Why do painters wear white painters pants? If a painter got some paint on his painters pants it would stick out like a sore thumb right? In this post, I will go over 10 reasons why painters wear white.
10 Reasons Why Painters Wear White (Painters Pants, Shirts, etc…)
- Painter’s union colors – It’s true, at one time the painters union did mandate their painters wear white.
- White was a common color of houses – Once upon a time, in the 1700s, if they were painted, houses were most frequently white, especially in the south.
- White is the base to make colors – When one mixes paint colors, the base color is most often white. To make any color, it’s a matter of adding the right amount of red, blue, and yellow.
- White is the color of clean cloth – Fibers, especially natural fibers, start closer to white than any other color. At worst, they are off-white, but the more white the fiber, the finer the quality, the cleaner the fabric.
- White tells all – For better or worse, white tells the tale of a painter. Historically, white may have been a better indicator of skill. Can you tell your skill level by looking at your painters pants?
- White is a hero’s color – Right or wrong, popular culture maintains this bias, albeit fading some. The good guys traditionally wear white.
- White is cool – As in, if we’re gonna stand outside and paint in all these clothes, let’s do it in white clothes ‘cause the sun’s beating down today.
- When entering a painting zone, touching the wet paint is a no-no. When folks see the white overalls, it signals a level of awareness subconsciously.
- White is cheap – When it comes right down to it, white is cheaper to produce. As stated already, white is where fibers start. To dye them anything else adds cost in supplies and labor.
- White is what painters wear – This is as much of a bottom line as one can find on the matter. People do as people do.
So…why do you wear whites?
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