Oh, Fashion.

Alright girls (and guys), let's talk about fashion.  You know, there's a lot of trends and a lot of fads that come and go.  To some extent, we're all limited by the clothes and styles that are available in the stores at any given time.  That being said, the fashion world is not exactly working to give us clothes that make concealment easy.  In a world where your figure needs to be displayed under skin-tight shirts, and no one actually uses pockets, it can seem like carrying and being stylish don't go together.

Style is all about the right accessories... even the ones you conceal!

Especially women's clothing, yikes.  I recently read an article called "The 7 Most Baffling Things About Women's Clothes."  (FYI, crude humor and language.)  And what do you know, most of the things that baffled that author can also present quite a conundrum for us gals who need to pack a little heat along with our other accessories, too!

For one thing, the article points out, lots of women's clothing is made out of material that is way too thin.  Whether clothing designers do this because they think it looks good, or because they want you to buy more layers, it definitely causes a problem for concealing a gun.  The most obvious problem is the possibility of seeing a black gun through a thin shirt.  Plus, if we're talking thin and tighter, that fabric is going to form itself nicely around your gun, showing off its outline.

Thus, layering!  That author thinks the layering trend is a conspiracy, meant to make us spend more money on more layers.  Which is a definite possibility.  But, layering is also really useful for carrying.  An extra layer adds structure and opacity, and is a super simple way to obscure anything you're wanting to hide.  You'd be amazed at the power of a simple tank top to completely smooth out any gun's outline under a thinner blouse.

You know what I don't get?  Pockets.  And neither does the aforementioned author.  As she points out, lots of women's pieces have ridiculously small pockets, or even fake pockets!

"Sure, there will be unsightly bulges if they put too much in their pockets, but the solution isn't to take them away -- the solution is to trust women to have the common sense to not put a bag of rocks in their pocket. These pockets are just fine for carrying a key or some cash or credit cards, and it's stupid to not give anyone that option because some idiot might try to put, I don't know, night-vision goggles or a piece of cake in their pocket."

... Or a gun.  Actually, the right gun in the right pocket holster can totally be hidden in a pocket, just not any pocket I've ever seen on women's jeans.  Okay, so pockets are not the most essential thing for concealed carry, but it'd be a nice option to have!  Anyone out there in clothing manufacturing who can tell me why we're not allowed to have decent sized pockets in our jeans?

Anyways, the article goes on to discuss the problems of women's clothing showing more skin than men's, how hard it is to find a decent t-shirt, and the lack of "normal" casual clothes.  As annoying as it is, I'm probably not going to start making my own clothes anytime soon, so I have to work with what I've got.

Layering with a tank top is probably my favorite concealment solution, along with wearing cute cardigans and jackets.  Do you have any favorite strategies for making it work?

One last thing, I've learned through trial and error that it is actually much easier to conceal in a lot of "typical" women's clothes than I would have thought.  When you haven't tried it, an inch or two of firearm seems like a lot to hide!  But it's amazing what you can do once you get to know the clothes and the curves you've got!