Suspenders
Suspenders, braces and garters are clothing accessories.
Braces
Suspenders in US English, or braces in most variants of world English (and also sometimes in North America) are elastic fabric straps, run over the shoulders, that hold up trousers or a skirt. The entire strap of braces may be elasticated, or only the ends where the attachments are, with the majority part of the straps being of woven cloth with either a X-Back or Y-back crosspatch and leather end tabs.
Braces were at one time worn almost universally, due to the higher cut of late 19th and early 20th-century trousers which made wearing a belt less effective since it could not rest on the hips. Elasticated (and better-fitting) garments may also play a part. However, many business people, news casters and lawyers still wear suspenders, whether for image or comfort, and they are regarded as fashionable by most men's fashion experts in America (though not Britain). Braces are usually only acceptable items to wear at work if they are of high-quality, which normally means that they can be buttoned to trousers.
Garters
Garter is the North American English term for what elsewhere in the english speaking world are called suspenders. They are items of clothing, used to keep stockings up. Normally just a few inches in width, they are usually made of leather or heavy cloth, and adorned with small bells and/or ribbons. In the 18th to 20th centuries, they were tied just below the knee, where the leg was skinniest, to keep the stocking from slipping. The advent of elastic has made them unnecessary from this functional standpoint, although they are still often worn for fashion.
A famous "garter" in English is the Order of the Garter, which traces its history to the Middle English poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight[citation needed]. In the poem, Gawain accepts a garter from the wife of his host (while resisting her carnal temptations) to save his life and then wears it as a mark of shame for his moral failure and cowardice. King Arthur and his men proclaim it no shame and begin, themselves, to wear the garter to indicate their shared fate. At that point, however, the garter was a larger garment that was used as a foundation.
In Elizabethan fashions, men wore garters with their hose, and colorful garters were an object of display. In Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, "cross braced" garters are an object of some derision. In male fashion, a type of garter for holding up socks has continued as a part of male dress up to the present (although its use may be considered somewhat stodgy).
A garter is often worn by newlywed brides. It is the groom's privilege to remove the garter and toss it to the male guests. The symbolism to deflowering is unambiguous. Historically, this tradition also relates to the belief that taking an article of the bride's clothing would bring good luck. As this often resulted in the destruction of the bride's dress, the tradition arose for the bride to toss articles of clothing to the guests, including the garter. Sometimes, if the guests were drunk, they would try to remove the garter ahead of time, and consequently the tradition arose for the groom to remove it himself and toss it to the guests, in order to protect his bride from molestation by the guests.[1]
At some American high schools, it is traditional for girls to wear garters to their prom. At the end of the evening, their partner removes the garter and keeps it as a souvenir. In some cases, the girls exchange their garters for their partners' bow ties. The tradition of wearing garters to proms is especially prevalent in Chicagoland and surrounding midwestern cities. [citation needed]
In universities, many boarding students will use a garter, or alternately a necktie, around their bedroom doorknob to show that the couple inside are engaged in some form of sexual- or foreplay-related activity. Thus, it is the dormitory equivalent to a "do-not-disturb" sign in many ways.
References
- ^ "The Tale of the Tossing of the Garter and other customs". WedAlert.com. Retrieved 2006-10-14.
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