Charles Dickens had it just about right when he penned this Military Wife Quote: ” A good uniform must work its way with the women, sooner or later.”
Heaven knows a good uniform always works on me, sooner or later. Whether I am at home and my husband rolls in wearing his “blueberries” or whether we’re at an event and he is wearing all that shiny white polyester stuff, the uniform works wonders on me. I’m sure he is a little bit more fabulous every time he wears it.
On the Navy’s 237th birthday, it seems appropriate to wonder why ARE those Navy guys in uniform so appealing? 
- Do they look bigger in a white uniform?
- Do they look like they smell like bleach?
- Are women just turned on by men who have jobs?
- Do we have residual fondness left over from that boy on the Cracker Jack box?
- And why is is that we never hear men gush about a woman in uniform? Does that seem fair to you?
The idea that women love men in uniform goes back much further than Dickens. If you Google “I Love A Man In Uniform” you score more than 25 million hits. In a 2011 Slate article searching for scientific evidence that women preferred men in uniform, there wasn’t much to support the claim.
One psychologist suggested in an interview that Marine or Navy uniforms (especially when decorated with gold and silver insignia) indicate high status and offer women social validation. Like Brooks Bros. suits or tuxedos, she contended, uniforms imply a man in a position of authority; furthermore, they symbolize “alpha” qualities such as confidence and courage.
I don’t know about “authority” as much of a turn on. I’ve never had a boss that turned me on. School principals tended to make me feel tired. And any time Mitt Romney calls me on the phone, I do not feel exactly breathless.
Maybe Dickens had it right in thinking that a uniform is just something that works on a man, sooner or later. Why do you think your partner is more appealing in uniform?
About Jacey Eckhart
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There is something about the Navy uniforms that get me, especially officers whites (which my husband wasn't an officer but still) the cracker jack blue is better for enlisted. My husband is now in the Army and to be honest the dress blues aren't attractive at all. Especially not the beret, even my husband says I miss the dixie something he never ever thought he would say because he wasn't a fan of it. However working uniforms the Army cammie is way better then the old "prison inmate" dungarees or the new Navy working uniform which I think is ugly so I guess it is a trade off.
Why do I think uniforms are sexy? Because the man I love is in them. We, I think, begin to associate it with all the feelings we have for our husbands, brothers, fathers, uncles,etc. The men who mean the most in our lives. It makes us feel good, safe, happy and that makes the man more attractive.
I got a giggle out of this, because I grew up a Navy brat, joined ARMY and was engaged to an ARMY guy, the unis sucked (camo's were GREAT tho…those look good on anyone, male or female), then married Air Force briefly, those are prissy, pretty boy uniforms, I still didn't like those much. But now, 20 years later, I'm marrying a Navy Officer and I want to melt when he comes home in his blueberries (which now is standard issue for enlisted too-no more cracker jacks!!) or his summer whites, have yet to see him in his chokers, but that's what he's marrying me in,,,I just may faint….LOL
Imagine how gorgeous your wedding photos are going to be!
Guys may not get turned on by a woman in uniform…but they seem to be turned on by high heels. I can’t imagine dress uniforms are any more comfortable than heels, so maybe we’re all just a little masochistic, lol. :-)
Jacey, we just talked about this subject this past weekend at the NOSC. I blame it on my Daddy who always smelled wonderful and gave me big hugs when I was little and saw him in his Navy uniform. Daddy was my first hero! I also blame this on sexy Richard Gere's movie from 1982, "An Officer and a Gentleman." What ever the reason, I will also appreciate a man in uniform.
Richard Gere in high collar whites damaged a whole generation of women. For this he will be called to task….
Honestly, uniform or no, it simply doesn't matter to me. I care about my partner's character. Everything else is immaterial to me.
I'm pretty sure it's because he looks squared away, competent and just a little bit dangerous. MMMM.