Collar (BDSM) - Social Significance - Other Wearers of Collars

Other Wearers of Collars

Although in many instances collars are worn solely by a submissive partner in a relationship with a dominant, in some cases the dominant partner or an unattached person may also wear a collar. People across social layers can now be seen wearing casual collars, purely for fashion. Collars used for fashion are worn by both men and women, and made from various materials such as soft leather, cotton, neoprene, nylon etc. often in bright friendly colors but varying from bright, neutral into darker colors. The lining ranges from bare leather to lambskin, to faux fur. The collar most often has a buckle either in black, nickel or brass design, but snaps and velcro closures are also found. Adornments range from plain collars, to decorative stitching, to studs of all kinds to gems to ruby domes and gemocites etc. Attachments are common too, but often discreet, e.g. a thin black D-ring in front of the collar.

In more mainstream culture and especially in pornography, images depicting women wearing collars are common regardless of whether these women are intended to be depicted as submissive or dominant.

Collars and other alternative clothing can also be found in certain subcultures such as goth, punk, Japanese anime and manga culture, or the furry fandom. These collars vary according to the expression wanted by the people who wear them. In Goth and old-school Punk culture the collars are often similar to wolf collars mentioned above and match their other spike adorned accessories such as bracelets. In the anime, manga and Furry fandom cultures, the collars and wristbands are more often bright and friendly in the design, looking like described in the fashion section above, and though it may also mean they are into BDSM, or have another kind of sexual identity, it is also often used as a subtle rebellion to dominant (regular, mainstream, etc.) society.