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A garter is an article of clothing comprising a narrow band of fabric fastened about the leg to keep up stockings. In the eighteenth to twentieth centuries, they were tied just below the knee, where the leg is most slender, to keep the stocking from slipping. The advent of elastomer has made them less necessary from this functional standpoint, although they are still often worn for fashion. Garters have been widely worn by men and women, depending on fashion trends.
Today, the practice of removing the bride's garter is traditionally reserved for the groom, who will then toss the garter to the unmarried male guests. This is performed after the tossing of the bouquet, in which the bride tosses her bouquet over her shoulder to be caught by the unwed female guests. According to superstition, the lady who catches the bouquet and the man who catches the garter will be the next man and woman among those in attendance to be married (though not necessarily to each other).
At least since the mid-2000s, it has become common in US culture for young women attending a high school prom to wear a garter, usually designed to match the style and color of the young woman's dress. The prom garter may be worn throughout the evening and is sometimes given to the young woman's dating as a souvenir. A young woman may also choose to keep the garter rather than give it away, as a token of her prom night.
In some cases, young people may participate in a "garter and tie" dance (often hosted by the high school as part of the prom), during or after which either the young woman herself or the young woman's date removes the garter and exchanges it for the date's tie. The giving or taking of the prom garter may or may not have the same sexual implications that are associated with wedding garters; however, the giving of the prom garter is often interpreted as publicly designating the pair as a romantic couple.
Suspender (garter) belts are usually worn at the waist or just slightly below to prevent the belt from sliding down as it is pulled downward by the stockings. Some undergarments such as or girdles may come with suspender slings attached.
By the late 20th century and into the 21st, pantyhose or tights were more widely worn than stockings. And some stockings, referred to as hold-ups, have a band of silicone rubber molded to the stocking top to keep them up without suspenders. But suspenders continue to be used by people who prefer stockings to tights, and doctors may advise patients with a history of thrush or cystitis to avoid tights; the trapped heat and moisture can exacerbate any infection present.
While most commonly used for regular stockings, suspender belts can also be used for medical support hosiery worn due to varicose veins or poor circulation.
Stockings are often considered to be sensual or erotic, both in person and in photographs, and some people enjoy dressing up for special occasions in attractive suspender belts or basques.
During the world's first long-distance journey by automobile in 1888 Bertha Benz, the wife of automobile inventor Carl Benz, used a garter to insulate a broken wire of the Benz Patent-Motorwagen Nr. 3. In remembrance of the historic road trip, today's official German scenic byway Bertha Benz Memorial Route follows the tracks of Bertha Benz from Mannheim via Heidelberg to Pforzheim (Black Forest) and back. Stockings have also been used as an emergency replacement for a car's fanbelt.
From the 1940s to the 1960s, suspenders became a common, popular alternative to the girdle, especially among teens and young women. Amid concerns girdles might cause abdominal flabbiness, suspender belts offered a more practical and comfortable choice when used to hold up stockings. Then, by the early 1960s, the introduction of pantyhose offered a new alternative to garter belts and girdles. This change in fashion coincided with the female empowerment movement and the sexual revolution.
Since the mid-20th century, men's adult magazines featuring images of women in underwear reached mass-market popularity. These magazines evolved from Pin-up model and often showcased models in suspenders and stockings, usually with slips, petticoats, corsets, or a bra and knickers or panties. Most images have an erotic element and are sometimes presented as fetish fashion and a form of pornography. Like jewelry, the purpose of garters and other lingerie in adult media is as a statement of excess and to draw attention to certain parts of the wearer's body.
After the release of Bull Durham in June 1988, garter belt and stocking sales increased at Victoria's Secret and Frederick's of Hollywood stores. The lingerie retailers attributed the jump in sales to the black lace garter Susan Sarandon wore in the film. Other films that year, like Dangerous Liaisons and Working Girl, also fueled the intimate apparel industry.
Variations of the suspender or garter belt include panties with suspender attachments reminiscent of images of the 1960s and corsets or girdles with small loops inside the bottom edge for attaching suspenders. Knickers are normally worn on top of the suspender belt as this makes it easier to remove them to use the lavatory/bathroom. If worn underneath the belt, undressing may be rather complicated if using a public facility.
The origin of the symbol of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, a blue 'garter' with the motto Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense, is not known, as the earliest records of the order were destroyed by fire; however, the story is that at a ball possibly held at Calais, Joan, Countess of Salisbury dropped her garter and King Edward, seeing her embarrassment, picked it up and bound it about his own leg saying in French, "Evil or be he that thinks evil of it." This story is almost certainly a later fiction. This fable appears to have originated in France and may have been invented to discredit the Order.
It is thought more likely that as the garter was a small strap used as a device to attach pieces of armour, it was appropriate to use the garter as a symbol of binding together in common brotherhood, whilst the motto probably refers to the leading political topic of the 1340s, Edward's claim to the throne of France.
The patron saint of the Order is St George, the patron saint of soldiers and also of England, and the chapel of the order is St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. Order of the Garter information
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