In the days before skinny jeans and synthetic materials, when it was fashionable to wear your trousers around your waist not half way down your legs, men relied on braces to keep their trousers up.
This was true whether you were heading to work or playing at Wimbledon. In fact, the imposition of braces in sport is what led to the invention of the DAKS waistband.
In 1934 Alexander Simpson, a keen golfer and the son of a bespoke tailor, grew tired of his braces impeding his golf swing. By introducing an adjustable waistband that eliminated the need for braces, he patented the world's first self-supporting trousers. He was so confident in his invention that despite charging 3 times the market rate at the time, he commissioned 100,000 pairs to be made!
A small piece of elastic is hidden inside the waistband of the trouser, attached to a tab of cloth with a buttonhole. It can be fastened to one of a series of buttons on the waistband. Which button, determines how tight they are.
When ordering a pair of custom trousers, one of the first questions we ask our customers is how they want them to stay up. Whilst some people love accessorising with a belt, others find it cumbersome, particularly when wearing a waistcoat (which should always cover your waistband and therefore your belt).
A DAKS waistband is a smart, streamlined way to keep your trousers up without adding any extraneous bulk to your waistline.
How do you keep yours up?
