A night with no men - what do you call it?

[cheesesconesaremyfavourite]

This has me stumped. Generally when a friend organises a night out or night in or lunch purely for females the text normally reads something like this:-

"Anyone up for a Girls' night out on Friday etc"
"Girlie night round at mine this Saturday etc"
"Planning a Ladies Lunch at The Crown on Thursday etc"

I don't really consider myself a girl, girlie or lady - just a woman. So if I'm organising something I find the wording really difficult when texting or whats'apping. It just seems to read a bit oddly if I write "Anyone up for a women's night out next Friday?"

My DH has no problem using Boys' Night or Lads' Night and most people just accept the term Girls' Night or Ladies' Lunch but it doesn't sit comfortably with me. I'm ok accepting invitations worded in any form but if I initiate one I don't feel comfortable with the term girl or lady. Am I overthinking?

Gash bash?

Family friends used to label the bottom corner of invitations with “NFK” no fucking kids ...you could use NFM

I would sent it to my group of female friends and say: anyone up for a catch up together? ; shall we all go out for dinner this weekend? Etc.

Don't need to name it.

I thought this was about some counter-movement to "a day without women"...

Anyway, I also tend to use girls night or something similar. Cringeworthy but meh.

@SummerPoppies Do you live in the north-east? Every woman can be described as a lass up here. My grandad called my grandma lass when they were in their 80s.

YessicaHaircut that has forever improved /ruined the song for me. I like NFM. In groups like this it does need stipulating, I tend to find I'm busy if the men also go.

@WooleyJ123 that's the best one haha! Props to your nana.

I was going to say 'dicks docked', but I think that's because this house has been a bit TikTok obsessed lately…

The default is just it's us women. If we want partners included, then we have to explicitly say that.

I'm now taking lass... lasses on the lash sounds brilliant to me (I am from the North East but lived in Scotland for donkeys years)

I call all my friends ‘girls’ and no one is offended. Makes us feel young.

@YessicaHaircut

Send a sparkly invitation emblazoned with “Viva la vulva”? That ought to do it.

That is wonderful!

Men free night out?

It'd be a 'girls' night out' for me. I'm a gender critical feminist of the highest order – and I know that I'm not a girl – but I'm not spending time and ending up using stilted English for this purpose

Exactly this. Everyone knows that a girls' night out is for women, a boys' night out is for men and a kids' party isn't for baby goats. They are expressions and aren't the same as stating 'I am a girl' when you're 46. You can't find another comfortable, non-clunky, non-cringe way of saying it because that is the normal way of saying it!

The reason it balks a bit is because it has been used in a derogatory fashion the classic line “she is ok for a girl” “ not too bad for a girl” I game and am a gamer but gamer girl can be used in very much a derogatory way by men.

However as it’s being used by other women it’s not being used like that. I guess people use it to show its not a time to bring husbands or boyfriends. If people haven’t worked or had a hobby in a very male dominated environment it may not be obvious to them. I worked in a male dominated environment for many years, 5% max of the workforce were women. Being around so many men for such a long time, they forgot I was a woman after a few years, the stuff they used to let slip.

I just end up caling it a girl's night because it's easier but other options might be...

"Is anyone up for a good night out - just us women?"

or

"Does anyone fancy leaving the men at home and coming for a night out?"

Though, from now on, I think I might be tempted to call it a Gash Bash"

Bliss, perfection, a great night...many, many adjectives spring to mind

It’s just a phrase op. Why overthink or complicate it 🙄

Totally over thinking

Yup

It always amuses me when this subject comes up on here. Some of the outrage some folk feel over 'girls night out' is surreal

Totally agree!

A message from my mates would say ' girls night Friday? ' and that would mean only the women that got the text message
A text message saying ' anyone for a night out on Friday?' Means anyone including partners.

Every person I know I know calls a single gender night out a 'girls night' or 'lads night out' from my parents who are pushing 80, my managers, my colleagues, my friends, everyone!
We also call each other 'love', 'darling',' cock' and other endearments that we don't get upset about either! ( aw reyt love, ' ow reet cock ' to use our dialect 😂😂)

Well, I used to call a women-only gathering a coven back in the day. .

Agreed that ‘girls’ can sound twee and ‘ladies’ somehow always feels euphemistic to me (which could just be me). Someone recently described me as a ‘mature lady’ in a certain tone of voice - made me think of ads’ for niche services displayed in phone boxes (when phone boxes were actually a ‘thing’ and no one had thought of the internet).

Sounds like you're going to be a lot of fun on a night out

Though, from now on, I think I might be tempted to call it a Gash Bash"

If I got a message asking if I fancied a gash bash I'd think I'd been invited to a gang bang!!
😮😂😂

I’ve just been invited on a weekend away with some good mates at it’s out girlie weekend away. For context, we’re between 27-37 and all married. So what, it’s all good fun? Going to get hammered without the blokes, have a spa day and go glamping. My idea of heaven.

In one group we do need to say it's women only because one partner will try to go. In fact he did manage to show up at the door one time, just passing by...

No sausages!

Among my friends we say Girls Night Out. We know we are not girls; it's a turn of phrase and none of us need to validate ourselves as women among ourselves.

Even in a professional environment we've used girls, and again there is no question of us being anything but women. e.g. at a conference three of us, all pretty senior, were having some time out drinking gin by the pool and sent a message to the rest of the group (men and women) saying something like "Girls Pool Party".

I will of course speak up if women are referred to as girls inappropriately.