The hot weather is starting where I live. I noticed exposed skin of all kind. I’m not much of a prude, but I was wondering why. Exposed skin in the heat leads to sun burn and can lead to wrinkles. In extreme cases even skin cancer. I’ve noticed in many eastern cultures, they were light clothes that cover all the skin and protects them from the heat. I have to say, in the summer, I feel cooler in light clothing rather than normal materials with skin exposed. I actually like my skin exposed most in fall/spring weather/heat. So, why is such clothing dominate in the west in the summer? It seems impractical.
Are you serious? Are you looking for anecdotes about summer clothing? I don’t see what the point of your question is.
Westerners aren’t going to switch over to caftans or black or white wool robes like Bedouins wear (wore?) any time soon. The only reason I would wear long sleeves and long pants in summer is to protect against ticks walking out in the fields.
All the serious desert rats I see out in Canyonlands wear long sleeves, pants, hats and sunglasses.
I don’t see a practical reason for this type of clothing in warm weather. The options I’ve listened aren’t limited to just robes and caftans.
Because it’s sexy.
Even in western cultures it used to be important for upper class women especially to have fair white skin. That set them apart from the lower class women who had to work in the sun.
The culture changed after WWI, although some signs of change were visible earlier. The long, obscuring dresses vanished along with corsets. The light frocks that ended below the knee that we associate with “flappers” were worn by most young women. Bathing suits used to require tights and those disappeared as well. Having the leisure to go out in the sun for fun and games was a mark of wealth and the lower classes now worked inside in factories or stores. Having a tan was a class distinction.
Tans stayed in vogue ever since. It’s only the past few years that skin cancer became a national issue. And that seems to be having a backlash as more people are opting for darker skin, although I don’t know how much of that is sun and much is due to tanning salons.
Tanned exposed flesh has been a mark of class and wealth for almost 100 years. That will be hard to change. Especially since stockings have almost vanished as a woman’s accessory, meaning that legs have to look good bare and a tan covers many slight flaws.
And a personal note: in my experience anyone who says “I’m not a prude” is a huge prude.
This. I’ve spent a good portion of my life in the Idaho/Oregon desert country, mostly working outdoors, and have certainly learned the value of long sleeves, pants and hat (although I usually don’t bother with sunglasses). Most of the people I know who spend a lot of time out of doors do the same…farmers, ranchers, construction workers, and especially the largely hispanic labor crews that work the large farms. It doesn’t seem quite so important in more humid climates, even in hot regions, but the desert sun can be fierce even if you’re used to it. A good cover of lightweight loose-fitting material actually shades the skin and aids the body’s natural cooling function. Of course, this does give the typical “farmer’s tan”…brown face with a white hat-band across the forehead, brown hands & wrists, white torso & legs. But what the heck, I never looked all that good in the buff anyway.
Thing is, the average middle-class westerner hardly ever spends much time outdoors. They scamper from their air-conditioned offices to their air-conditioned car, roll up all the windows and drive to their air-conditioned house. Then if they feel adventurous they slip into trunks and lay out sunbathing in the yard for an hour and think they look really tanned and fit. Or worse yet, dispense with all that uncomfortable stuff and visit the tanning salon.
I use bronzer spray-on.
Especially when followed by “but.”
Some of the bareness is due to the tanning fashion. Having a tan became fashionable among people in northern latitudes, because it implied that they had the money to travel to sunny countries. Today, anyone can do that for the price of a few beers, so it’s no longer exclusive.
I suspect that the fashion for bareness will change as people become more conscious that skin cancer kills you, and tanning also damges your skin. We may see a reverse to the old norm, that white skin becomes fashionable again. Only people who are forced to work outdoors will have tanned skin - just as it was in the past.
Some interesting points hidden in this.
Europeans today no doubt see the Mediterranean as a convenient getaway, but I’m pretty sure that only a small percentage did so after WWI. I’m not really familiar when the British seaside resort industry sprang up but my hunch is that it started reaching the working classes long before they had the money to go to Spain.
The U.S. equivalents were along the Atlantic Ocean, places like the Jersey Shore. Florida attracted a wealthier clientele because of the distance (at least 75% of the country lived in the Northeast or along the Great lakes) but a growing number of the middle class went there as well.
But outdoors and tanning weren’t at all limited to beaches. That was the era when golf and tennis (and badminton and croquet and a bunch of other outdoor sports) jumped in popularity. You didn’t need to travel to enjoy the outdoors. You could hop in your car or use the streetcar and trolley systems to get to giant public recreation outlets. Cities and states starting putting huge amounts of money into parks, playgrounds, recreation centers, pools, and other amenities.
Light clothing meant that it wasn’t a sweating horror to play in the sun. Outdoor recreation was enjoyable for the first time.The two emerge almost simultaneously in the 1920s and I’m sure that’s not a coincidence.
Why? Because we can. People wearing head-to-toe light clothes in hot weather are those who a]have few other options to avoid burning (ie desert-dwellers who are forced to spend their days in direct sunlight) and b]social mores prohibit skin exposure. Robes/loose linen clothes etc are also much more common in countries with dry heat, as opposed to humid tropics.
I feel like I’m dying when there is fabric (I don’t care if it’s linen) near my skin and it’s hot out, here in humid PA. Since I don’t live/work in a desert I am able to wear little clothing and prevent sunburn by avoiding direct sunlight or judicious use of sunscreen.
Ever hear of sunblock? It’s this cool product you put on exposed skin and it prevents sunburn, which does lead to wrinkles, etc. You wear sunblock on your exposed skin, then put on as little clothing as you want to stay cool. :dubious:
Dry desert heat calls for more coverage of skin, to preserve moisture and prevent severe dehydration. That’s why desert living people (who don’t live in air conditioned houses) wear the full caftan type gear.
Humid tropical heat calls for less coverage to encourage evaporation, or you just end up soaked in your own sweat. It’s more comfortable for most people to just wear less, and if they prefer full coverage, clothing the weight of gauze or linen is usually best.
The full length caftan or whatever you call it, traditionally worn by Arab men and seen in movies like Lawrence Of Arabia, is surprisingly comfortable in warm desert conditions. Whatever material it’s made of protects you from the heat without trapping heat between you and it. Same thing for the kaffiyehs they wear on their heads.
That said, I prefer wearing less clothing when it’s hot out.
I don’t think having your skin exposed to the hot sun will make you feel cool, even with lotion. That’s like saying sticking your hand in a fire will make it burn less.
Well I’m not a prude at all (seriously - in my younger days I went topless on a regular basis) and I actually prefer loose linen trousers with a light top when it’s very hot because I do find it cooler. I’m very fair and prone to burn and the sun on exposed skin kind of hurts.
I think freedom has a lot to do with it. It doesn’t get especially cold where I am but we’re heading into winter now. I know that in a few months, after getting around in long sleeves, jumpers, coats and scarves, it’s liberating to be able to put all the layers aside and wear short sleeves and skirts.
I really think it depends on the humidity. Wearing a bunch of clothing when the humidity is at 70% is not a good option. You are sweaty and it sticks to the skin and is very uncomfortable. Wearing less in humidity is cooler because you will be damp, and evaporation cools you. It’s especially better if there is a breeze.
I’m also not a prude, and I think it has to do with humidity. The native clothing of many humid African and South American lands is even skimpier than Miami Beach during Spring Break.