I know a good percentage like to wear women's jeans and pants, but for many who were raised in the 1950's and 1960's trousers are a no-go. In my neighborhood none of the women wore pants and shunned one particular women who broke the informal code of dresses only. To my mother's dying day she never wore pants (91 years). Through junior high school (1962) the girls had to wear dresses or skirts & blouses. Even in the heaviest snow storms, if the girls wore "snow pants" on the way to school, the snow pants were worn under a dress or skirt and had to be removed upon arrival. Little girls seemed to have an age cut off to transition from summer shorts to dresses. Church was always dresses. Television was the days of June Cleaver (Leave It to Beaver) and Harriet Nelson (Ozzie & Harriet) wearing dresses, heels and hosiery. So, for me, it is always a dress, heels and hosiery, and all the proper undergarments, especially lacy slips. Fast forward several decades and it's jeans for my wife, daughter and granddaughter with the rare social occasion for a dress. Heck, my granddaughter who has no hips to speak of, buys her jeans in the young men's section.
I am something of a rebel against the ubiquitous wearing of trousers, particularly on Sunday mornings. I see many women wearing jeans and sneakers. I would like to see women wearing dresses, hosiery, and heels. Very few women are so attired. So, sometimes if you want something done, you have to do it yourself. So, as a man, I go the whole nine yards or ten meters, and wear a dress, hosiery, heels, nail polish, earrings, and makeup.
On Sundays, I have not yet advanced as far as you. I still have more than enough to do on the male side of things. I rebel by wearing coat and tie or a male business suit, neatly pressed with shined shoes and long topcoat and scarf. Few men are so attired though I would like to see men dress in ways that I consider more respectful. Alas, I can do little about others, so I express well what I can express: myself.
My pronoun is “classic femulator” so dress, heels, hosiery and jewelry. I know that lululemon yoga wear is the norm these days but thats not femulating in my world
I had a dream once where every cis girl is given a skirt license at birth but she can choose to give it away to a deserving male like me. After an exhaustive interview, I was granted the skirt rights of a woman named Ashley . From then on I could leave the house in the most feminine outfits without any risk of ridicule.
When we dress in clothing that is often or generally associated with women but is of a style that most women no longer routinely wear or they consider in part not realistic or many observers find to be expressions of the wearer’s interpretation of a set of feminine sartorial ideas, are we not engaging in a form of drag? Though drag is a valid art form with a long, colorful history, it is not expressing one’s self as someone who fits into society as a woman nor is it so intended. Should we recognize this distinction and maybe even celebrate it?
When cis women engage in mild forms of this, it has a name: vintage. Milder expressions still gain acceptance in ordinary society but this will continue to fade with time or evolve as a costume associated with female participation in events or occasions, such as wearing a dirndl at Oktoberfest. Dressing in these ways is great fun but it fades as a way to dress to blend into everyday activities. If one wants to be perceived as a woman, then one must keep up with the ways women dress. Divergence will mark one more as an artist and less as a woman.
I know a good percentage like to wear women's jeans and pants, but for many who were raised in the 1950's and 1960's trousers are a no-go. In my neighborhood none of the women wore pants and shunned one particular women who broke the informal code of dresses only. To my mother's dying day she never wore pants (91 years). Through junior high school (1962) the girls had to wear dresses or skirts & blouses. Even in the heaviest snow storms, if the girls wore "snow pants" on the way to school, the snow pants were worn under a dress or skirt and had to be removed upon arrival. Little girls seemed to have an age cut off to transition from summer shorts to dresses. Church was always dresses. Television was the days of June Cleaver (Leave It to Beaver) and Harriet Nelson (Ozzie & Harriet) wearing dresses, heels and hosiery. So, for me, it is always a dress, heels and hosiery, and all the proper undergarments, especially lacy slips. Fast forward several decades and it's jeans for my wife, daughter and granddaughter with the rare social occasion for a dress. Heck, my granddaughter who has no hips to speak of, buys her jeans in the young men's section.
ReplyDeleteI am something of a rebel against the ubiquitous wearing of trousers, particularly on Sunday mornings. I see many women wearing jeans and sneakers. I would like to see women wearing dresses, hosiery, and heels. Very few women are so attired. So, sometimes if you want something done, you have to do it yourself. So, as a man, I go the whole nine yards or ten meters, and wear a dress, hosiery, heels, nail polish, earrings, and makeup.
ReplyDeleteJohn
On Sundays, I have not yet advanced as far as you. I still have more than enough to do on the male side of things. I rebel by wearing coat and tie or a male business suit, neatly pressed with shined shoes and long topcoat and scarf. Few men are so attired though I would like to see men dress in ways that I consider more respectful. Alas, I can do little about others, so I express well what I can express: myself.
DeleteMy pronoun is “classic femulator” so dress, heels, hosiery and jewelry. I know that lululemon yoga wear is the norm these days but thats not femulating in my world
ReplyDeleteI had a dream once where every cis girl is given a skirt license at birth but she can choose to give it away to a deserving male like me. After an exhaustive interview, I was granted the skirt rights of a woman named Ashley . From then on I could leave the house in the most feminine outfits without any risk of ridicule.
ReplyDeleteWhen we dress in clothing that is often or generally associated with women but is of a style that most women no longer routinely wear or they consider in part not realistic or many observers find to be expressions of the wearer’s interpretation of a set of feminine sartorial ideas, are we not engaging in a form of drag? Though drag is a valid art form with a long, colorful history, it is not expressing one’s self as someone who fits into society as a woman nor is it so intended. Should we recognize this distinction and maybe even celebrate it?
ReplyDeleteWhen cis women engage in mild forms of this, it has a name: vintage. Milder expressions still gain acceptance in ordinary society but this will continue to fade with time or evolve as a costume associated with female participation in events or occasions, such as wearing a dirndl at Oktoberfest. Dressing in these ways is great fun but it fades as a way to dress to blend into everyday activities. If one wants to be perceived as a woman, then one must keep up with the ways women dress. Divergence will mark one more as an artist and less as a woman.
Very perceptive observation
Delete