Winter is, as they say, coming.
For many nudists, that means earlier nightfall and a break from the stultifying heat of summer sunshine. Residents of the many nudist resorts and communities in Florida, California, Texas, Spain, and other warm areas might be looking forward to a bit of temperate weather.
As a Canadian nudist, though, the rapidly advancing autumn chill brings with it dread for the coming ice and snow. (It's also a time for lamenting the missed opportunities to be nude in the past summer.)
So what are we snowbound Canucks, iced-in Minnesotans, and frozen New York nudists to do? Is the only strategy to light a fire, turn up the heat, and hibernate until the last frost melts?
Luckily, no. Here are some tips to being a winter nudist.
The thing nudists tend to miss most when they're clothed is the feeling of freedom that being nude can bring us. But clothes aren't the only covering you can take advantage of.
You'll tend to be coldest when you're sitting still - working on your laptop or lounging in front of the TV, for example. If your house is cold or drafty, this is when you'll feel it the most. And when this happens, a blanket is your first line of defence. Being nude under a blanket is nude and comfy, and you don't have the restrictions that clothing usually makes you feel.
If you're moving around so much that a blanket is impractical, invest in a quality terrycloth or chenille robe. You can wrap it close around you when you feel chilly and wear it loose and open when you're warming up.
Robe or not, keeping yourself moving is the best way to keep yourself warm. While you're cooking [link to cooking blog post], doing laundry, and other household chores are active enough that even if you're wearing a robe, you'll probably want to shuck it off before too long. (Moving around is good for you, too - check out Amanda Sterczyk's books [link] for more about why you should stay in motion anyway.)
While you're sitting still, you can also keep the cold at bay with a nice warm drink. A herbal tea is a perfect sipper any time of day, but a delicious hot toddy can also be a lovely treat for a chilly night.
One school of thought for some naturists is that being bottomless is the best approach for nudists in cold weather. The thinking behind this is that the need to cover one's genitals is the primary difference between larger society and we nudists. If we are going to cover up, staying bare below the waist asserts that we are still nudists.
I understand the philosophy behind this but I'm not sure it matters. I also find that wearing only, say, a sweatshirt is more effective for keeping me warm than wearing only sweat pants. And it definitely feels more nude, which is when I feel best, too.
In the end, the question is what is best for you. No one should be uncomfortable for the sake of being a nudist, so if you need to dress for the weather, then do so. (As many naturists point out, We're nudists, not idiots.
It would be nice if we lived somewhere the temperature never dipped below the freezing mark. For many of us, there's no other option: winter is a fact of life. It's expensive (and environmentally irresponsible) to crank the heat in the house. Being a nudist in winter just isn't an easy prospect.
But if nudism is an important part of your life, you're going to want to practice it even when the mercury falls out of sight. I hope some of the tips here give you some new strategies for staying nude whatever the weather.
What have you done in the past to stay nude and warm in the winter? Tell me in the comments!
Halloween is coming! For those who like to dress up, it’s a fun time to put on some crazy costumes. During this holiday, nudists are sometimes depicted in rather funny ways; some people wear strategically positioned cardboard with pixellated “flesh” on it to cover up what would otherwise be nude flesh. And a shirt with “nudist on strike” is not uncommon (which makes you wonder how much they thought that one through…)
But it’s a bit difficult for nudists, who, well, don’t really like to dress up. What can a nudist do for Halloween? Here are some options.
One of the most common costume choices for nudists is body paint. It’s fun and eye-catching, it comes in every possible size, and it lets the wearer be both covered up and revealed at the same time. Animal colourings and superhero costumes are very common, for example.
The wonderful thing about body paint is that it works as a costume even if it isn’t anything in particular. Paint on some flowers, or a geometric pattern, or even a set of clothes. Don’t worry about how accurate it is - a bit of colour goes a long way!
Some nudists take the approach that a few significant features get the idea of the costume across; it doesn’t matter that the rest is just a nude person. A leather vest and a cowboy hat makes you an old west sheriff, for example. A cap and a Louisville Slugger; gossamer wings and a wand; there are endless minimalist costumes. If you wore them to any other venue, you’d be a nude baseball player or a nude fairy; when you’re among nudists, though, the nudity is unremarkable, and the costumes are fine.
Despite the negative view that many have towards nudism in mainstream society, there are actually a few possibilities in popular culture that you could consider using as a costume. There’s the reality show Naked and Afraid, for example. They blur out the actual nudity, of course, but you can hold a walking stick and a roughly-constructed canvas bag and get the general idea across.
You can look to myth for other possibilities too: Lady Godiva and many Greek gods are commonly depicted nude. Mermaids are at least partially nude - the parts that aren’t covered in fish scales, anyhow. Usually it only takes a few small markers to indicate what character you represent; the nudity takes the costume the rest of the way.
There really isn’t much to a nudist Halloween costume. In the end, you’re just trying to be someone you’re not, while still being who you are. Like almost everything else about nudism, it’s far more simple than it seems… it just takes a bit of imagination and a sense of fun. Enjoy your nude Halloween party!
Have you ever been to a nudist Halloween party? What was your costume? If you had a party coming up this month, what would you be?
