The GMW Concealed Carry Gun Pack. Now available now on Amazon.com. BUY NOW
The GMW IWB magazine holster with built-in neodymium magnets. Now available now on Amazon.com. BUY NOW
I’ve been asked more than four times this week to write on this topic, and after relentless nudging by my beautiful and amazing wife (brownie points!), I’ve relented. Today, we’re going to talk about how to carry a gun while wearing a dress. Full disclosure: I have gathered MOST of my knowledge on how women carry their concealed carry in dresses from my wife. She’s, as you’d imagine, an expert on the topic.
For men, we just strap on our holster and go about our day. For women, however, there’s a lot more that comes into play. Matching shoes, matching colors, types of clothing…the list goes on. In this article, we’re going to tackle specifically how to carry a gun while wearing a dress, the different accessories you can use to do so, and how to create the best discreet concealed carry set up for yourself while wearing a dress/skirt.
Table of Contents
Important factors to take into account while concealed carrying in a dress
How to carry a gun while wearing a dress: 7 different methods
Conclusion
Important factors to take into account while concealed carrying in a dress
On a normal day, my wife dresses in more concealed carry-friendly clothing. This means jeans, a gun belt, t-shirt, etc. In these kinds of outfits, the guesswork is very limited, and is what men like me are used to. Wake up, holster your gun, and get out the door.
However, like many women, some days my wife likes to wear dresses – for going out to eat, get-togethers, etc. While these are very normal occurrences, the thinking that is done in preparation for wearing a dress while concealed carrying is a bit more complex. My wife breaks it down into three categories of things to think about: color coordination, tightness of the dress/skirt, and length of the dress/skirt.
Color coordination
Color coordination plays a very key role in maintaining a high level of discretion while concealed carrying a gun in a dress. For instance, if you are wearing a black belly-band holster underneath a white dress, your gun will print easily (and even more so on hot days when sweat gets involved).
To combat this issue, pick out darker color dresses or dresses with more patterns – doing so helps conceal potential printing.
Tightness of the dress/skirt
As you can imagine, the tightness of your dress/skirt plays a huge role in shaping how you concealed carry in a dress. While there are options for concealed carrying in tighter dresses, for optimal comfort, discretion, and access, many women opt for looser, more flowing dresses to avoid printing.
Another option my wife goes with for tighter dresses is wearing a jean jacket on top to cover up a back holster. Adding layers to cover up any odd bulges greatly aids in concealed carrying while wearing a dress.
Length of the dress/skirt
Depending on the length of your dress, your mode of carry changes. For shorter skirts, your concealed carry methods are restricted to your upper body. For mid-length dresses, you are able to go for thigh holsters. For longer dresses, you are able to wear ankle holsters. In my wife’s case, she likes to wear long, high-waisted dark/patterned dresses (high-waisted for belly holsters, thigh holsters, and/or an ankle holster). The more options, the better.
NOTE: When brainstorming these three factors, be sure that you also factor in being able to quickly access and deploy your concealed carry. Not having to change the way you dress while carrying is VERY important. If wearing dresses is important to you, you shouldn’t have to give up concealed carrying in your dresses.
However, being able to have a practical way to access your firearm is equally as important. Be sure to position your concealed carry beneath your dress in a way that you can access it quickly and easily. Also, be sure to practice drawing your firearm from your mode of carry until you can draw it comfortably. Practice builds habits.
How to carry a gun while wearing a dress: 7 different methods
Ankle Carry
As mentioned earlier, ankle carrying is one option to take with longer dresses. With an ankle holster, your dress will fall over your firearm, which avoids printing while concealing your firearm. This allows you to easily access your gun as well, as all you need to do is to tug at your dress with your weak hand, reach down, and draw your firearm.
Hip-hugger carry
As the name implies, a hip-hugger belt “hugs” the hip area below your belt. With a looser, high-waisted dress and a hip-hugger belt, you are able to position your gun toward the front of your hip area, with the fabric from your dress concealing any potential printing.
This method may or may not work with you – depending on every gun owner’s body, comfort will vary. Also, it isn’t easy to conceal printing with tighter fitting dresses, nor is it always easy to access your firearm from underneath your dress in a time of need.
Abdomen Carry
This concealed carry method has the same issues as using a hip-hugger carry belt, since it makes it slightly difficult to easily access your firearm and might be uncomfortable for some gun owners. To avoid printing with this method, wear a more baggy style of dress to cover up the outline of your gun. Some manufacturers have even added a “sexy” aspect to abdomen carrying via lace corset holsters.
Back carry
With back carrying, you conceal your gun in the small of your back. This definitely prints much less than most of the other carry methods, and can, as mentioned earlier, be obscured even more with a sweater/jacket. However, depending on your flexibility, accessing your gun from a back holster might be difficult.
Thigh carry
We’ve all seen this “sexy” cliche in the movies. While there’s a certain aesthetic appeal to this particular concealed carry method for dress-wearers, there is also great with it. As you can probably imagine, accessing your firearm from a thigh carry holster while wearing a slit dress is quite easy. You can also move your holster to your inner thigh area, for extra discretion.
Bra carry
When I first heard of this concept, it sounded like the epitome of uncomfortable. However, after some explaining, I realized that this concealed carry method is potentially the most discreet way to carry a gun while wearing a dress. Kept underneath your bra, the curve of your chest and the fabric of your dress prevents your gun from printing. Comfort may vary per gun owner, however. Also, with a bra holster, accessing your gun in a hurry is quite difficult.
Under shorts
Gun concealment shorts are more or less compression shorts with a sewn-in holster. As many women already wear similar types of shorts underneath their dresses/skirts, this is not a deviation from normal dressing methods. However, if you are wearing a full dress, this makes accessing your gun very difficult. On the other hand, if you are wearing a skirt and a shirt, you are able to access your gun much more easily with this method. However, printing may become an issue, depending on the size of your gun and the tightness of your dress/skirt.
For a less specialized fix, you can simply wear jean shorts under your dress with a holster. In an emergency situation, you can simply yank up your dress and draw your gun.
Conclusion
When it comes down to it, deciding how to carry a gun while wearing a dress depends on many factors. However, just remember the two most important points: 1) ease of access to your concealed carry and 2) comfort of the set up. Carrying around a gun doesn’t mean you can’t dress the way you want to. Explore all your options!
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How to Carry a Gun While Wearing a Dress: Concealed Carry in a Dress 101
The GMW Concealed Carry Gun Pack. Now available now on Amazon.com.
BUY NOW
BUY NOW
I’ve been asked more than four times this week to write on this topic, and after relentless nudging by my beautiful and amazing wife (brownie points!), I’ve relented. Today, we’re going to talk about how to carry a gun while wearing a dress. Full disclosure: I have gathered MOST of my knowledge on how women carry their concealed carry in dresses from my wife. She’s, as you’d imagine, an expert on the topic.
For men, we just strap on our holster and go about our day. For women, however, there’s a lot more that comes into play. Matching shoes, matching colors, types of clothing…the list goes on. In this article, we’re going to tackle specifically how to carry a gun while wearing a dress, the different accessories you can use to do so, and how to create the best discreet concealed carry set up for yourself while wearing a dress/skirt.
Table of Contents
Important factors to take into account while concealed carrying in a dress
How to carry a gun while wearing a dress: 7 different methods
Conclusion
Important factors to take into account while concealed carrying in a dress
On a normal day, my wife dresses in more concealed carry-friendly clothing. This means jeans, a gun belt, t-shirt, etc. In these kinds of outfits, the guesswork is very limited, and is what men like me are used to. Wake up, holster your gun, and get out the door.
However, like many women, some days my wife likes to wear dresses – for going out to eat, get-togethers, etc. While these are very normal occurrences, the thinking that is done in preparation for wearing a dress while concealed carrying is a bit more complex. My wife breaks it down into three categories of things to think about: color coordination, tightness of the dress/skirt, and length of the dress/skirt.
Color coordination
Color coordination plays a very key role in maintaining a high level of discretion while concealed carrying a gun in a dress. For instance, if you are wearing a black belly-band holster underneath a white dress, your gun will print easily (and even more so on hot days when sweat gets involved).
To combat this issue, pick out darker color dresses or dresses with more patterns – doing so helps conceal potential printing.
Tightness of the dress/skirt
As you can imagine, the tightness of your dress/skirt plays a huge role in shaping how you concealed carry in a dress. While there are options for concealed carrying in tighter dresses, for optimal comfort, discretion, and access, many women opt for looser, more flowing dresses to avoid printing.
Another option my wife goes with for tighter dresses is wearing a jean jacket on top to cover up a back holster. Adding layers to cover up any odd bulges greatly aids in concealed carrying while wearing a dress.
Length of the dress/skirt
Depending on the length of your dress, your mode of carry changes. For shorter skirts, your concealed carry methods are restricted to your upper body. For mid-length dresses, you are able to go for thigh holsters. For longer dresses, you are able to wear ankle holsters. In my wife’s case, she likes to wear long, high-waisted dark/patterned dresses (high-waisted for belly holsters, thigh holsters, and/or an ankle holster). The more options, the better.
NOTE: When brainstorming these three factors, be sure that you also factor in being able to quickly access and deploy your concealed carry. Not having to change the way you dress while carrying is VERY important. If wearing dresses is important to you, you shouldn’t have to give up concealed carrying in your dresses.
However, being able to have a practical way to access your firearm is equally as important. Be sure to position your concealed carry beneath your dress in a way that you can access it quickly and easily. Also, be sure to practice drawing your firearm from your mode of carry until you can draw it comfortably. Practice builds habits.
How to carry a gun while wearing a dress: 7 different methods
Ankle Carry
As mentioned earlier, ankle carrying is one option to take with longer dresses. With an ankle holster, your dress will fall over your firearm, which avoids printing while concealing your firearm. This allows you to easily access your gun as well, as all you need to do is to tug at your dress with your weak hand, reach down, and draw your firearm.
Hip-hugger carry
As the name implies, a hip-hugger belt “hugs” the hip area below your belt. With a looser, high-waisted dress and a hip-hugger belt, you are able to position your gun toward the front of your hip area, with the fabric from your dress concealing any potential printing.
This method may or may not work with you – depending on every gun owner’s body, comfort will vary. Also, it isn’t easy to conceal printing with tighter fitting dresses, nor is it always easy to access your firearm from underneath your dress in a time of need.
Abdomen Carry
This concealed carry method has the same issues as using a hip-hugger carry belt, since it makes it slightly difficult to easily access your firearm and might be uncomfortable for some gun owners. To avoid printing with this method, wear a more baggy style of dress to cover up the outline of your gun. Some manufacturers have even added a “sexy” aspect to abdomen carrying via lace corset holsters.
Back carry
With back carrying, you conceal your gun in the small of your back. This definitely prints much less than most of the other carry methods, and can, as mentioned earlier, be obscured even more with a sweater/jacket. However, depending on your flexibility, accessing your gun from a back holster might be difficult.
Thigh carry
We’ve all seen this “sexy” cliche in the movies. While there’s a certain aesthetic appeal to this particular concealed carry method for dress-wearers, there is also great with it. As you can probably imagine, accessing your firearm from a thigh carry holster while wearing a slit dress is quite easy. You can also move your holster to your inner thigh area, for extra discretion.
Bra carry
When I first heard of this concept, it sounded like the epitome of uncomfortable. However, after some explaining, I realized that this concealed carry method is potentially the most discreet way to carry a gun while wearing a dress. Kept underneath your bra, the curve of your chest and the fabric of your dress prevents your gun from printing. Comfort may vary per gun owner, however. Also, with a bra holster, accessing your gun in a hurry is quite difficult.
Under shorts
Gun concealment shorts are more or less compression shorts with a sewn-in holster. As many women already wear similar types of shorts underneath their dresses/skirts, this is not a deviation from normal dressing methods. However, if you are wearing a full dress, this makes accessing your gun very difficult. On the other hand, if you are wearing a skirt and a shirt, you are able to access your gun much more easily with this method. However, printing may become an issue, depending on the size of your gun and the tightness of your dress/skirt.
For a less specialized fix, you can simply wear jean shorts under your dress with a holster. In an emergency situation, you can simply yank up your dress and draw your gun.
Conclusion
When it comes down to it, deciding how to carry a gun while wearing a dress depends on many factors. However, just remember the two most important points: 1) ease of access to your concealed carry and 2) comfort of the set up. Carrying around a gun doesn’t mean you can’t dress the way you want to. Explore all your options!