Crop Tops for Men

There was recently a video released, where men tried on crop tops to discover new items and try on things they would never dare to.

At first, it seemed something made in good fun. If you’re a guy and put on a crop top and still maintain your dignity, you probably have too much self-esteem. But then, the video was actually serious with men wearing crop tops.

It was all about being confident in showing off your stomach. There’s a positive message in that; in the sense that yes, men, and women alike should feel comfortable with their bodies. But there’s a huge leap from being comfortable with your body by accepting it and working towards better results and thinking a crop top looks good.

If you are an average man and sport a bit of a stomach, you should definitely feel OK with it; you shouldn’t beat yourself up, just as women shouldn’t beat themselves up over not looking like a supermodel. But first of all, the way to do it is not by wearing a crop top.

Crop tops on men simply look bad. There’s just something about their proportion, style and overall concept that doesn’t work. They don’t even look great on women either. Crop tops look best on 13 year old girls having fun at a beach somewhere. Crop tops are designed for girls who are not ready to deal with their chests, but who still want to let their mid-section breathe and be touched by the sun.

There is no practical reason as to why an adult man would wear a crop top. From a strictly practical point of view, there is not much reason why you would want to cover your chest, but showcase your stomach, it doesn’t make much sense in general. There might be some particular cases though. From an aesthetic point of view, it doesn’t work as well. It doesn’t work if you have an hourglass figure, it doesn’t work if you have washboard abs and it doesn’t work if you have a bit of a larger stomach. The cut and proportions of a crop top don’t really go with the human adult body.

At the beginning of the article, we were mentioning how wearing a crop top was meant to make men feel more comfortable with their looks. Yes, it can be argued that if you can wear a crop top, you can probably feel more confident in anything. However, that’s not necessarily the best way to go. Wearing something that makes you look bad and convincing yourself that it looks good is not a very rational and lasting way of creating empowerment for yourself. Also, should you really have body-related issues; you should mend them (e.g. losing weight if you are extremely obese) or learn how to work with them if they are not mendable (if you have uncommon proportions).

To conclude, it needs to be pointed out that if you want to have a good clothing-self experience, you need to be self-aware and not to ignore the truth. Only this way, you will be able to know what should be done for you to be a better man.

Fraquoh and Franchomme

Further reading:

The gap in the body positive movement

Discussions on Body Dysmorphic Disorder

What does Abercrombie’s image shift mean?

The two sides of a coin: Men’s body image considerations

P.S. We want to hear from you! What do you think of crop tops for men? If you enjoy them, why do you enjoy them? Do you think it’s empowering for a man to wear a crop top? Share your feedback, questions or thoughts in the comments below! For more articles on style, fashion tips and cultural insights, you can subscribe to Attire Club via e-mail or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram!