Summer holster options for ladies

Spring is upon us in VA and summer will be here soon. I don't know why but it seems most of the pants, shorts, capris that i own for summer wear don't have belt loops. If they do they're small and won't support my belt. So i need to find a way to OC or CC my Kahr CW9 and my M&P 9. I have a belly band and may buy another. Are there good/supporting holsters for OWB/IWB that a girl can wear?

Amending this - I need a holster that is NOT dependent on a belt. Just in case I wasn't clear.



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I am sure you know about paddle holsters but they might not be the ideal option for you. I wear basketball shorts as underwear so I have plenty of coverage to keep the paddle from rubbing up against bare skin. So this this my preferred carry method. My girlfriend on the other hand maintains that the paddle aggravates her leg because she has less fabric to protect her skin. I am sure you will probably fall into the latter group. But you could, maybe, glue a soft piece of material to the outside of the paddle (the part that rubs against you) to potentially avoid this problem.

This probably still won't be the best method of carry for you as if you cannot wear a belt you probably do not have enough support to hold your pants up with a firearm firmly attached to them.

Any carry method that doesn't include a belt winds up being a compromise between comfort and a safe, reliable draw. Only you can decide where on that continuum you wish to live. Personally, I carry the same holster on the same belt at all times, winter and summer, wherever I go. I mostly carry openly, so it's not a real problem for me.

Just don't forget that you will have to sacrifice some amount of speed and reliability in your draw and draw time in order to forgo the security of a good belt. Good luck, and don't forget to come back and let us know how you resolved this. I'm always looking for different answers to this problem for my students.

Steeler-gal said:

Spring is upon us in VA and summer will be here soon. I don't know why but it seems most of the pants, shorts, capris that i own for summer wear don't have belt loops. If they do they're small and won't support my belt. So i need to find a way to OC or CC my Kahr CW9 and my M&P 9. I have a belly band and may buy another. Are there good/supporting holsters for OWB/IWB that a girl can wear?

Amending this - I need a holster that is NOT dependent on a belt. Just in case I wasn't clear.

Click to expand...

This girl makes many videos directed towards women's wear and holsters. Maybe useful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogGBPVk5GQk

Shoulder rig!

As you may have noticed, OWB/ITB[SUP]1[/SUP] carry on a belt that is not connected to your lower garment has certain drawbacks - the primary one being a tendency for the belt to both ride up as you draw and to shift around your waist as you move throughout the day.

That being said, the addition of three belt loops (roughly 3 o'clock, right at 6 o'clock, and roughly 9 o'clock) resolves the problem. It requires sewing skill or paying someone to do it for you, which may be the biggest drawback to adding loops.

Paddles are a decent compromise if your lower garments are sufficiently sturdy enough to support the paddle without the grip leaning way out, or pulling the garment down around your ankles (another reason why being curvey is good:lol.

Was it Jeff Cooper who opined that carrying was supposed to be comforting, not comfortable?

A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do to be able to carry.

stay safe.

[SUP]1[/SUP]Inside The Belt

j4l said:

Shoulder rig!

Click to expand...

A bit more difficult for the ladies than for the men. Unless you are suggesting a shoulder rig that places the holster so low as to effectively be crossdraw. Pretty hard to ddeal with when stuck with the usual zero-cant holsters for both vertical and horizontal shoulder rigs. Modifying them would probably be more expensive that just ordering a custom rig.

stay safe.

Was actually posted, largely in jest. Mildly crude, suggested-visual humor, with no harmful intent.

j4l said:

Was actually posted, largely in jest. Mildly crude, suggested-visual humor, with no harmful intent.

Click to expand...

Noted with disapprobation (-5 points). But it provided the opportunity (+3 points) to advance the information that not all shoulder rigs mean carry under the armpit. Total score = -2 points.

stay safe.

Thanks for all the responses. I actually hadn't considered that without a belt my pants may not be able to hold UP against a firearm. :banghead: It's my first summer OCing so I'll be experimenting. Thanks!


==========================================
NRA Certified Range Safety Officer
Looking for training by experienced staff?
We are the largest all female only firearms group on the East Coast offering firearms training courses and services provided by our experienced and certified female instructors.
http://www.shecanshoot.com/

Keeping the pants up can be a challenge. I was in bed one night and heard someone banging at the back door. Most everyone I know understands that I go to bed early, so I couldn't imagine who it might be. I got up and slipped the .357m Ruger into my sweat pants pocket and went upstairs. When I had determined that it was actually a neighbor at the door, I reached to open it... and right then the weight of the gun pulled my pants down.

OOOPS. !!! I had lost a bit more weight than I thought. LOL

Darn near slammed the door shut in her face for a moment. Reached down and retrieved my pants, put the gun on the counter beside the door, and THEN let her in. Thank goodness she knows me well enough to understand... though she did tease me for a long time about it.

Just glad it wasn't the neighbor on the other side... a good looking older man.