Clothing Definitions — definitions of garments and clothing terms from Apparel Search
A blouse most commonly refers to a woman's shirt, although the term is also used for some men's military uniform shirts. Blouses are often made of cotton or silk cloth and may or may not include a collar and sleeves. They are generally more tailored than simple knit tops and may carry details such as ruffles or embroidered decoration. This page also explains a lasting curiosity of the garment: blouses button in reverse to men's shirts, with the buttons on the wearer's left-hand side, and sets out the theories proposed for why.
|
|
A blouse most commonly refers to a woman's shirt, although the term is also used for some men's military uniform shirts.
Blouses are often made of cotton or silk cloth and may or may not include a collar and sleeves. They are generally more tailored than simple knit tops, and may contain "feminine" details such as ruffles or embroidered decorations.
Blouses have buttons reversed from that of a men's shirts. That is, the buttons are normally on the wearer's left-hand and the buttonholes are on the right. The reasons for this are unclear, however. Some suggest this custom was introduced by launderers so they could distinguish between women's and men's shirts, and could thus charge more for women's blouses, supposing women are more gullible and submissive. Another theory purports that the tradition arose in the middle ages when one manner of manifesting wealth was by the number of buttons one wore. female servants were in charge of buttonning their mistresse's gowns (since the buttons were usually in the back). Tiring of attempting to button the buttons backwards, they started reversing the direction of the buttons, therefore, easing their jobs considerably.
| The above article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/blouse). 11/10/04 |
|
|
Because a blouse is a woven, tailored top rather than a knit, its character comes from fabric and detail. Cotton blouses are crisp and breathable for everyday wear, silk blouses drape softly and suit dressier outfits, and details such as ruffles, pintucks, lace inserts or embroidery move the same basic pattern from plain to decorative. Sleeves range from sleeveless and short to full-length with buttoned cuffs, and collars from soft bows and Peter Pan shapes to a standard shirt collar.
The blouse is a wardrobe staple precisely because it pairs across categories: tucked into trousers or a skirt for work, worn loose over jeans for a softer line, or layered under a jacket or cardigan. When sewing or buying, the fit points that matter are the shoulder line, the bust ease that lets the front close without gaping between buttons, and sleeve length — the tailoring that distinguishes a blouse from a simple knit top is concentrated in those details.
A blouse is most commonly a woman's shirt, usually made of cotton or silk cloth, with or without a collar and sleeves. Blouses are generally more tailored than simple knit tops and may include details such as ruffles or embroidered decorations.
On a blouse the buttons are normally on the wearer's left-hand side and the buttonholes on the right, the reverse of a men's shirt. The reasons are unclear: one suggestion is that launderers introduced the difference to distinguish women's shirts from men's, and another traces it to the era when servants fastened their mistresses' gowns.
Yes, in a narrower sense: the term is also used for some men's military uniform shirts. In everyday use, though, blouse refers to the women's garment described on this page, which is how the word is understood in fashion retail and sewing.