Suspender Shorts: France


Figure 1.--Short pants held up with attached suspenders crossing at the back were a popular style for little boys. Note the large buttons in contrasting countries. This family snapshotlooks to have been taken in the 1960s.

Suspender shorts seem to have been especially popular in France, perhaps more so than any other country. We do not have a complete chronology of suspender shorts, but they appear to have been widely worn by French boys from the 1930s through the 1960s, but were perhaps most common in the 1950. We have not yet noted comments from our French contributors on sespender shorts, so do not yet have any details on this style. Boys appear to have worn suspender shorts for both play an dress occasions. The most common type was parallel in front and crossing in back. We do not know of any destinctive features of French suspender shorts. As in other countries, they were mostly worn by younger boys although age trends have varied somewhat over time. A French reader tells that both suspender and bib-front shorts were commonly worn by younger boys. Suspender shorts in the 1950s could be worn by boys up to about 12 years of age. After the 1950s the age range declined. Suspender shorts have not disappeared in France, but are now worn only by very young boys. The suspenders were sewn in the back and buttoning at the front. The buttoning could be inside or outside the waist of the pants. The most commun was outside buttoning. Suspender shorts were mostly made without flies and were commonly cut quite short. I'm not positive why this was, but as many mothers sewed childrens clothing, the patterns without flys were popular because they were easier to make. Generally through sizes 8-10 years the pants rarely had a flies.

Popularity

Suspender shorts seem to have been especially popular in France, perhaps more so than any other country.

Chronology

We do not have a complete chronology of suspender shorts, but they appear to have been widely worn by French boys from the 1930s through the 1960s, but were perhaps most common in the 1940s and 50s. A HBC reader reports, "I've noted several examples of French or French North African boys in suspender shorts, as late as 1961 and as old as the class "cm2". That's equivalent to American 5th grade, although French school classes have a wider age range. The boys in suspender shorts were among the smaller boys in their classes, so I think that by that time they weren't made for boys above the age of nine or ten. The HBC story of Shawn on the French ocean liner with his grandmother is plausible, as the the suspender shorts that she bought him were what the eBayers call "new old-stock" and would have been manufactured at a time when such shorts might be worn by a boy who was almost twelve. Even so, to the people in France in 1963 he may have looked slightly old for such shorts."

Limited Information

We have not yet noted comments from our French contributors on sespender shorts, so do not yet have any details on this style.

Conventions

Boys appear to have worn suspender shorts for both play and dress occasions.

Types

The most common type was parallel in front and crossing in back.

Destinctive Feature

We do not know of any destinctive features of French suspender shorts.

Age Trends

As in other countries, they were mostly worn by younger boys although age trends have varied somewhat over time. A French reader tells that both suspender and bib-front shorts were commonly worn by younger boys. Suspender shorts in the 1950s could be worn by boys up to about 12 years of age, but thery were more common for younger boys. . We notice advertisements from Le Redoute in 1959 for suspender shorts for boys 2-6 years of age. After the 1950s the age range declined. Suspender shorts have not disappeared in France, but are now worn only by very young boys.

Construction

The suspenders were sewn in the back and buttoning at the front. The buttoning could be inside or outside the waist of the pants. The most commun was outside buttoning. Suspender horts were mostly made without flies and were commonly cut quite short. I'm not positive why this was, but as many mothers sewed childrens clothing, the patterns without flys were popular because they were easier to make. Generally through sizes 8-10 years the pants rarely had a flies.

Personal Experiences

American boy a trip to Europe in the 1960s







HBC






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Created: December 9, 2001
Last updated: December 29, 2003