Pockets: A History of Carrying Capacity | Hacker News Reader

Pockets: A History of Carrying Capacity

wsj.com

26 pointslxm11 comments

It still doesn't answer the question: if women complain so much about a lack of pockets [0], why don't they buy clothes with pockets? This article by HSW [1] suggests it's a "male dominated fashion industry." That doesn't sound right to me, being a free market. I suspect it's just that women don't actually buy pants with big pockets because they don't like the way they look.

[0] https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/pockets-articles-of-i... [1] https://lifestyle.howstuffworks.com/style/fashion/trends-loo...

I usually do. Problem is, to do that at all, I usually have to buy men's clothing. I buy men's jeans by default, because they have pockets and the fit and comfort aren't my biggest concerns for rugged practical wear. If I want to indulge in feminine fashion or, gods forbid, look professional, I quickly find that I'm out of options. Most pants that do have pockets, they're barely large enough for my phone to fit halfway in them (and I'm using a G7, not a phablet or something). Many just don't, or even worse, they're sewn on decoratively without actually being open and able to hold anything. Some skirts and dresses, sure, they don't really make sense, but why in the world would decorative non-functional pockets be a staple of so many pairs of women's pants if we didn't like how they look?

If all women did that, women clothing as they are now would not sell and designers would figure out that women want (real) pockets and begin to design women clothing with them.

GP's point is that women don't do that and in fact do prioritize fashion over function.

> why in the world would decorative non-functional pockets be a staple of so many pairs of women's pants if we didn't like how they look?

Because functional pockets require the pants to be loose fitting, which is not as attractive as more form fitting pants (based on what women and men in society have collectively decided through their actions).

As far as my girlfriend is concerned: Because as soon as a piece is remotely nice its pockets are decorative jokes. If there were clothes that were both stylish and had decent pockets she'd buy them at once, but there are almost none. There seems to be no good reason for that to be so, extending the joke pockets usually doesn't cause the piece to look bad or lose function (if not stuffed to the brink and excluding those items where that can't realistically work).

Maybe pockets are one of those things that everyone says they’d like, but really that preference is subordinate to so many other considerations, that it doesn’t materially affect the success of the product. Couple that with simply costing a tiny bit more or just being different than the status quo, and it ends up a nonstarter, because why bother with something that won’t make the product more successful?

One of my favourite bits of comedy is from Paul Tonksinon, an English comedian who is originally from Yorkshire. For non-English audiences, Yorkshiremen are considered very bluff and no-nonsense - the antithesis of “fancy”. Plain speaking is a virtue and anything that might even have a whiff of showing off or wanting to seem like you are better than others is treated with deep suspicion if not outright hostility.

Anyway, the set up of the joke is Paul Tonkinson worrying about a trip home, and he knows that he’s going to have to go to the local pub with his dad and his dad’s friends. Now he’s a famous London comedian and acclimatised to “London ways” he’s worried that he’s going to stick out like a sore thumb.

He goes to the pub, everything is going fine. He’s relieved. Until one of his dad’s friends looks him up and down and says “Alright lad? I hear you’re one of those London types now. You must be doing alright for yourself. Your clothes I mean - very fancy. Trousers! with pockets”

It’s much funnier when he tells it obviously. I’ve been trying to find a YouTube clip but can’t.

I love my cargo pants. I carry so much stuff. I'd have to carry a backpack everywhere if it weren't for my many pockets.

It's funny that pockets were a feminist thing so long ago but they still are. Women's jeans don't always have them and a lot of girls I know have complained about it. Never had this problem as a man.

https://ghostarchive.org/archive/Em9Ek

and https://archive.is/IHALv

my life measurably improved when i moved from "phone left, wallet right, keys little right" to one of those slim phone covers with a slit in the back that fits just a couple cards

with my id and a backup credit card in there, and the rest of my cards in my phone app, i'm down to just "phone left, keys right"

can't wait until i can do everything with just a watch (looking at you, rideshare apps), and live 'la dolce vita' without pockets

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