Fabrics......

[jeanfor]

Once thing that I like about women clothing is that the fabric is always very nice and much more comfortable that any garment made for a man. I bought a black/white plaid skirt (Aqua label), cotton with 3% spandex and it is so comfortable and cool. Now there is cotton and cotton...(like for underwear compare men briefs with women undies even plain white from Hanes). This is one of the reason I like to get women clothing rather than men.

[crfriend]

The disparity in fabrics between "menswear" and "womenswear" has always grated on me. Men seem to be doomed to heavy, scratchy, and,well, boring fabrics when the gals get light airy fabrics that flow and drape wonderfully, not to mention being much more luxurious to the touch. Of course, the old adage of, "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch" (TANSTAAFL) rings true as these lighter fabrics are more prone to wear and tear than "traditional" "men's" fabrics, so there's a downside.

I've always had a hankering for the light touch that supposedly "feminine" fabrics offered, and have only in the past several years actually ventured into that realm. Even with a strong knowledge that "fine fabrics" were originally in the provice of menswear, I long hesitated to experiment with anything other than polyester blends (my body chemistry digests cotton). It's only been in the last decade that I've gathered the courage and confidence to try things like silks, velvets, and brocades -- and I'm saddened that it took me so long to adopt those because they're positively wonderful fabrics. This is good stuff, and the fabrics are astoundingly comfortable. You can take your denim and use it for rags and ground-cover -- I am not looking back.

[skirted_in_SF]

You can take your denim and use it for rags and ground-cover -- I am not looking back.

I second the motion. The only denim I own is two pair of jeans that get dragged out of the closet one week a year when I visit my parents and have to work around their house and acreage. I just got a khaki pleat front 'cargo' skirt for hiking and camping. I put cargo in quotes because the two pockets are 4" deep; hardly cargo. But that's ok, I'm not going to put anything in them anyway.

[SkirtedViking]

Probably fabrics has to do with the male limitations of upper and lower clothing thus making it logical (for the manufacturers) that such small range of fabrics are more appropriate for the "real" man. Same applied to the choice of shoes and accessories...

[crfriend]

Probably fabrics has to do with the male limitations of upper and lower clothing thus making it logical (for the manufacturers) that such small range of fabrics are more appropriate for the "real" man. Same applied to the choice of shoes and accessories...

This was not always the case. Back in the 1970s, one could get shirts made of some positively wonderful fabrics, and one could buy men's shoes that had decent -- and functional -- heels. Unfortunately, at least in the USA (and likely the UK), with the rise of (neo-) conservatism in the 1980s all that choice and variety disappeared almost overnight.

If enough guys would actually consider buying stuff other than jeans and T-shirts, and stuff made from boring fabrics, then manufacturers will step in to fill the gap; however, as long as guys keep their current buying habits, that is not going to change. Like with skirts, if there's a proven market, somebody will step in to meet it because there'll be money to be made. The trick is to get the guys to open their minds a bit and explore; that's their responsibility as nobody else is going to do it for them.

[rick401r]

Everything has it's purpose. Even denim jeans and silk skirts. I would never consider sliding under my car in a silk skirt, I'm going to wear heavy men's jeans. I not going to work in the outside in 90 degree heat in jeans, but I would wear a utilikilt or denim skirt. As for lounging in the evenings, a soft light weight skirt is in order.

[crfriend]

I would never consider sliding under my car in a silk skirt, I'm going to wear heavy men's jeans. I [am] not going to work in the outside in 90 degree heat in jeans, but I would wear a utilikilt or denim skirt. As for lounging in the evenings, a soft light weight skirt is in order.

I concur completely. What I was griping about is that very luxurious fabrics are all too often simply unavailable for guys -- whether it be for skirts or anything else for a price that wouldn't bankrupt small nations (e.g. silk shirts and the like).

As Rick points up, there's a time and a place for everything, and sometimes one just does not want to worry about the clothes one is wearing. I'll challenge anybody to change a flat tyre at roadside and not get their skirt hem filthy (unless one is wearing a fairly tight mini) -- and that's just one of many things that we can run into at a moment's notice!

[Uncle Al]

If enough guys would actually consider buying stuff other
than jeans and T-shirts, and stuff made from boring fabrics, then manufacturers
will step in to fill the gap; however, as long as guys keep their current buying
habits, that is not going to change. Like with skirts, if there's a proven
market, somebody will step in to meet it because there'll be money
to be made. The trick is to get the guys to open their minds a bit and explore;
that's their responsibility as nobody else is going to do it for them.

Carl,

I agree with most of your statements except the last one. The wives
buy for the entire family, 90% of the time. We need to convince the wives
(GF's) that lighter fabrics are OK for men. Then, they will encourage the men
to explore other possibilities. This is the "sheep" mentality of men. They (men)
don't understand that it is OK to wear 'fine fabrics'. Department Stores
cater to this for women, but care less about men as the Department Stores
know who the 'buyer' is in the family. Advertisements are 90% geared
towards women. Pick up any Sunday Newspaper advertisement and you'll
see what I mean.

I guess the old saying still applies: Money Talks and B*** S*** walks

So, do we need to start changing the attitudes of men, or the women in their lives

Still pondering things

Uncle Al

[crfriend]

So, do we need to start changing the attitudes of men, or the women in their lives

Given Al's thesis above, I'd posit that we would have to change both viewpoints, which just compounds the problem!

I don't think it's a "sheep mentality" that many (if not most) guys are happy if they're simply covered in what they've been covered in for most of their lives, and fretting over one's appearance (clothing-wise) in generally viewed as the purview of women. Accepting that, we wind up with more of a notion of inertia rather than "herd mentality", and if enough force is applied to the straight-line notion then a deflection from "tradition" becomes possible, save that in this light, the force is one of understanding, curiosity, and acceptance rather than "thrust" (viz, "Given enough thrust, pigs fly perfectly well.").

In short, somebody has to make the first move, and I posit again that it ought to be the men that make the observation that there's precious little manufactured for them at the moment that's as nice -- in either tactile sense or flow/dynamics -- as what fabrics we know exist because we see our wives/girlfriends/sisters wearing such things. It is unlikely that the wife or SO will make the first move to introduce "her man" to an alternate possibility for the worry of "rocking the boat"; so, it falls to the man to bring the notion up.

I hate shopping for clothes, and I always have; Sapphire was very good to me in the past by picking out nice-looking garments (if "traditional menswear") when my existant wardrobe became so threadbare that it could have been considered indecent. I now do most of my own clothes-shopping; I still detest it, but at least I get to explore, and Sapphire encourages that.

[AMM]

The disparity in fabrics between "menswear" and "womenswear" has always grated on me. Men seem to be doomed to heavy, scratchy, and,well, boring fabrics when the gals get light airy fabrics that flow and drape wonderfully, not to mention being much more luxurious to the touch.

Even if you make your own clothes, it's hard to get the lighter, more sensuous fabrics in the fabric stores. The closest I've seen to the ultra-lightweight cotton used for summer skirts is cotton lawn, and it's pretty expensive ($12-$20 / yard or worse for 45" wide fabric.) And it's still not the same. Part of it may be that people who do buy fabric nowadays are generally making: (a) children's costumes (b) bridal stuff, or (c) quilts. Oh, and "crafts" thingys and "home dec" (curtains, sofa covers, etc.) Almost nobody makes clothes to wear on a daily basis.

[skirted_in_SF]

If you ever get out to the left coast and visit San Francisco; you might want to visit Britex Fabrics downtown near Union Square. I don't sew and haven't been there myself, but I've heard and read good things about their selection. When I lived in Idaho in the 70s I knew a woman who would buy her jersey fabrics from them to have her wrap dresses made by a local seamstress. Very sexy on the right figure.