Except yes, they do. Winry is wearing coveralls. You type in mechanic, you’re gonna get a picture of someone with coveralls.
now, obviously, mechanics don’t usually wear their coveralls tied at the waist like that when they’re actually working…and neither does Winry. When she’s actually doing heavy mechanical work, she zips her coveralls up.
looks kinda like:
It’s fairly common for mechanics to tie their coveralls at the waist when not working, or not doing heavy duty work, since they’re hot.
Winry worked at home, in what seems to be a pretty hot climate, so wearing a tube top to reduce heat might be a thing and wearing the coveralls down would be way to keep cool between jobs without having to get changed. When she was younger she wore a tank top. When she move to Rush Valley to work in public (and her chest got bigger and probably required more support) she switched to a sports bra/crop top type thing under the coveralls.
The bandana style is actually kinda impractical as someone who’s cosplayed winry, it’s hot and it doesn’t do much to keep the hair in place (and Winry’s hairstyle is pretty annoying irl- but Ed’s hairstyle would be just as annoying, and he’s running around and fighting), but I don’t think that’s really what you were talking about probably. The coveralls and sports bra combo was v. comfortable though, and wearing it tied down actually kept me from suffocating. I could see doing intense work in it.
Of course, I’m not denying fanservice might be a factor, but saying mechanics never ever dress like this is…inaccurate. Some mechanics (though it’s not recommended) have been known to go SHIRTLESS under their coveralls. And all.
The bandana probably helps with the sweat from the job, though, even if her hairstyle is a bit impractical for it
Oh yeah, it definitely works as a sweat catcher. The thing is, wearing the bandana like that also ensures you sweat more,especially if you have bangs- it’s pressing them directly into her forehead. Which is why bandanas are generally higher on the head, to keep the hair pinned back.
Of course, not pinning Winry’s hair back is understandable artistic license you see with a lot of anime characters. Hair is a signifying feature that works well in framing the face, you often don’t want to hide it. Ed has his hair tied back, like someone who fights a lot would, BUT he has chin length side-bangs to frame his face that’d constantly get in his eyes irl. Roy has practical short hair, but his bangs are so long they directly interfere with his vision (Arakawa even joked about that in liner notes).
Similarly, Winry’s high ponytail is a hairstyle a mechanic probably would favor and demonstrates that side of her character, but Arakawa also wants to frame her face, so she has some of her hair stay down and never ties it back. Because she’s in an anime, Winry’s hair magically stays in place.
Like, basically all of the military characters (sans Olivier who is just special I guess) have short hair or hair tied back, but they also have distinctive and often impractical bangs to make them more easily identifiable and allow for more fun and variation. Arakawa’s character design is an interesting study in balancing realism and art, basically.
Relatable FE Quote or Something 