French cuffs are longer cuffs on men’s dress shirts that are folded back over the wrist and secured by cufflinks. They were developed in the 19th century and associated with wealthier people. They are still popular today and can be worn with business suits or tuxedos. Women’s shirts may also have French cuffs, attached with buttons or sewn on. Monkey cuffs are an alternative to cufflinks in Europe.
French cuffs refer to the cuffs on a man’s dress shirt that are longer and folded back over the wrist. Instead of being secured by buttons, the cuff is secured by cufflinks and gives it a classy look. French cuffs were first developed in the 19th century and became connected with wealthier people. Until that time, most shirts made on the market were sewn in one size and usually featured one row of buttons, so people could set the cuff to the proper length and fold in any additional length. The desire for dressier cufflinks that would be attached to the shirt, and a more fitted shirt led to this style of cuff, probably first worn by those who could afford cufflinks.
French handcuffs grew in popularity and never went out of style. They are now most commonly worn with business suits or three-piece suits, and with tuxedos. The popular style of wearing “bling” or statement jewelry is made more subtle by wearing shirts with French cuffs that are attached with diamond or other gemstone cufflinks. In fact, you can really make an individual fashion statement with your choice of cufflinks, which can range from the very quiet to the extremely flashy.
In Europe, some men choose not to wear cufflinks with their French wives, instead wearing what are called monkey cuffs. These are usually made of a thin silken cord that is tied to produce a flat round knot at the top of the bracelet. In the United States, twins are generally preferred.
Women’s shirts may also have French cuffs, although they are usually attached with a button rather than cufflinks. One style of women’s shirt that became popular in the 2000s was the ¾-length sleeve with French cuffs. Instead of featuring an attachment at the bottom of the sleeve, sleeves are generally not clamped. Alternatively, since the 1950s, a variant of French cuffs have been worn by women on shirts where the cuffs are sewn on. These cuffs do not need to be folded back as they are already attached to the shirt. They evoke men’s dressing style, without the fuss of extra folding and the need for cufflinks.
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