People floored after realising what tiny jeans pocket is for | Weird | News

Some people have only just learned what the tiny extra pocket inside a pair of jeans is for, and it’s left them floored. Jeans are a fundamental item in numerous wardrobes, and can be used for more formal events, or as the main feature in a comfy, laidback outfit.

Crafted from denim, the trousers have a long-standing history. Denim was the conventional material used in workwear, with the first pair of jeans – akin to those we know and love today – crafted by an American tailor named Jacob Davis, and dry goods wholesaler Levi Strauss, who sold him the fabric to create them. The pair collaborated and patented the first pair of riveted denim work trousers on 20 May 1873, leading to the creation of the classic jeans still worn across the world today.

Today, jeans come in a variety of cuts, colours, and styles, from mom jeans, high waisted, bootcut, and flared, to wide leg, skinny, distressed, and more. The Levi’s website states: “We should note that they were called ‘waist overalls’ or ‘overalls’ until 1960, when baby boomers adopted the name ‘jeans’.”

Often the front pocket of a pair of jeans features an additional, much-smaller pocket placed at the hip. It’s typically a visible feature included in many styles of jeans.

On Reddit, one person was intrigued about its function. Posting a photo of the peculiar pocket, they wrote: “What’s the smaller pockets within pockets of jeans for? Does anyone know the use of [the] smaller pocket [and what it] is designed for?”

In the comments section, many Reddit users were eager to contribute their thoughts, with some offering jokes and light-hearted remarks and others sharing their personal use for the small pocket. One person said: “I use it and have always used it for my lighter.” Another said: “Hold your lucky coin.”

A third recalled: “Steve Jobs said they were for the iPod Nano when it launched in 2005. I distinctly remember him pulling one out of his mini pocket in the reveal video. First and only time I ever bought an Apple product new.”

A fourth said: “I used to use it for my iPod Nano. Good times… good times.”

However, another user revealed the correct origin of the pocket, which was intended as a place to keep a pocket watch. They simply said: “It was originally for pocket watches.”

Another added: “I thought it was called the coin pocket, but watch makes more sense!” And another said: “Why did it take so long for someone to go: ‘what if pocket watch… but bracelet!'”

One person replied: “It didn’t take that long, there are medieval necklace, wrist, and even ring watches. In the Victorian era, wrist watches were seen as feminine as they were delicate, and pocket watches were seen as reliable and sturdy.

“It took the combination of the Boer and World War One to make wrist watches masculine, as jumping on the deck and crawling through the muck tended to break pocket watches.”

According to Britannica: “The small pocket as we know it today was not an element of the blue jeans mass-produced by Levi Strauss and Co until the 1890s, when the target buyers for the work trousers were carpenters, railroad workers, farmers, and miners.”