Still Feminine after All These Years

I want to visit my effeminacy one more time because I received comments from a few readers who believe that I can turn my effeminacy on and off at will.

I assure you that is not the case. I am and always was a feminine being (according to society’s standards). It is not an act.

I am not a flamboyant feminine male. I don't walk around with a limp wrist while carrying a purse in boy mode. But I am feminine enough that some people have noticed and thought I was gay. 

As a result, I attracted gay men and turned off women who I wanted to date in my youth. Which was very frustrating because I was unaware of my effeminacy. I was just acting naturally – being myself, but that “self ” was feminine. Only after I saw myself in that video did I realize how feminine I really was. 

Thank Goddess I discovered crossdressing. It was a good fit and perfect outlet for this feminine being. And once I got over the guilt, presenting as a woman were some of the happiest times in my life.  

Wearing ModCloth

Blogger Marian, who dots her I’s and crosses her T’s online

New on My Lips

I am always willing to try something new especially in the cosmetics cosmo. And as an Avon Lady, I see new cosmetics all the time.

I use Avon lipsticks exclusively, so recently I was intrigued by a new line of lipsticks offered by Avon. Called “Flat Velvet Lipstick,” the packaging is different from any other lipstick I have ever used. Rather than your typical cylindrical lipstick in a tube (like the Femulate Her banner below), Flat Velvet Lipstick has a rounded rectangular tip (see picture).

When I apply lipstick from the classic cylindrical tube, I use a flat lipstick brush to transfer the lipstick from the tube to my lips. I do so in order to get better coverage and to apply the lipstick more accurately along the lip line. I thought that flat tip of the new Avon lipstick might work similarly to the brush. Also, Avon claimed “the innovative tip prevents colors from feathering or bleeding,” which is a very good feature.

I ordered a Flat Velvet Lipstick in London Red, tried it and liked it. It allowed me to put the lipstick where I wanted it, so I can eliminate using a lipstick brush. And as Avon also claimed, the “silky texture glides over lips filling up fine lines and creating a smooth, wrinkle-free finish.”

I was very happy with the Flat Velvet Lipstick and ordered it in two additional colors, Rose Pink and Darjeeling Red. I can‘t wait to wear it out – it will look lovely when I remove my mask!

Wearing Likely

Blogger Cyrsti Hart of Cyrsti's Condo fame

I Love My Lipstick

By Susan King, Transitioning into Tomorrow

For me, my lipstick is a fashion necessity. However, it also has some additional benefit:

•     It supports lip hydration
•     It can be a good sunscreen 
•     Can improve your mental health 

Many lipsticks have moisturizing additives to help keep your lips soft and hydrated. Adding a lipstick with a good sunscreen can protect your lips from the harsh sunlight. Finally, studies support the "Lipstick Effect," which indicates that when the economy is bad, women spend more money on items like lipstick.

To increase the effectiveness of lipstick, do you exfoliate your lips and do you know which colors work best for your skin tone?

Below is a video on a DYI lip exfoliate, followed by a chart showing which lipstick shade works on the which skin tone.

Wearing La Redoute.

Cassandra Moore, professional femulator

Breaking Beauty Rules

Some rules were made to be broken, especially when it comes to beauty. From washing your hair every day to matching your manicure to your pedicure, there’s tons of old sayings that just don’t make sense anymore.

Daily Makeover pulled together the top 12 rules and the celebrities who break ‘em best, so you can learn how to do it yourself!

Find out which rules to break here.

By the way, one rule that I have been breaking forever is "You can't wear a smoky eye and a bold lip" just like Taylor Swift (right).

Wednesday Wonderings

I read today where a Florida male high school student got in trouble for wearing high heels.

According to the report, Tampa Riverview High School principal Bob Heilman feared that the boy was being bullied and convinced the student to remove the heels for his own safety.

"The high heels didn’t violate any particular dress code, the principal conceded.

"While some of the high school students agreed with the principal, others felt that the student should just be allowed to wear what he likes."

Another boy wore a dress on Monday, according to Heilman.

"After we chatted, he decided not to do that. I was concerned about his safety."

(Photo source: The New Male Fashion For The Alternative Man)

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To work Tuesday, I wore a flowing long-sleeved vee-neck burgundy tunic with a hem just covering my derriere over tight black jeans and black flats. No one commented on my outfit.

Also, I have been wearing a red-tinted lip balm since my recent bout with a cold. I started wearing the lip balm because my lips were getting chapped.

I so liked the look and feel of something lipstick-like on my lips (a little daily feminine touch) that I have continued wearing lip balm after recovering from my cold. 

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I continue to use the ANEW Lash-Transforming Serum from Avon. I only apply it once a day --- in the morning before I moisturize --- rather than twice per day as I did when I started using it last May. My eyelashes continue to grow and fill out.

My eyelashes are a light shade, so I have to look closely to notice the change in boy mode. But apply some mascara and Wow! --- the change is spectacular!

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Lately, my wife has been referring to me as “she.”

I am not sure why.

She seldom sees me dressed en femme. In deference to her, I do not dress en femme around the house; I only dress en femme at home to go out.

Am I so womanly now that I don’t need female clothing to throw off a female vibe?

Stray Lipstick

Over the years, I have read many a transwoman's account about being thrilled when they saw their lipstick smudged on a drinking glass, coffee cup, cigarette, etc. that they recently withdrew from their mouth.

Am I the only one who is not thrilled by such a sight?

Lipstick smudges bother me in two ways.

1. I am not a germaphobe, but when I see such lipstick smudges, even my own, it grosses me out a little bit.

2. When I see my own lipstick smudges, it means that my pristine makeup application is no longer pristine and that I must repair to the ladies' room to freshen my makeup. For that reason, I try to use a drinking straw whenever I drink. In fact, I put a fresh drinking straw in my purse whenever I go out.

And so she goes!

Andrej Pejic in Lipstick and Swimsuit

Andrej Pejic continues to confound the gender police. His latest run in with their laws is her “first beauty spread” in the Spring/Summer issue of The Block Magazine where he appears en femme in feminine duds and cosmetics.

You go, girl!

Read and see more here on The Huffington Post.

Stana's Makeup — Part 5

In this last installment, I will describe how I do my lips and the final steps to achieve and maintain my "feminine best" look.

My Lips

To do my lips, I use a lip liner to define the outer edges of my lips, then I fill inside the lip lines with a lip color using a lipstick brush.

Lip color is like eye color, that is, some colors suit me that may not suit you and vice versa, so experiment to see what looks best. Whatever color you choose, the color of your lip liner should be just a few shades darker than your lip color unless you are going for a drag queen look, in which case your lip liner should be many, many shades darker than your lip color. (Yucko!)

Most of the lip liners and lip colors I use are from Avon. I have two shades of a lipstick that Avon discontinued that I love and usually wear these days because the results have a glossy finish without using lip gloss.

1) I use a well-sharpened lip liner pencil to apply lip liner to my upper and lower lips. In either case, I start the line at the middle of the lip and work outwards to the end of the lip line following the curve of my natural lip line.

If you have thin lips like I do, you can make them look bigger by applying the lip liner slightly outside the natural lip line, but don't go overboard because you can end up with clown-like lips (I lost count on how many times I have redone my lips in the past to avoid joining Barnum & Bailey.)

2) To apply lip color, I use a lipstick brush to fill in my lips between the lip liner. A brush provides better coverage where you want the color and avoids putting color where you don't want it, which can occur if you apply lip color directly from a lipstick tube.

3) I close my mouth on a piece of tissue paper to remove any excess.

4) I apply a light coat of translucent powder on my lips. This will hold the color you reapply for a longer period of time.

5) I usually reapply or touch up my lip liner.

6) I reapply my lip color.

7) Sometimes I apply a clear lip gloss over the lip color, but usually, I do not.

The Big Finish

I double check my makeup to make sure I look absolutely gorgeous and make any necessary corrections.

After fixing everything that needs fixing, I use my big powder brush to apply a light coat of translucent loose powder everywhere except on my eye and lip makeup.

Next, I close my eyes and spray a light coat of Makeup For Ever Mist & Fix on my face. Mist & Fix sets and seals the makeup, so you won't have to keep fixing your face the rest of the day.

Finally, I apply Chanel Eau de Cologne No. 22 to each of my pulse points: my wrists, between my breasts, behind my knees, behind my ears, and in the bends of my elbows.

From start to finish, it takes me about 40 minutes to do my makeup, but that is after decades of practice, so your mileage may vary.

No one ever said that being a femulator is easy? But the effort to look your feminine best is worth it!