I hope you enjoyed Part 1 and a huge thank you to everyone who contributed a quote.
Pockets are a hot topic in our household – mainly why don’t the garments my girlfriend buys come with pockets? Mine do. I’m currently sitting in shorts that have seven different pockets. And I’ll put on a jacket to go home, with three separate pockets. What the fuck do I need ten pockets for? And similarly, why can’t I share some of those pockets with my girlfriend’s clothes?
I’ve done a little research on the history of pockets with the help of the Victoria & Albert Museum website and a couple of articles – click on the buttons below for more info. In the 1700s most women had a pocket or two, but they were more like pouches, not sewn into clothes, but tied around the waist, accessible through petticoats. Men’s pockets were inherent in the clothes they wore.
Into the late 1700s and more figure hugging apparel abound for ladies and therefore the pocket or pouch became something that would ‘ruin the aesthetic’ of the dress one may wear. Women were therefore forced to start carrying bags, however they were tiny because it was assumed that women had no access to money or property. The men would carry the women’s necessities. There is even research to suggest that some cultures banned pockets so that women could not conceal weapons in them to then fight for their right to pockets. During the World Wars, the pocket made a return to female attire as they were expected to be practical. Sadly soon after the conflicts, women were expected to be ‘feminine’ once again and their rights to pockets receded as did their clothing, getting tighter and tighter.
The trusty handbag and the huge industry that comes with accessories has not helped the re-emergence of practical pockets on women’s clothes. When the accessories industry is worth billions every year to fashion designers, their want to adjust pocket sizes and placement is very small, lest they lose out on all that money from other items that replace the simple pocket. Also a male dominated fashion industry will not have helped especially when Christian Dior said, ‘men have pockets to keep things in, women for decoration.’ And I mean, he can fuck off.
Why can’t everyone have pockets in/on their clothes? The copious amounts of pockets on my clothes don’t ruin my doughy physique and I don’t believe my boyish good looks are harmed by the sight of multiple pockets. O and don’t get me started on the lip-service-pockets that are on lady’s clothing currently. If you can’t fit something useful in it then it’s not a bloody pocket, it’s shitty window dressing. My friends who have children bemoan the lack of pockets on traditional girls’ clothing and the inherent imbalance on traditional boys’ clothing, where pockets are plentiful and useful. Why are we ingraining this bullshit in kids? Give the little girls some fucking pockets.
Technology has moved on, society has moved on and fashion should too. Surely our designers can shape our viewpoint so that a bulky but practical pocket can look sexy. Give us what we want! A decent sized pocket that can hold your wallet/keys/phone/lipstick/pet tortoise Dave/sex toy/sandwich – probably not all at the same time though. Give us multiple pockets to hold all of these things. So in answer to my question posed in the title – why? Because they’re useful, because why the fuck not, because clothing can be functional and stylish. More pockets please.