly when I was around in my 30's latter on they busted and got unsown so I had to throw them away !But my husband who liked the look of suspenders on me made the surprise of finding another pair for my birthdayThis time these new pair of suspenders were made of real thick brown large leather pant suspenders with 4 huge metal clips,,wich of course I liked straight away and from then on I liked them so much that I wore them with all of my skirts and pants ,and again I was complimented by everyone even at work in the office!and to my surprise anoher young woman had the same pair made for her too so we were 2 women wearing our thick brown leather suspenders and allways aswell our heads were shaved very short too ,and once again everybody liked it ! No need to say that our children they too wore theese types of suspenders with their outfits too !To be honest women do carry very well pant suspenders very well it gives them a more sexier tuch!
ReplyDeleteFrom the time I was a child I was always taught that braces should be tight so that my shorts were always sitting at the right length-never too low.My parents were fairly traditional and always had me dressed quite formally.Grey dress shorts(always worn with button on braces),knee high socks and brown or black school sandals were always what I was expected to wear.In summer it was brown roman sandals.I was always checked to make sure that my braces were properly adjusted to a fairly tight tension.Fast forward years later and I still wear my braces fairly tight whether I am wearing trousers or shorts.Having my braces loose seems to me to defeat the purpose of wearing braces.
ReplyDelete