Degendered underwear - or just gendered underwear for those not same sex/gender 🤔

[EachDubh]

www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/may/08/urbody-gender-free-underwear-fashion-industry

I may be reading this wrong, I was expecting some new style that suited all but extreams, however uf I have read it right it's the same old gendered fashion for those who feel different from their sex with added bits to help replace those you don't have.
I may have missed the point but gender free to me doesn't mean breast packs for those without or genital pouches. It means walking into a shop and the same piece of clothing being available in all shapes and sizes for all people. Maybe I am being overly simplistic though.

To be fair paxman was moaning about the quality of men’s pants too

@MissBarbary

I thought it was going to be about Oddballs who sell underpants that are the same for both men and women. They look really comfy

They sell underwear in the same patterns for men and women- not the same style. The men's versions clearly have extra material for male genitals.

I remember that now I look at it again. I’d got confused.

I don’t want or need non-gendered clothing. I need clothing that fits my female body, that goes over my breasts and hips and doesn’t bag at the waist, and isn’t too long in the arms and legs.

Bog standard M&S cotton pants do me fine, although I have stopped shopping there since the whole changing room thing. Have also made my own but sewing elastic is super fiddly.

they might as well call them transpants

Quite a snappy name, it might catch on. Otherwise the concept is as bonkers as just about everything else to do with this fad.

@justawoman

They suit me down to the ground though. We’re all different.

We are but I can cartwheel into a forward split and land with nothing in my bum crack that didn't grow there, if my underwear has a decent inseam. I can't walk the 1.5km from my house to the city centre without repeatedly having to readjust myself in a pair of knickers or women's shorts. Though I didn't really notice how often I had to do that all my life until I stopped having to.

The thing is men get a choice. They have a whole range of underpants from briefs to figure hugging shorts with 2-3 inch inseams to baggy boxers and everything in between. Women's options do not include inseams unless they are some form of Spanx. We do get thongs though.

They're confused. Either they are only appealing to people who don't want to conform to binary genders and have a particular body shape or they don't really get that non gendered clothes would need to be sexed too. So non gendered shirts for female size d boobs and for male or flat chested females. So several variations of the same design for different body shapes reflecting sexes.

They state that their bralettes are only for people up to size C. So it's pretty niche.

I don't mind what they do, it's their business but their mission of non gendered clothes for all only works if it is also sexed.

@HildegardNightingale

We have ‘unisex’ scrubs to wear at work. But they’re not. They’re designed for men and I found them really uncomfortable to wear especially the trousers. I work 8am-8pm and need to be comfortable. So I ended up buying my own scrubs to wear.

We also had 'unisex' scrubs. They didn't fit any of the women working in the department. Too tight on the thighs and hips, builder's crack when bending forward.

I've never liked shorts-type pants either. My thighs are not overly chunky but the material rides up into the natural crease at the top of my thigh. I'd rather my knickers crack creep than thigh bunch.

The final nail that made me gave up was finding I had to gather the material up when trying to get a washable pad's poppers to join.

I started sizing up with knickers after I got a few pairs suffering elastic roll. Buying cotton with lycra helps keep a close fit to stop any unwanted riding up along with the sizing up to stop the elastic rolling.

I have several pairs of M&S knickers from a decade ago that could have been made for me. I've since bought the 'same' packs but found the gusset cut too slim to fit pads and the elastic coming unstitched in several pairs. On a day that I can't cope with any disappointments in the knicker department I pull out an old pair.

M&S is really starting to piss me off. They need to start reading their customers' reviews and acting on them. I've bought online only over the last year but won't try on in store any more. It'll cost them more opening their changing rooms to men in the long run as I'm not the only woman reluctant to try in store with their new policies.

But that's another story.