When did Guys wearing Skinny Jeans become Acceptable?

Not too long ago, skinny jeans were completely rejected by men, including fashion designers. Even today, skinny jeans are not generally approved of or endorsed in many countries, mostly in the Middle East. They are deemed immodest. Skinny jeans for men were indeed considered immoral even in the west a few decades back, especially during the peak of homophobia. Countries like Saudi Arabia has standing instructions issued to their law enforcement agencies to arrest teens wearing skinny jeans because they are thought of as symbolic of homosexuality. A few years back, some Palestinian youth were arrested by Hamas police and beaten for wearing skinny jeans. Sudan has imprisoned women wearing skinny jeans and tight trousers. Circa 2012, up to a hundred people were murdered in Iraq by unknown persons for wearing skinny jeans and tight clothes.

Across liberal democracies in North and South Americas, Europe and Asia as well as Oceania including Australia and New Zealand, skinny jeans became widely acceptable through the latter half of the first decade of the twenty-first century. Skinny jeans were first launched for women, sometime around 2005. Skinny jeans for men were launched subsequently and they had become popular by the end of 2010. This acceptability pertains specifically to skinny jeans or tight fitted denim. This doesn't refer to slim fit trousers or tight pants for men, which have been acceptable for over three hundred years now. The origin of skinny jeans lies in slim fit pants or tight pants, drainpipes, pencil pants, gas pipes, stovepipes and cigarette pants. The origin can be further traced back to breeches in Europe and salwar kameez in the Indian subcontinent.

Origin of Skinny Jeans

As early as the mid seventeenth century, tight fitting breeches had become popular in Europe. Breeches can be traced back to the times of the Tudors but they were mostly oversized or loosely fitted. Towards the latter half of the seventeenth century, Frenchmen made tight fitting breeches fashionable. They became an integral part of the then three piece suit, the formal dress worn at the court. These tightly fitted breeches were introduced in England during the era of Restoration. During the same time, the Mughal rulers in the Indian subcontinent wore what were called churidars, a version of the salwar kameez. These churidaars often had tapered bottoms, a design meant to be flattering for the legs. Englishmen working for the East India Trading Company endorsed these tight fitting churidaars when the Mughals were overthrown by them during the eighteenth century.

Over the last two hundred years, tight fitted pants or trousers were very common among men. Women too wore tight fitted pants but mostly when they were out hunting or practiced horseback riding. Come to think of it and skinny trousers were historically worn by men, not women. It is noteworthy because even today, women wearing skinny jeans are not frowned upon but many people do find men wearing skinny jeans rather unacceptable. Tight fitted trousers continued to evolve through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, became customary among the ruling elite and then became practical for various sports. Popular personalities through the latter half of the twentieth century endorsed drainpipe jeans and tightly fitted cargo pants and chino trousers. Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones among many others regularly wore drainpipes.

Tight fitted trousers lost popularity during the rise of the hippie culture. Loosely fitted trousers or baggy pants and bell bottom jeans became popular through the sixties and seventies. This was reflected in the choices of attire among rock bands and punk subculture. Skinny jeans, as in the denim, did not get introduced till the nineties. Most tight fitted trousers in the early nineties were of spandex. Denims with the assured comfort and using some spandex for stretch-ability became a more convenient choice. But the popularity was limited and availability of such jeans was also short-lived.

Why are Skinny Jeans So Popular?

Skinny jeans were no longer synonymous with homosexuality by the first decade of the new millennium. It was merely a fashion statement, a style a man would choose to endorse and a natural complementing pair for women. Today, it is acceptable for guys to don a pair of skinny jeans. However, it is still frowned upon and vocally disapproved if a man is not naturally skinny. There have been health concerns as well, raised by many doctors around the world, all of whom tend to advocate against wearing any clothes that are too tight.

Because people love skinny jeans. They show off the body shape etc etc. That is why there are skinny jeans. Skinny jeans are no longer just for women either, a lot of men wear them as well.

For many bodies, they are actually flattering. This is because the legs are usually one of the (dimension-wise) smaller parts of the body. You can visually look slimmer by wearing skinny jeans paired with a nice flowing tunic top or long sweater that covers a bit of bulge in the middle.

I wear slim jeans. The look is in fashion right now. They can make the legs look longer and they really show off the shape and tone. The thing some people forget is that they don't suit everyone. People with thicker legs tend to look awkward with slim pants. If you don't look good in them, don't bother wearing them.

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