Belt

A belt is a flexible band, made of either leather or a type of cloth, worn around the waist, generally serving the purpose of supporting clothing items that would otherwise become too loose, particularly trousers. A belt can also be for the purpose of style and decoration.

At one end of the belt is a belt buckle that is fashioned onto the other end of the belt. The other end of the belt contains several holes, into which a prong (which is part of the buckle) is inserted into for the purpose of securing the belt. Sometimes, there is a clamp system so that no holes are needed. In Western civilizations, males insert the belt through the pant loops in a counter-clockwise manner (as if looking upon from above) and females tend to insert the belt through the pant loops in a clockwise direction.

A variant of the belt is the utility belt, which includes pockets for carrying items that the wearer needs for prompt use and loops to hang larger items. Police officers, soldiers, and repair personnel are typical roles which use this kind of belt. The most famous fictional example is Batman's utility belt.

Sash

Another variant is the sash, which is a cloth belt designed to hold a robe together. A sash is usually tied about the waist. The Japanese equivalent of a sash, which is used for holding a kimono or yukata together, is called an obi. Sashes are traditionally part of formal military attire, and some decorations, such as the Legion d'honneur are worn with a special sash. In South and Latin America, the president's authority is indicated by a special Presidential sash. Decorative sashes may pass from the shoulder to the hip rather than around the waist.

Wearing and Sizing a Belt

A belt does its work at the waistband, so fit is simple: it should close comfortably at a middle hole, leaving adjustment in both directions, and lie flat inside the trouser loops without twisting. Convention even governs the direction of threading — in Western dress, men traditionally thread the belt through the loops counter-clockwise and women clockwise, viewed from above. As decoration, the belt is one of the few accessories that sits at the visual center of an outfit, which is why buckle size and finish matter: a plain buckle keeps the belt functional, while a large or ornamental buckle makes it the feature. Leather belts reward occasional conditioning and storage hung or loosely coiled, which keeps the strap from cracking at the holes where the prong does its work.