Figure 1.--This boy wears a red and white snake belt. Note the S-shaped class which was the origin of the term smake belt. |
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We notice different kinds of suspension devices for school pants. They were essentially the same as used for regular pants. British boys before World War II still commonly wore suspenders. This disappeared after the War. Boys wore different kinds of belts. Thus trousers were made with belt loops at least tghe fully tailored pants for older boys. This was common for long pants and shorts for older boys. One of the most destinctive was snake belts, commonly done in the school colors. Other boys wore leather or imitation leather belts. Some schools specified a belt color, either brown or black. Some shorts were made with suspension devices. Shorts for younger boys might have elastic at the back of the waistline. We are not sure to what size the shorts with half-elasticized backs were made, we think up to about 10 or 11 years. We notice some manufacturers just doing this for younger sizes. We think thast this was only done for shorts. Some manufacturwrs only made these elasticized shorts for younger boys up to about age 7-8 years. These were not very common in the prep schools. A 4 inch stretch was common. The elasticized waist allows it to grip as well as expand without bagging, this helps boys with slender wausts to still look smart. Other shorts had tabs which could be tightened. These were worn without belts. This seems to have been a popular appraoch in the 1960s and 70s,but less common in the 80s. lot of information on this topic. Perhaps our British readers will know more.
British boys before World War II still commonly wore suspenders or braces as they are called in Britain. This required buttons on the trousers. As far as weknow, the snap on suspenders were not worn at British schools. We do not know if this was just for long trousers. We think mit may have been for shorts as well. This disappeared after the War. We about the oprecise time line, but they were long gone by the 1980s.
British boys wore different kinds of belts with school pants. We are not sure when belts first appeared, but they gradually replaced suspenders. Belts were standard by the 1950s. As the boys were required to keep their shirts neatly tucked in at the waists, the issue of belts emerged. Thus trousers began to be made with belt loops at least the fully tailored pants for older boys. This was common for long pants and shorts for older boys. One of the most destinctive was snake belts. The snake referred to the S-shaped class which was the origin of the term smake belt. This type of closures was adopted from military belts. They could be quite colorful. They were commonly done done in the school colors. Other boys wore leather or imitation leather belts. Some schools specified a belt color, either brown or black. Some schools may have had standardized belts at the outfitters. We believe most schools allowed boys to wear any basic belt as long as it did not stand out for a variety of reasons such was a large belt buckle. As far as we can tell, this was not a major problem. Belts also helped keep shirts neatly tucked in waistlines. Belts were more effective than the other alternatives like elasticized waists and tab arrangements.
Some shorts were made with suspension devices. Shorts for younger boys might have elastic at the back of the waistline. We are not sure to what size the shorts with half-elasticized backs were made, we think up to about 10 or 11 years. We notice some manufacturers just doing this for younger sizes. We think thast this was only done for shorts. Some manufacturwrs only made these elasticized shorts for younger boys up to about age 7-8 years. These were not very common in the prep schools. A 4 inch stretch was common. The elasticized waist allows it to grip as well as expand without bagging, this helps boys with slender wausts to still look smart.
Other shorts had tabs which could be tightened. These shorts were worn without belts and this did not have bekt loops like standard school pants. We think the tabs were most common with short pants, but some longs may have had them. Here we are not sure. This seems to have been a popular approach in the 1960s and 70s. We think that they were fairly common and sold extensively in the chain stores. They were less common by the 80s.
Elasticized Waists
Tabs
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