outfitting-the-westRound these parts the question often arises, “What’s the difference between a cowboy and a cowgirl?” The answer is simple: a cowgirl can do everything a cowboy can, she just looks better doing it.

Coming or going, women look great in Western wear, whether it’s jeans and a shirt tucked in behind a great belt, or boots, a short flirty skirt and a midriff-baring top. Know the secret: within every woman rests a world of possibility. How we dress depends a lot on the situation and who we’re with. What we want are choices. Author Faith Popcorn wrote in her business best-seller, Evolution—The Eight Truths of Marketing to Women, that women have many lives. Retailers who target only one are missing sales.

So what do Western wear designers know that we don’t?

Award-winning designer Pat Dahnke of Texas knows that women of any age want to feel beautiful and look romantic.

Pate Stetson of Women of the Wild West takes her line from retro rodeo-queens to versatile crossover pieces inspired by the Western tradition. Whether women wear leather skirts trimmed with swinging fringes or silk shirts in tailored profiles, she believes they want quality and great details. What else is new?

Sherry Holt breaks hearts with her “honky-tonk chick” sex appeal, flirty prints and alternate lengths showing lots of leg and a great swing, plus lighter fabrics and revealing shapes. Always a cowboy’s dream.

Double D layers women in history. Its classic Spanish, Indian and American West motifs are often embroidered, studded with silver or trimmed in fur. Practically heirlooms.

Women love Western wear—guess why!


C.J. Brown

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