Our ancestors knew better....

[jeanfor]

I think that wanting to go back and wear skirts is going back to doing something that make sense. It is my strong belief that our modern society has been trying to do away with many things that our ancestors knew worked well. Look at fashion for men and women. I have seen a post about Louis the XIV era...and it is amazing to see how men could dress....how dancing was a part of life, all form of arts were well developed and music was rich and made to sooth the body soul and spirit Building construction was well advanced and they knew how to build to keep warm in winter and cool in summer with no AC....A simpler life and also a tougher life but I am not sure that people were less happy..... or maybe I am just getting old.... Yes people live longer today, but it would be good to have an open mind about the way our ancestors once lived and take the best of their times...

[Big and Bashful]

I just heard a quite interesting fact on the TV. The Duke of Wellington (Yes, that one, who gave birth to the rubber boot and pastry around beef, that one). He was once thrown out of a Gentlemen's Club in London, for wearing trousers.


Now there's a thing!

[Raakone]

I know, some things were just better designed in the past. The obsession with instant, throw-away, and 'planned obsolescence" is part of the problem. Oh, and an advantage of skirts and dresses in hotter climates? Natural air-conditioning (nice for the legs to "breathe", especially if it's hot outside) I'm surprised nobody yet came up with a portable fan that you just attach to your clothing, (but shielded, naturally), and try to hype it as superior to skirts and loose clothing.

[Big and Bashful]

Further to:
He was thrown out because he was wearing trousers, instead of knee-breeches. Still, it's the thought that counts!

[couyalair]

... a post about Louis the XIV era...and it is amazing to see how men could dress....how dancing was a part of life, all form of arts were well developed and music was rich ...

Many of us would like to live as comfortably as Louis XIV (in his smelly water-less castle?!!), but most of our ancestors were not so lucky and enjoyed neither fancy clothes, nor leisure to listen to music or admire visual arts. If we were honest, I think we'd rather wear trousers than live as the plebeans of the past, or even as the aristocracy with a life expectancy of about 40 years.
Men of the ruling classes could dress with great splendour, but their choices were probably as limited as ours today, having to wear whatever court fashion dictated. The people had even less choice and wore whatever hand-me-downs they could get their hands on.
I wonder if the very tiny skirts-for-men movement is not something completely new, the first time that men have made an effort to get out of uniform. I can't remember ever reading of any societal change being brought about by the will of the common man rather than by courtly whim.
Martin