Clothing/Attire
Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th-century American West. Western wear ranges from accurate historical reproductions of pioneer, mountain man, to Civil War attire. The most elaborate western wear is the custom work created by rodeo tailors such as Nudie Cohn, which is characterized by elaborate embroidery and rhinestone decoration. (See also Nudie Suit.) This type of western wear, popularized by country music performers, is the origin of the phrase "rhinestone cowboy."
A lot of people have a false image of what the cowboys of the Old West actually wore when doing their job. When most people think of a cowboy in the times of million-acre open range ranches, they think of a cowboy with twin six-shooters in their holster, and looking like Buffalo Bill. Actually, Their clothing didn't look sophisticated; rather, they simply wanted clothing that could stand up to the rigors of the Western Plains. Cowboys focused on wearing appropriate clothing just to survive with out injury or even death. Some of these articles of clothing included:
-Chaps
-Boots
-Gloves
-Cowboy Hat
-Ponchos
-Spurs
In the 1800s, cowboys and other manual laborers wore what was called "ready-to-wear" -- second-hand clothing that had been discarded by the higher classes. With few exceptions (such as military uniforms), new clothing was not mass produced back then. If you wanted an outfit, you went to a tailor, who measured you and custom-made the shirt, suit, trousers, coat, or artical of clothing you needed. If you out-grew of your clothing or just got tired of them, you might sell them to a second-hand (or ready-to-wear) store where they would be bought by folks who needed inexpensive clothes for work.
Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th-century American West. Western wear ranges from accurate historical reproductions of pioneer, mountain man, to Civil War attire. The most elaborate western wear is the custom work created by rodeo tailors such as Nudie Cohn, which is characterized by elaborate embroidery and rhinestone decoration. (See also Nudie Suit.) This type of western wear, popularized by country music performers, is the origin of the phrase "rhinestone cowboy."
A lot of people have a false image of what the cowboys of the Old West actually wore when doing their job. When most people think of a cowboy in the times of million-acre open range ranches, they think of a cowboy with twin six-shooters in their holster, and looking like Buffalo Bill. Actually, Their clothing didn't look sophisticated; rather, they simply wanted clothing that could stand up to the rigors of the Western Plains. Cowboys focused on wearing appropriate clothing just to survive with out injury or even death. Some of these articles of clothing included:
-Chaps
-Boots
-Gloves
-Cowboy Hat
-Ponchos
-Spurs
In the 1800s, cowboys and other manual laborers wore what was called "ready-to-wear" -- second-hand clothing that had been discarded by the higher classes. With few exceptions (such as military uniforms), new clothing was not mass produced back then. If you wanted an outfit, you went to a tailor, who measured you and custom-made the shirt, suit, trousers, coat, or artical of clothing you needed. If you out-grew of your clothing or just got tired of them, you might sell them to a second-hand (or ready-to-wear) store where they would be bought by folks who needed inexpensive clothes for work.