# What are bathrobes for? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 18, 2004, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859 "2004-05-18T23:05:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![35340](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/8baadc/32.png) [@35340](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/35340)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/41 "2004-05-20T00:52:56Z")
when I was a kid, it was to keep me warm on the treck from the bathroom to my room. Now (i have a zip-front “spa” one) it’s kept by the living room door in case of a knock at the door. Or as something to wear while I feed the kid before I dress for the office. Was also very handy on vacation in the galapagos shuffling around waiting for my suit to dry on my body. No towel to drop. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/42 "2004-05-20T01:37:35Z")
People have also told me, from first-hand experience, that when you sleep in the nude or in your underwear, a bathrobe is a wonderful thing to have handy when you wake up and find your house on fire and there’s no time to get dressed. For me, there’s the privacy issue, because I live with people who don’t want to see me naked and whom I don’t want to see me naked. And in the cold part of the year, I’ll get out of the shower and quickly put on my robe, then walk back to my bedroom and finish drying off where it’s warmer. ---
**Author:** ![emekthian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecae2f/32.png) [@emekthian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emekthian)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/43 "2004-05-20T02:01:48Z")
> [@](#): > > My boyfriend’s flatmates don’t want to see me naked as I go from the bathroom to his bedroom. They’re either gay or lying. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/44 "2004-05-20T13:02:34Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Ten bucks says they’re liars. > [@emekthian](#): > > They’re either gay or lying. Lol. Well I never actually asked them “Hey guys! So erm, you wanna see me naked as I go from the shower to the bedroom?” I just kind of assumed they didn’t. And if they did, well _I_ don’t want them to see! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/45 "2004-05-20T13:45:12Z")
This seems so strange to me. I’d give up almost any garment I owned before I’d surrender my bathrobe! And I live alone, except for my dog, who really doesn’t care if she sees me naked, and besides, she’s female. I run chilly, and until the house is at least 80 or so (Farenheit, sorry non-Yankees! - er, about 26 Celsius), I want a robe to keep warm when I’m sitting down quietly (which is mostly what I do when I’m not working - reading). The actual temperature and what I’m wearing under the robe dictate the weight of the robe - I have several, ranging from heavy fleece or terry cloth down to light weight sweater stuff. Robes provide warmth, coverage for modesty purposes (if needed), are non-constricting and extremely comfortable, and, if they’re any good, they have one thing that naked bodies do not - pockets. Sure, I could wear regular clothes, and I often do under the robe. But in winter, I do a lot of bundling up to keep warm (remember, I’m not moving around when I read - it makes a BIG difference in how warm you feel). In summer I usually end up with a long teeshirt or mens’ dress-shirt over underwear. So you’ll take my bathrobe when you pry it off my cold dead body! ---
**Author:** ![Medea\_s\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Medea\_s\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Medea_s_Child)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/46 "2004-05-20T19:33:42Z")
I didn’t think about a bathrobe until I came to college. then I realised that I didn’t like clothes. (I never liked clothes, actually. I was just more comfortable with prancing naked or nearly so the two feet from the bathroom to my room at home than I was with doing the same for the 20 feet in the dorms.) So I got a bathrobe. And I have been living in roomate situations since then, but I do like it, as it makes being naked easier than real clothes. I step from shower, whirl bathrobe on, letting it soak up water from drenching hair, prance to room, throw bathrobe off and air dry the rest of the way. Its a big comfy towel, essentially. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/47 "2004-05-21T00:52:27Z")
> [@AvhHines](#): > > I run chilly, and until the house is at least 80 or so (Farenheit, sorry non-Yankees! - er, about 26 Celsius) Isn’t that until July or so most years? :eek: Not this one, but it’s been really warm for the northeast this spring. ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/48 "2004-05-21T00:58:31Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Isn’t that until July or so most years? :eek: Not this one, but it’s been really warm for the northeast this spring. Shhh. Don’t jinx it. I can’t remember the last time I didn’t need to run my heat in May! ---
**Author:** ![beergeek279](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@beergeek279](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beergeek279)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/49 "2004-05-21T05:41:28Z")
Simple…so Hef doesn’t have to go to work naked 😛 (I haven’t worn a bathrobe, even when I took one to college…but it would be the epitome of cool to wear one to work!) ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/50 "2004-05-21T06:01:17Z")
Okay, answer me this… what is the purpose of pockets on bathrobes? ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/51 "2004-05-21T10:39:01Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > Okay, answer me this… what is the purpose of pockets on bathrobes? It’s a place to put the cell phone while I’m walking about the house chatting on the phone. (I use an earpiece) It’s a place to put the cordless phone while I’m doing chores but expecting a call. It’s a place for (non-snotty) tissues when I am bundled up on the couch and just need a couple of tissues. Snotty ones immediately go into the trash can I put next to the couch. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/52 "2004-05-21T12:15:52Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > Okay, answer me this… what is the purpose of pockets on bathrobes? I put my watch in there while I’m in the shower. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/53 "2004-05-21T21:11:02Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > If I get dressed immediately, instead of using a robe, my clothes inevitably get wet, and being cloth, they tend to stay wet for a good long time. Hmmm, I have the same problem and I don’t even have long hair. Perhaps I should try a bathrobe instead of going around in wet clothes… ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/54 "2004-05-21T21:30:47Z")
Yeah, you might even try a towel. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/55 "2004-05-22T02:36:24Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > Okay, answer me this… what is the purpose of pockets on bathrobes? The only use I’ve ever found for it is to stick an unused disposable razor in it. I tend to forget that I wanted one until after I’ve gotten undressed, so it helps a little if I manage to remember I wanted one the next time I shower. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/56 "2004-05-22T16:51:29Z")
> [@PookahMacPhellimey](#): > > Yes, it is. Well, according to some. For instance me. I’d love to find a guy who’d walk around his house in an outrageous, sumptiously embroidered dressing gown. Well, mine’s not embroidered, but it is sumptuous. It’s blue, it’s thick, it’s warm, it’s cool. ---
**Author:** ![leafrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/cab0a1/32.png) [@leafrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leafrog)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/57 "2004-05-23T04:49:59Z")
I have two bathrobes, a thick terry one (in bright red) for the colder weather, and a light cotton one (actually a yukata from Japan) for warmer weather. I love to wear them after a shower. I generally get dressed last thing before I walk out the door in the morning. This saves me from embarassing breakfast and toothpaste spills on the blouse. And the dangly ties are good for your cat to play with. ---
**Author:** ![tsarina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@tsarina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsarina)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859/58 "2004-05-23T12:29:27Z")
Huh, I must be the only person who uses a bathrobe in lieu of a towel. I leave mine balled up on the toilet so that when I get out of the shower, I can just grab it, put it on, and use it to stay warm while I dry off (it’s made of fluffy terrycloth and does the same job a towel would do). After it soaks up a good deal of the water, I hang it on a hook to dry and use it the next day. I started using one in college when I lived on a floor with a communal bathroom, and now I feel naked if I can only use a towel! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-bathrobes-for/245859.md?page=2)