Buzz
Handbags, high heels, and g-strings are commonly thought of as feminine items today. But what if we told you these were once designed for men? It’s true. These and other items were originally intended for men, only to be later adopted by women.
The reasons for this gender switch vary. Sometimes it was driven by practicality, with items proving more useful to women than men. At other times, the shift was motivated by financial gain, as companies shifted their focus to women to increase profits.
8. Bra Clasp
The well-known author Mark Twain (born Samuel Clemens) had little regard for suspenders. For those unfamiliar, suspenders (or suit braces) are long straps worn over the shoulders to keep trousers up. Twain found suspenders uncomfortable and went on to invent the hook and eye as a substitute.
The hook and eye is a small metallic fastener designed to secure trousers at the waist—similar to the belts we use today. Men are not as familiar with it since it was never widely adopted by them. However, women are well-acquainted with it, as the same hooks are used to fasten their bras. Yes, those tiny metal fasteners at the back (or sometimes front) of bras were originally invented for men.
Mark Twain was granted a patent for the hook and eye fastener on December 19, 1871. In his patent application, he described the invention as an 'improvement in adjustable and detachable straps for garments.' Initially, it was used in shirts, underwear, and corsets before it became a staple in brassieres.
7. High Heels
High heels are often regarded as the epitome of femininity. They are so strongly associated with women that it may be hard to believe they were originally designed for men. This is, however, the truth. Women didn’t begin wearing high heels until the 17th century.
The first high heels were crafted for male Persian soldiers during the 10th century. The elevated heel helped them secure their feet in the stirrups (the devices horse riders use to position their legs) while mounted on horseback. This made it easier for them to maintain balance and stability, allowing them to shoot arrows or engage in battle with greater precision while on the move.
High heels made their way to Europe in the 17th century, where they were quickly embraced by male aristocrats, as the shoes made them appear taller and more commanding. In one famous event, King Louis XIV of France even gave high-heeled shoes to the men in his cabinet in 1673.
Women began wearing high heels because they made their feet seem smaller. At the time, most women wore long skirts that covered their ankles. The elevated heels lifted the back and middle parts of their legs, hiding them under their skirts, leaving only the front of their feet visible, which created the illusion of small feet.
Over time, men's and women's high heels started to evolve in different directions. Women narrowed the heels and made the fronts of their shoes more pointed, while men kept the traditional high heels with wide bases and flat fronts. By the 18th century, high heels had become so associated with femininity that men abandoned them.
6. Handbags
The handbag has its roots in the small, loose pouches that people carried long ago. In a time when clothing lacked pockets, people used these pouches to keep their money and other valuables secure. Often, the pouches were attached to a belt worn around the waist.
During the 16th century, women abandoned their pouches in favor of small metal objects called chatelaines. They used these to hang their keys and sewing materials, attaching them beneath their skirts. However, in the 18th century, women replaced chatelaines with reticules, small pouches that were secured with a drawstring.
The modern handbag emerged in the early 1900s. The term 'handbag' was derived from the small bags that men carried. Fashion designers of the time took inspiration from these male bags to create bags for women, adding fasteners and compartments for greater practicality. Eventually, the men's version was replaced by the women's handbag.
5. Thongs
Thongs are a type of underwear or swimwear that are connected by a narrow strip of fabric. Women prefer thongs over regular panties because they avoid visible panty lines. The g-string, a specific type of thong, is distinguished by using thin strings instead of the wider fabric typically found in thongs.
The earliest thong appeared in Africa around 42,000 BC. Thongs later reappeared in ancient Egypt, Greece, Crete in 1570 BC, and Japan in 250 AD. Similar to today's thongs, these early versions covered the private areas while leaving the buttocks exposed. Unlike modern thongs, however, they were often worn by men. Thongs eventually fell out of style before making a comeback in the 1800s.
The jockstrap marked a new iteration of the thong, designed for men to protect their privates during sports. The modern thong made its debut at the 1939 New York World’s Fair when Mayor Fiorello La Guardia ordered female nude dancers to cover themselves. The dancers turned to thongs, which provided enough coverage to protect their modesty while still leaving much of their skin exposed for entertainment purposes.
4. Disposable Menstrual Pads
Reusable menstrual pads were not introduced until World War I. Prior to the war, some Kimberly-Clark executives—who later created the first disposable pad—were touring Europe when they discovered a new material made from pulp and paper. Known as Cellucotton, this material absorbed five times more water than regular cotton and cost half as much.
The executives brought Cellucotton back to the United States, but Kimberly-Clark didn't find a use for it until World War I. During the war, Cellucotton was mass-produced for use in dressing injured soldiers. Female nurses treating the wounded soon realized it was effective at absorbing menstrual discharge.
Kimberly-Clark initially overlooked this use until the market for Cellucotton dwindled after the war. In 1920, the company rebranded the material and launched it as Kotex (derived from 'cotton texture'), the first brand of disposable menstrual pads. Poor sales led to another repurposing, with the product being rebranded as Kleenex, the first facial tissue brand, in 1924.
Here, we see a German soldier using what would later become a menstrual pad as a face mask!
3. Everything Pink
A century ago, it was common for boys to wear pink, while girls wore blue. Now, the trend has reversed. But how did this color swap occur?
The shift began in the 1900s, when colored baby clothes first appeared. Before then, babies wore white dresses, making it difficult to determine a baby's gender at a glance. White was preferred because it could be easily bleached to remove stains. Boys also wore dresses as they were more practical than shirts and shorts.
Colored clothing for babies gained popularity at the turn of the century, but no color was initially tied to a specific gender. By the time World War I arrived, it became widely accepted that boys wore pink, and girls wore blue. Pink was chosen for boys because it was seen as a bold, strong color, while blue was considered more delicate and pretty for girls.
Boys only transitioned from dresses to shirts and shorts at the end of World War II. However, the color trend remained the same, with boys still wearing pink and girls wearing blue. The real shift took place in the 1960s when supporters of the female liberation movement began dressing their daughters in pink, concerned that girls were being conditioned to behave in a more feminine way through their clothing choices.
At the same time, boys gradually moved away from pink and embraced blue. The final push came around 1985 when the clothing industry started marketing pink apparel to girls and blue to boys. The garment industry wasn’t focused on gender equality; they were simply aiming to pressure parents into buying new clothes, preventing them from sharing items between children of different genders.
2. Skinny Jeans
Skinny jeans have the same origins as regular jeans. The first pair of jeans was created by Jacob Davis in 1873. However, the invention is closely tied to Levi Strauss, a German immigrant who arrived in New York in 1851. Levi worked at his brother’s textile store until 1853, when he opened his own store in San Francisco.
This happened during the California Gold Rush, when many men worked in the mines. One day, a tailor named Jacob Davis entered Levi’s store and asked for a durable material that could withstand heavy labor. Levi sold him some denim, which Davis then used to create the first pair of jeans.
The product's success led other miners to request similar trousers. As a result, Davis teamed up with Levi to patent the jean. Levi eventually founded Levi Strauss & Co. to mass-produce jean trousers.
Jeans remained a men's garment until 1930, when Levi Strauss & Co. introduced the Lady Levi’s® Lot 701, the first pair of jeans made specifically for women. The design was slim, reaching the upper waist, but it gradually became narrower as Levi shifted from marketing it to older women to targeting younger women.
1. Stockings
Stockings, another piece of clothing that has transitioned between genders, are now exclusively worn by women, although they were originally made for men. Women only began wearing stockings in the 18th century, while men had been wearing them since the 9th century. Wealthier men typically wore white or colored stockings, whereas poorer men stuck to black.
For those unfamiliar, stockings (also called hoses) are tight-fitting garments that cover the feet and part of the legs. A variation of stockings is pantyhose, which combines stockings with panties. Men never wore pantyhose. To clarify, stockings, pantyhose, tights, and breeches are all part of a clothing category known as hosiery.
Over the course of several centuries, from the 16th to the 20th, stockings gradually shifted from being a male garment to a female one. This transformation was so significant that the period came to be known as the “The Dark Ages of Tights.” By the 19th century, stockings had become so closely linked with women that men no longer wore them.
