Pockets on Women's Pants

[marshall]

No really, it's not a spam thread, I promise.

It's a complaint I hear frequently from the female students on our team (No, I don't choose to talk fashion with them, they bring it up). Their pants lack pockets. Not only that but they've shown me pants that appear to have pockets that are sewn shut.

It's not a problem I personally have had to suffer from but it annoys me that anyone has a hard time shopping for a decent pair of pants. It also annoys me that I can't get all my pants with zebra stripes but I kinda understand the niche market that exists there.

At any rate, I figured with all of the silly summer CD threads recently I would start one myself and see what others have to say about the subject.

Also, some of you might be delighted to know that the (un)functionality of women's clothes is a problem larger than just our little microcosm and seems to be impacting retailers finally (It's an interesting article and what really triggered this thread): https://www.washingtonpost.com/poste...e-bad-clothes/

So yeah, let's make pants have pockets again!

[Jaci]

Unlike robot design, in the clothing world there's no such thing as too much pocketing

Reaching for a fake pocket is like going to the cookie jar, knowing it's empty, opening it to grab a cookie, only to find a bunch of crumbs. You knew you were going to be disappointed, but you tried anyway.

I really don't know where I'm going with this post but viva la pocket

[Akash Rastogi]

Big Handbag And Purse lobbyists need to be stopped!

Although that sounds funny I have a feeling they probably do have some sort of influence?

Interesting thread! I have quite a lot of friends in fashion who I may reach out to about this for some insight.

Also, are the pockets that are sewn shut in women's pants able to be opened? Sounds like any pocket sewn shut in a men's suit.

[AlexanderLuke]

Originally Posted by marshall

No really, it's not a spam thread, I promise.

I was surprised to see what I thought was spam at first with two replies

Originally Posted by marshall

It's a complaint I hear frequently from the female students on our team (No, I don't choose to talk fashion with them, they bring it up). Their pants lack pockets. Not only that but they've shown me pants that appear to have pockets that are sewn shut.

It's not a problem I personally have had to suffer from but it annoys me that anyone has a hard time shopping for a decent pair of pants.

While many may deem this to be a ridiculous topic to address, I can agree that it is an underlying issue of sorts. I am going to approach this as seriously as possible.

I have heard plenty of complaints about this from female students on teams, my own and others included. We have ladies who do just as much handy work as the male students on the team, yet the biggest difference between the two in workflow are the pockets. I do not know how I would stand to live with half my phone sticking out my pocket, but it is an issue that plenty of ladies seem to face. Beyond the necessary cellular device, most of them cannot fit a ball-end hex driver, an open ended wrench, or even their entire hand into their pocket. I know that if I were in this situation, I would be bit outraged to say the least.

I have seen ladies within FRC resort to buying men's pants, that is, if they could find a sizing that fits them reasonably. Beyond that, I have seen utility belts, fanny packs, and even some custom made items to address this issue for the ladies. The decent pair of female pants that you speak of seems to be something of a rare find for them, and I do not understand why that has to be the case. I know nothing of fashion or clothing trends, but I see the shrinking pocket size as a mistake.

[wilsonmw04]

This topic of conversation is nothing new in my house. I have heard my wife complain about this for more than 20 years now. The "pockets" are fake. If my wife can find slacks that have real pockets, they are only 2-3 inches deep and serve no real purpose.

We require our students to where khakis as part of our team uniform. I can't tell you how many times a young lady has come to be and railed about how stupid women's pants are and how unsuited they are for a member of a robotics team.

Could those who know create a list of pants that actually have REAL pockets? I would love to be able to point my students to this thread when they rightfully complain.

[Cothron Theiss]

Originally Posted by Jaci

Unlike robot design, in the clothing world there's no such thing as too much pocketing

The post you are spotlighting already has spotlights.

Darn. Someone beat me to it.

[AdamHeard]

Some (or all?) of females Dickies work pants have full pockets... Or at least equivalent to male size, the male size pockets are a tad smaller than typical jean pockets.

[Lili_1868]

Originally Posted by Akash Rastogi

Big Handbag And Purse lobbyists need to be stopped!

Although that sounds funny I have a feeling they probably do have some sort of influence?

Interesting thread! I have quite a lot of friends in fashion who I may reach out to about this for some insight.

Also, are the pockets that are sewn shut in women's pants able to be opened? Sounds like any pocket sewn shut in a men's suit.

I don't believe they can be opened. I've tried on some jeans before and no luck. I've never seen a pocket sewn shut that actually has the cloth that can store things, so they're just fake pockets.

[Jcarbon]

I didn't realize how much I use my pockets at robotics until we had a pajama day during build season. I spent all day walking around and reaching down for a sharpie or a wrench, only to find a tragic lack of pockets. Now I have more empathy for my female teammates.

[Jon Stratis]

Originally Posted by Akash Rastogi

Big Handbag And Purse lobbyists need to be stopped!

Although that sounds funny I have a feeling they probably do have some sort of influence?

Interesting thread! I have quite a lot of friends in fashion who I may reach out to about this for some insight.

Also, are the pockets that are sewn shut in women's pants able to be opened? Sounds like any pocket sewn shut in a men's suit.

Originally Posted by Lili_1868

I don't believe they can be opened. I've tried on some jeans before and no luck. I've never seen a pocket sewn shut that actually has the cloth that can store things, so they're just fake pockets.

Some can, some can't. Not to long ago, one of my students asked to borrow my pocket knife so she could open a pocket on her jacket (long story). Same student has also sewed pockets into her school uniform skirts.

I've also had suit's with pockets that were closed, and had to cut them open myself in order to use them.

It's a question of balance between utility and appearance. Women's fashion has seemed to prioritize a sleek look with no bulging pockets over the utility of actually having pockets. Men's fashion supports utility a lot more, although that's starting to pull back a little with backlash against cargo shorts (my mom and sister have been railing at me this summer to get rid of mine because it's not in fashion anymore!).

It's just like in designing a robot... there are tradeoffs with any design decision you make, and two people approaching the same problem can come to different decisions because their priorities are different.

[AdamHeard]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

Some can, some can't. Not to long ago, one of my students asked to borrow my pocket knife so she could open a pocket on her jacket (long story). Same student has also sewed pockets into her school uniform skirts.

I've also had suit's with pockets that were closed, and had to cut them open myself in order to use them.

It's a question of balance between utility and appearance. Women's fashion has seemed to prioritize a sleek look with no bulging pockets over the utility of actually having pockets. Men's fashion supports utility a lot more, although that's starting to pull back a little with backlash against cargo shorts (my mom and sister have been railing at me this summer to get rid of mine because it's not in fashion anymore!).

It's just like in designing a robot... there are tradeoffs with any design decision you make, and two people approaching the same problem can come to different decisions because their priorities are different.

Were cargo shorts ever in fashion? I thought they were in the socks with sandals category.

[cadandcookies]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

I've also had suit's with pockets that were closed, and had to cut them open myself in order to use them.

A key difference is that most men's pockets that are sewn closed are actually pockets, and are only sewn closed for transport. Many pockets that are sewn closed on women's clothing are either not actual pockets or are insultingly small.

[troy_dietz]

Originally Posted by cadandcookies

A key difference is that most men's pockets that are sewn closed are actually pockets, and are only sewn closed for transport. Many pockets that are sewn closed on women's clothing are either not actual pockets or are insultingly small.

Men's pockets are also sewn shut so that everything stays in the right shape during production and so that people trying on the garment don't shove their hands in the pockets.

[Christopher149]

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

Were cargo shorts ever in fashion? I thought they were in the socks with sandals category.

But, like every pair of shorts I own are cargo shorts. And most of my pants too.

[AlexanderLuke]

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

Some (or all?) of females Dickies work pants have full pockets... Or at least equivalent to male size, the male size pockets are a tad smaller than typical jean pockets.

From what I have seen and heard from the ladies themselves, Dickies female pants are no better. Just about 2" deep pockets on them, and nothing much more of that, but I would not be the one to make the final say on that. I can certainly recall that male sized pockets I have come across for team event use, which are Dickies or similar style pants, are around 8" deep.