From Under Petticoat to Inseam and Out Again

A Brief History of Pockets and Their Not-So-Distant Cousin, The Fanny Pack

Unless you are a hypebeast or streetwear guru, you were probably unimpressed with the return of the infamous 80’s fad, the fanny pack. Some have tried to write it off as simply another moment of nylon wrapped nostalgia, with high fashion companies attempting to push the accessory as a “belt bag”, but in truth fanny packs have been around for ages. 

Though women of today will be shocked by this, pockets too have been in clothing for just as long. How is this possible? The two were once one in the same. The original women’s pocket was a small bag or series of small pouches tied around the waist. Sound familiar? 

The difference however was where these waist attached pockets were located within the ensemble. Unlike the 21st century fanny pack which is often large enough to fit cell phones, wallets, e-cigs, and so on, and fastened on the exterior of the outermost bottom garment, the 18th century pocket bag was worn under layers of skirts and petticoats. This was the style for many decades as it was easy to hide under the bold and wide silhouettes of women’s fashion. Towards the end of the 18th century these pockets buried under layers of skirts and designed to typically hold only a handful of objects began to go out of style. 

One wonders how women wound up with limited, if any, pockets in their clothing, but ample supply of fanny packs on the market. Especially when both ideas have been a clear considerations for centuries. The disconnect occurred when the ideal silhouette of women’s fashion shifted its focus to sleeker, more body conscious looks. From there, early forms of what we call handbags became essential for women. The rest is a history that trails to the modern day where the waist bag, aka fanny pack, is still ever present -- even if women’s pockets are not.