My Louboutins

Before

As a fashionista who loves high heel shoes, I am well aware of high heels from Christian Louboutin with their signature red bottoms. Louboutin shoes are beautiful, but their price ($750 and up) match the height of their stilettos... much too high for my femulating budget!

I got the bright idea to paint the bottoms of my own more reasonably priced high heels to emulate Louboutins. 

I did a little research on the Internet and discovered that I was not the first girl to make fake Louboutins. Some girls used red nail polish and other girls used various brands of red paint. One paint job that impressed me used the Angelus brand of acrylic leather paint.

Angelus has a few shades of red, so I did some more research to find a shade that matched Louboutin’s red. Pantone-18 Chinese Red is what Louboutin uses and Angelus’ Fire Red looked to be a good match.

I ordered a bottle from Amazon and it arrived the next day. (I just love Amazon Prime’s instant gratification!)

After

With paint and paint brush in hand, I needed a candidate to paint. I selected my new black patent Nine West Alison sling-back pumps.

It took less than five minutes to do each shoe. I kept a paper towel handy in case I slipped up and painted a part of the shoe that wasn’t its bottom. The dry paper towel cleaned up any mishaps thoroughly. Your mileage may vary with shoes that are not patent leather.

I checked back about four hours later to see if I needed to apply a second coat and I did. Two coats were adequate and I wore my new Louboutins out and about the next day.

Wearing New York & Company (Post-op)

“Mom Catches Son CrossDressing!!” is the title of this short and entertaining video that I found on YouTube. I hope you enjoy it!

Fashion Model Stana

Readers commented favorably on the (Out and) About sidebar photo of “Fashion Model Stana,” so here is an excerpt from my book Fantasia Fair Diaries describing what happened on the occasion of that photograph. 

On Tuesday of Fantasia Fair week...

I attended a practice session for the fashion show. Yes, I am modeling in the annual Fantasia Fair Fashion Show before an audience of civilians and trans-people alike and it should be the thrill of my lifetime (up to now). The girls running the fashion show walked us through the routine of walking down the catwalk, etc. The first step from the stage to the catwalk is a doozy, so I plan to take it slow in my killer heels! The fashion show is Wednesday night and it should be a lot of fun!

On Wednesday of Fantasia Fair week...

I returned to my room and relaxed for an hour, then went to fashion show practice with my highest high heels in tow. (We were supposed to bring the highest heels we planned to wear for the show to the practice.) I had not worn these shoes before (the silver sequins platform sandals from Payless) and I was surprised how comfortable they were.

Everyone took a turn or two walking on stage and down the catwalk. After practice, I returned to my room to get ready for the show.

We were told to apply our makeup on the heavy side because the stage lights would wash out our faces if all we had on was a normal application of makeup. So I used black and dark grays to do my eyes, bright reds for my lips, and heavy on the blush.

After making up my face, I left my hotel room and walked downstairs to the site of the fashion show (the fashion show venue was in my hotel).

The dressing room for the fashion show models was not a dressing room per se; it was actually the room used for the Fair’s keynote addresses and other presentations. As a result, the facilities were not very good for dressing. We had to drape our stuff over the chairs in the room.

Later, a clothing rack showed up, but by then, my stuff was in such a disarray that the arrival of the rack did not matter.

I wore the first outfit I planned to model to the show, so I was ready to go while other models were dressing.

A photographer working on The Gender Photo Project had a portable studio set up in the dressing room near where I had plopped my stuff. The photographer asked me if I wanted to pose for a photo for the project and of course, I agreed. 

During the photoshoot, the photographer mentioned that I resemble Norway’s most famous crossdresser, Esben “Esther Pirelli” Benestad. I never heard of Benestad, but I was familiar with a film she appeared in: Alt om min far (All About My Father), which is a true story about a transvestite, who seeks his son’s acceptance.

Nigel Dickson had his photography equipment set up at the opposite end of the room. Nigel is the photographer working on a Fantasia Fair book and it turns out that he has taken photos of many famous people.

While I was still enjoying the afterglow from my first photoshoot, Nigel came over and asked me if I would pose for him. I joked with some of the other models saying, “I’m ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille.”

Turns out I was the first subject that Nigel photographed! After he took a few shots, he thanked me and promised to e-mail me a copy of the photo later.

The actual fashion show was now becoming an afterthought!

I was the fifth model of 23 models to go up the catwalk and I was on and off the stage very quickly. With floodlights shining in my face, loud music blaring, and the MCs making comments, the experience became a blur, but I do remember one of the MCs asking me if I was now ready for a New York City catwalk. I responded, “You betcha” in my best Alaskan accent and I got a big laugh from the audience.

Speaking of the audience, it was not a full house. I assume the lousy weather (cold and raining) kept down the crowd, but the audience that did show up was very enthusiastic and cheered each model loudly.

Wearing the black velvet evening gown from my friend Patty Marino’s collection, second time up was the same as the first... a blur, but the MC asked me to walk the walk twice (something they only asked a few models to do), so I must have been doing something right.

There was a party after the fashion show, but the weather was so miserable, I did not want to walk to the party venue, so I skipped it and went to bed.

From the Health Dept.

Wednesday, I saw my surgeon for a followup to my inguinal hernia repair surgery. 

The doctor confirmed my suspicion that my sore throat was caused by the anesthetic tube put down my throat during surgery and that it would heal itself quickly. He recommended lozenges to ease any discomfort.

He also said I was good to go and can start lifting handbags greater than 50 pounds!

Wearing Le Redoute

During my recovery from surgery, I watched some films and one that I found very interesting (not to mention,a little weird) was a 2019 British film titled Into the Mirror. It stars Jamie Bacon, who is femulating in the above photo from the film. I highly recommend the film to Femulate readers. It is only an hour long and you can view it for free on YouTube.

I'm Back

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...

I'm back from vacation. The weather was perfect, but things were very hectic.

Mother-in-law was transferred from a rest home to a hospital and we spent a lot of time visiting her. Her prognosis is not good.

On the femulation front, I continued preparing my book, Fantasia Fair Diaries, for publication and I worked with Erin Fisher-Daily on planning the Fantasia Fair Fashion Show. (The Fantasia Fair Fashion Show webpage should be updated with our plans real soon now.)

Wearing Ariella Joelle.

Actress Eva Gabor helps actor Kenneth Moore femulate.

Flattery Will Get You Everywhere

I'm easy.

Not long after attending Fantasia Fair last fall, my long-time friend and new Executive Director of the Fair, Barbara Curry, asked me if I would be interested in co-organizing and co-emceeing the next installment of the Fantasia Fair Fashion Show. She thought that being a fashionista would suit me well in the role of co-organizer and co-emcee.

Her request surprised me. Not because I disagreed with her assessment of me, but that I had no thoughts of going to Fashion Fair in 2015.

I have attended the Fair four times between 2008 and 2014, skipping the odd years and attending the even years. Attending the Fair is expensive and going every other year makes it more affordable.

Also, my wife's health has its ups and downs and I am loathe to go away for an extended period of time leaving her alone. So not attending this year puts that to rest.

So, I thanked Barbara, told her I didn't plans to go to the Fair in 2015, but she gave me food for thought about changing my plans.

Months passed, my wife's health had bigger ups and downs and Barbara asked me if I had thought about the Fashion Show.

I laid my cards out on the table and told her that if I planned to go to the Fair, I might have to pull out at the last minute if my wife's health required it.,

Barbara handed my cards over to Erin Fisher-Daily who has been the co-organizer and co-emcee of the Fair of late and would be sharing the job with me this year. She was OK with my cards and so, I am now the co-organizer and co-emcee of the 2015 Fantasia Fair Fashion Show!

That's a far cry from skipping the Fair this year, but like I said, "I'm easy."

Wearing Alice + Olivia.

Actor Adrian R'Mante femulating in a 2006 episode
of television's The Suite Life of Zach and Cody.

In the Nude

"The only time I feel confident 'in the nude' is when I am fully clothed and wearing my nude patent leather pumps," so says Abby Walker in her weekly article for Insolia insole inserts.

I have been a long time fan of Insolia inserts and almost as long, a fan of nude high heel pumps.

Jen sold me on the insoles at a banquet I attended in 2012. I bought a set and slipped them into the next pair of high heels I planned to wear.

Insolia inserts are different from other inserts I have tried (and discarded). Instead of adding padding to the shoe, which is basically what those other shoe inserts do, "Insolia Inserts shift weight off of the ball of the foot back to the heel by placing the foot in the optimal position for high heels."

As a result, high heels are comfortable longer than they would be sans the inserts. They really work and since that time, I automatically buy a new pair of Insolia inserts whenever I buy a new pair of high heels.

And about two years ago, I learned about the advantages of nude shoes from my fashionista reading. I won't steal Abby's thunder - you can read her thoughts about nude colored heels here - but I agree wholeheartedly with her take on the topic and have stocked up on nude heels in a variety of styles.

Nude high heel pumps have become my go-to shoe.

Wearing Gerard-Darel top and Halston Heritage skirt.

Femulating in Paris circa 1960.

Trans Fashion Show Tonight

If you are in the Gilroy, California area, Carolyn Jones has put together a trans fashion show and private shopping spree at the Lane Bryant (6815 Camino Arroyo, Space 4, Gilroy, CA 95020) between 6 and 9 PM tonight.

There will be food as well as door prizes and events including:

• Breast forms from TheBreastFormStore.com 
• $50 gift certificate to House of Wigs in Los Altos 
• Gifts from Lane Bryant 
• Fashion show featuring Lane Bryant's winter line 
• Private shopping with the sales staff 
•  Makeup artists to help you complete your look 

Phone 408-848-0252 for more information and sign up for the event here at here.

The Fashion Show

Glenn Koetznr photo for
TheRainbowTimesNews.com

Friday night, I was a model in a fashion show, which was a fundraiser for the Connecticut TransAdvocacy Coalition (CTAC).

There were five models, four male-to-female and one female-to-male transgenders. We each modeled two outfits, "business" and "casual" wear.

You can see the outfits I wore in the photos in this and my previous blog posts. You can see the outfits everyone wore here.

 I received compliments on both outfits. Some people appreciated the purple skirt-suit for its vintageness and other people wanted to know where I bought the patterned tights (the answer: Avon). The female-to-male trans model paid me the highest compliment; he was convinced that I was a post-op transexual.

I modeled in the same show four years ago in the same venue and the contrast between the two shows could not be greater. In 2007, the bar at Tommy's Restaurant was packed with people. It was so crowded that it was difficult to wade through the crowd to model our outfits In 2011, the crowd was thin. I estimate that there were only 50 to 75 people in the audience, which was a far cry from the 2007 crowd.

The explanation I heard for the meager attendance was a lack of advertising. Whatever the reason, it was a little disappointing, but the show went on despite the small crowd and I had a wonderful time modeling and schmoozing with new and old friends.

Last Night

I had a fab time modeling at the fashion show last night. I don't have time to write much about it now, but my good friend Diana (of Diana's Little Corner in the Nutmeg State fame) posted a link in yesterday's comments pointing to a slew of photos from yesterday's event taken by Glenn Koetzner.

Here is the link. Enjoy!

Transgender Fashion Show Tonight

If you are in the area of central Connecticut tonight, I invite you to the transgender fashion show at Tommy's Restaurant in Middletown at 7 PM. The event is a fundraiser for the Connecticut TransAdvocacy Coalition; admission is $10.

I will be modeling in the show, but I am not sure what I will be modeling. My "business" outfit is picked out and ready to wear, but I am unsure about my "casual" outfit.

The cocktail dress I wanted to wear arrived in the mail yesterday. I had another engagement after work last night, so I only had time to quickly slip the dress on without my shapewear and it seemed just a wee bit too small.

When I get home today, I will try again wearing shapewear and maybe it will fit. The dress is gorgeous, so I am hoping that will do the trick. If not, I will resort to Plan B and wear my other new dress from Ideeli.

I am taking a half-day off from work this afternoon to get ready for the show. I want to look my best and that takes time especially since both "casual" dresses show more skin than I've shown in awhile, which means some extra hair removal will be necessary.

But it’s worth it... it's all for a good cause and it will make me feel that much more womanly.

Dress-Up Friday

Friday evening, I dress up to model a couple of outfits in a transgender fashion show for the benefit of the Connecticut TransAdvocacy Coalition (CTAC).

The event starts at 7 PM at Tommy’s Restaurant (825 Saybrook Road, Middletown, CT 06457), just off Route 9 Exit 11. Admission is $10 at the door; you must be 21 or older to attend.

The dress I planned to model in the casual wear portion of the show has not arrived from Ideeli yet, so I may have to resort to Plan B and model the dress I previously received from Ideeli. But the week is young and if they ship in a day or two, I should receive the dress by show time.

If you are in the area, I hope you will consider attending the show. The venue is very diverse and you will have no issues fitting in and being accepted by the other attendees, so come on down!

Andrej Pejic to Model En Femme Again

This just in: Andrej Pejic will model in Yoana Baraschi's 2011 Fall fashion show. He will wear one of the designer’s signature feminine looks for the February 13 show at Lincoln Center’s The Box during New York Fashion Week.

Read all about it here.

Boys Will Be Girls – What Else Is New?

Transsexual model Lea T

This story is beginning to get old, but here is Vogue.com’s take on the femimen movement in the fashion world.

I say…

Fashion is one thing, but the real world is something else. Lots of stuff that models wear on the runways never show up on the sidewalks.

Will the femimen movement be different? Will we soon see femimen on the streets of America?

Maybe.

Here Comes the Male Bride

This femulation is so amazing that words escape me, so I will let Pedestrian TV do the talking, "The expeditious career trajectory of Australian man-model Andrej Pejic has reached rock star status in the fashion industry after he closed Jean Paul Gaultier's show - in a tulle-ensconced bridal gown no less! - at Paris Couture Fashion Week yesterday."

Feminization of Male Fashions

Last week, androgynous fashion model Andrej Pejic walked the runway in a men's fashion show wearing an outfit that included a belted fur dress, high heel pumps, stockings, jewelry, makeup, and a Veronica Lake peek-a-boo hairdo.

In case you missed it, I'll repeat it: he was modeling this decidedly "feminine" outfit in a MEN'S fashion show!

What's going on here?

Does this mean we will soon find dresses and high heel pumps on sale at our favorite men's boutique?

Or is this just another anomaly in the fashion world, which is chock full of anomalies?

During the past few years, fashion designers have been pushing the envelope in the men's fashion arena by showing skirts and dresses for males.

In the more distant past (the last half of the 20th Century), showing masculine skirts and dresses grabbed headlines, but few customers.

Things have changed and males are buying and wearing skirts and dresses today. Not a lot, but a few. You likely will not see a guy in a skirt on the streets of Podunk, but visit some place more cosmopolitan like New York City and you will occasionally see a male wearing a masculine skirted garment.

Masculine skirts and dresses are one thing, but the outfit that Andrej Pejic modeled last week was a horse of a different gender; the only thing masculine about it was the fact that a male was modeling it.

Does this very "feminine" male outfit mean that designers have pushed the envelope so hard that has broken wide open?

It depends.

The designer breaking the envelope is Jean Paul Gaultier, and he has been playing with traditional gender roles in his shows like forever. So it is no surprise that Gaultier would show the "feminine" outfit that Andrej Pejic modeled.

Was Gaultier seriously proffering total feminization for males or was he playing gender games again using a very pretty androgynous model?

Maybe a little bit of both.

Anyway, I promise to keep doing my part.

Andrej Pejic Femulates in Men's Fashion Show

Paris — Androgynous fashion model Andrej Pejic walked the runway yesterday in Jean Paul Gaultier's men's fashion show wearing a dress, heels, and other accoutrements usually associated with females.

Amazing! Isn't this a great time to be a femulator!

More or Less Womanless

I received an unsolicited e-mail a few days ago that invited me to visit a web site to view videos related to womanless pageants, weddings, fashion shows, etc. I checked it out and found a list of approximately 300 links to such videos. Many I had seen in the past, but some were new to me.

I was going to pass the web site along to you readers, then I discovered that there was a "catch." If I was not careful about where I pointed and clicked, the womanless video list transitioned into a pornography video list. So I abandoned the idea of passing along the web site information to you.

Instead, I Googled it myself. Doing so, I came up with 692 womanless-related videos. Like the porn site list, some I have seen in the past, but some were new to me.

You'll have to separate the wheat from the chaff yourself. Enjoy!

Fantasia Fair 2010: A Half-Week of Memories

These are random thoughts and memories of my half-week at Fantasia Fair.

***

Saturday, there were heavy winds in our neck of the woods of Connecticut. When I went grocery shopping that day, I did not wear outerwear and felt chilled after my outing.

Wake up Sunday and I felt like a cold was coming on — perfect timing for Fantasia Fair.

I loaded up on zinc lozenges, vitamin C, oranges, orange juice, and allergy meds and managed to stave off a cold. Monday I had some congestion in my throat and a headache, but by Tuesday, I was all better.

***

I have only one complaint about Fantasia Fair: the map they provide to get around to the different venues is not too helpful. I am very good at map-reading, but the Fantasia Fair map got me lost twice during my half-week.

The problem is that the map is too general. For example, if venue X is on Commercial Street, the map should clearly indicate that X is on Commercial Street. Instead, the map indicated that X was located somewhere in a block bordered by Commercial, Bradford, and Standish Streets.

Hoofing in heels, you need accurate maps especially if you are a newcomer or infrequent attendee to the Fantasia Fair venues.

To make matters worse, the venue was actually in a bar named Y that is attached to the B & B named X!

***

Tuesday afternoon, I was signed up to attend the "Essence of Style: Image Consulting" workshop run by Hera Navassardian in her Klymaxx Unlimited boutique on Commercial Street. Hera is an expert makeup artist, one year younger than I, but looks 15 to 20 years younger. She is a real classy lady and even served pink champagne during her workshop.

After pouring champagne, she asked us our names and was interested in mine because it was unusual like hers.

Then she asked us our concerns.

I said that I am never sure of my fashion sense and as an example, I proffered the outfit I wore that day: gray cable sweater dress, pink floral scarf, brown tights, black "ghillie" slingbacks, and silver earrings.

She said I looked perfect.

I said jokingly, "Well, I guess I can leave now."

Hera than performed a makeover on my new friend Cosette.

During the makeover, she described the virtues of putting on a primer before putting on your makeup (but after putting on moisturizer). She claimed that the primer smoothed your face, which improved the application of makeup as well as helped the makeup to last longer on your face.

I had a sample of primer from Sephora in my makeup toolbox, so the next day, I tried it during my makeup regime and was sold on it. It definitely made my face feel smoother to the touch and made a big difference when I applied makeup over it, especially when I did my eyeshadows and eyeliner.

Later that day, I returned to Hera's shop to buy a bottle of primer.

***

The brick sidewalks and uneven pavement of Provincetown are unforgiving on high-heeled feet, so I wore flats and carried my heels in a bag whenever I had to walk any farther than two or three blocks between my B & B and various venues. My feet thanked me.

However, fashionista that I am, I decided to wear my gold booties out and about on Wednesday. By mid-afternoon, I was hurting and changed to flats when I revisited Hera's shop to buy primer.

My feet hurt so badly that I had to wear flats the rest of the day.

I learned my lesson and will never wear heels out and about for extended periods of time in future Provincetown visits.

***

I had an encounter with a "tranny chaser."

The chasers show up in Provincetown by the boatload during Fantasia Fair because we provide a lot of potential for chasing.

After the fashion show, Cosette and I went to the wine and dessert tasting party. When we arrived, a chaser had my friend Brigitte cornered. He was chatting her up the whole time we were at the party (about an hour).

When we decided to leave the party to go to a bar across the street, Brigitte managed to break free of the chaser. She told us that he was very rude because he assumed he could have his way with her just because Brigitte was transgendered.

We moved on to the bar and the chaser showed up shortly after we arrived. I was his next victim.

He tried to chat me up, but I would have none of it, so he moved on to his another victim.

***

My favorite dress at Fantasia Fair turned out to be the "Disco Dot Trapeze Dress" that I bought at the 11th hour at Fashion Bug. (My second favorite dress is the charcoal portrait collar dress in the photo at the top of this posting.)

The only problem is that I could not wear any of the bras I brought with me because the neckline of the dress revealed the bra straps. So I went braless.

Nobody noticed until I mentioned it to one girl and she was so impressed with what I had that she thought I was on hormones. She was even more impressed when I told her I was not on hormones.

***

I regret not modeling in the fashion show this year. A few people asked if I was modeling and were disappointed when I said I was not.

I planned not to model from the get-go because I wanted to avoid the rehearsals for the fashion show and thus, have a more relaxed Fantasia Fair this year.

Wait 'til next year.

the joy of modeling

Many fashion models strut down the runway with expressions of "I wish I was anywhere but here" pasted on their faces.

Why not a smile or other indication that the model finds some enjoyment from wearing the clothing she is modeling?

Do the fashion models hate their jobs? Are they underpaid? Is modeling an onerous occupation?

I don't get it.

Personally, I find that the zombie-look that many models brandish detracts from the clothing they are modeling. A smile would do wonders to improve the overall presentation, don't you think?

Twice I was a fashion model and although I was nervous, I had a smile on my face because I enjoyed what I was doing and wanted to impart my joy to the audience. Most of my fellow trans-models did the same.

Maybe it is time to fire all the zombies (above left) and replace them with T-girls (above right) who love dressing like women!

designer makes unisex clothes because everyone is born unisex

Androgyny was at its peak on the Rad Hourani catwalk yesterday. Both the male and female models dressed in tights, high heels, bike shorts, and layers of black on the runway. "Unisex is my main focus," Hourani told us. "All my pieces are unisex so you can wear it feminine, masculine, a guy can wear it, a girl can wear it, at any age, anytime, anywhere."

…it's not a matter of men dressing like women, or vice versa. "I don’t like to put limits to gender," the Canadian-born designer explained. "I think everybody is feminine, and everybody is born unisex." Not physically, of course. "I don’t believe in making differences between women and men. I think we’re born just, like, a human on the planet and it’s just the way we’re conditioned that we create desire."

Read the whole story here.

my fashion modeling

Although I never was a contestant in a womanless beauty pageant, I was a model in fashion shows on two occasions.

In 2007, I modeled in a benefit fashion show for the Connecticut TransAdvocacy Coalition. Eight trans girls and boys each modeled two outfits. We had to provide our own outfits and the venue, a bar, was packed. We models had to walk on the floor space around the bar trying to squeeze by the bar patrons (that's me in the photo). It was not an ideal situation, but it was still a lot of fun.

In 2008, I also modeled in the Fantasia Fair's fashion show with a slew of other girls. We modeled our own outfits at that show, too, but we actually strutted our stuff down a catwalk rather than the floor space around a bar. It was a dark and stormy night and as a result, the audience was small, but enthusiastic, and I had a great time.