What’s Up, Patient?

I shave everything I can reach from the neck down. 

In the past, I did not shave if I had an upcoming doctor’s appointment because I did not want a doctor asking me about my shaved body parts.

Some time ago, I stopped worrying and now I see my doctors in a shaved body. No one in the doctor’s office ever questioned me about it. Even when I had varicose vein surgery and had to display my shaved legs to the doctor, nurses and technicians on the day of surgery and during three follow-up visits, no one said a word about my shaved legs. 

Who knows what was said, if anything, behind my back? 

But after all my recent doctor visits, it dawned on me that no one has ever broached the subject. Maybe the Hippocratic Oath precludes it – I dunno, but it has never been an issue.

For that matter, few civilians have ever mentioned my hairlessness. I only recall it happening when I dressed for Halloween en femme and someone remarked that I shaved my legs!

And so it goes.

Wearing Giambattista Valli

Grayson Perry (left)

Shaving Legs

Good Morning Stana, 

Hope you're well and it is finally getting warm back East. 

Question??? At what age did you start to shave your legs? Did parents catch on? Smooth skin was a big revelation for me. Stockings on smooth legs is just a wonderful look and feel. Once you shave you can't go back. I had to wait till I moved out and after the Army.

Have a great Day

Bobbie

👠👠👠

Hi Bobbie,

Spring is finally springing forth in Southern New England. The daffodils and forsythia are in bloom and the snow piles have finally disappeared.

I was about 16 years old when I shaved my legs for the first time.

I had been crossdressing for about 4 years. Leg hair began sprouting about Year 2. By Year 4, I could not stand the look of matted hair under my nylon stockings, so I took a razor to my legs and removed all the hair from the hem of my miniskirt to the tips of my toes. And I continued to regularly remove my leg hair ever since.

My parents never mentioned it. My crossdressing was closeted, so they never saw my shaved legs en femme and I avoided wearing shorts en homme in the warm weather because I did not want to reveal my secret. When I first appeared among the civilians en femme for Halloween in Year 6, my shaved legs were probably the least of my parent's worries when they saw their 18-year-old son dressed like their 16-year-old daughter.

The first time anyone ever mentioned my shaved legs was when I attended a Halloween party in office girl drag in my mid-20's and the hostess was so surprised that I shaved my legs that she announced it loudly for all the party-goers to hear. I didn't care because earlier at that same party, a female party-goer asked who was the woman not wearing a costume! (She was me!)

Thank you for the great questions, Bobbie.

Wearing Etienne Aigner (Source: Etienne Aigner)

Early 20th Century professional femulator of stage and screen, Julian Eltinge.

It's the Pits

Back in August, I purchased a Philips Norelco Bodygroomer. Sunday morning, while using the bodygroomer, I used it to shave something I have previously avoided: my armpits.

In the past, I tried using my rotary head electric razor to shave my armpits. It removed the hair, but left a nasty itchy rash that lasted for days. Having learned my lesson, I used a manual razor with a shaving gel to shave my pits after that bad experience.

When I used the bodygroomer to shave on Sunday, I decided to try it on my armpit hair as an experiment. Surprisingly, it removed all the hair, but it did not irritate the skin.

I will never use my rotary head electric razor again in that neck of the woods, but I now have two shaving options to do the job..

Wearing Boston Proper (Source: Boston Proper)

Soldiers femulating USO canteen girls in the 1943 film This Is the Army.

Losing Leg Hair

My skirt's not too short – my legs are too long!

I avoid shaving my legs with a razor blade and shaving cream or gel because it is too time-consuming. My legs are too long... 36 inches each to be exact and it takes forever.

Early on, I discovered the wonderful world of chemicals. Nair and Veet were my hair removing chemicals of choice. They did the job quickly and thoroughly. And after using them for over four decades, they permanently removed a lot of my leg hair. As a result, using chemicals now is overkill.

So every morning, I attack the leg hairs that toughed it out. After I shave my face and neck with a top-of-the-line Norelco rotary head electric razor, I do a portion of my legs. One day, I will shave my knees, the next day, my calves, the next day, my thighs, the next day... well, you get the idea. As a result, when I get all dolled up to go out en femme, a quick touch-up with my Norelco is all I need to be femininely smooth.

By the way, I use the same routine to keep my arms, shoulders and breasts hair-free.

Wearing Bebe (Source: Bebe)

Kelly Mantle femulating in the 2014 film Confessions of a Womanizer.

Purchased

Last week, I bought two items that I hope will improve femulating.

Verfanny Magnetic Eyelashes

After years of applying glue-on false eyelashes unsuccessfully, magnetic false eyelashes are a miracle! Put one magnetic eyelash strip over your natural eyelashes, then position the second magnetic eyelash strip under your natural eyelashes and as you do, the magnets in the eyelashes attract each other and snap together. No glue, no muss, no mess!

The set I purchased includes two sets of lashes: one for a subtle look and a second for a fuller glamorous look.

Philips Norelco Bodygroomer

I already own an electric razor and a back hair shaver. I use the electric razor to shave all the body parts I can reach and the back hair shaver for the area of my back that I cannot reach with the electric razor. They both do an adequate job, but I could not resist purchasing the bodygroomer because it was an Amazon Deal of the Day and by applying my Amazon Prime Rewards points, it cost only $11.43!

Whereas my electric razor is intended to shave my beard, the bodygroomer is intended to save my body hair, so it does a better job body hair-wise than my electric razor. It is also easier to use than my back hair shaver because the bodygroomer's back attachment provides a more solid feel for navigating it around my back, whereas the back hair shaver is lightweight and navigating my back with it can be adventurous. The bodygroomer also provides a smoother and more thorough shave than the back hair shaver.  

Wearing Madeleine (Source: Madeleine)

Ivory Marshette, professional femulator, circa 1983

To Survive On This Shore

Gloria, 70, Chicago, IL

To Survive On This Shore is a project by Jess T. Dugan and Vanessa Fabbre that documents the lives of older transgender people using photos and interviews.

"Representations of older transgender people are nearly absent from our culture and within artistic realms, and those that do exist are often one-dimensional. To Survive on this Shore combines photographs of transgender and gender-variant people over the age of fifty with interviews about their life experiences in regards to gender, identity, age, and sexuality and provides a nuanced view into the complexities of aging as a transgender person. By combining our experiences working as a photographer and social worker within the transgender community, we hope to create a project that is simultaneously highly personal and socially relevant.

"Ultimately, we desire to provide visibility to a community that is often overlooked, both because of their age as well as their gender, and to encourage empathy, understanding, and dialogue."

I love the photos and interviews that have been collected for this project. I think Femulate readers will like them, too. And if anyone is interested in being part of this documentary, the team is looking for additional participants.

(Thank you, Aunty Marlena, for the heads-up about this project.)

Paris street style, March 2017

Femulating during Carnaval.

Take It Off!

Obviously, you want to be as beardless as possible when you femulate.

I have tried various methods to achieve the best beardless state including using hot shaving cream, a shaving lubricant in place of a shaving cream, cold shaving (icing the face, then using ice cold water to rinse the blade as you shave), dry shaving (no shaving cream or lubricant), etc. Some people swear by these methods, but I did not find that the results were any better than the old tried and true method, that is, using a shaving cream or gel, razor, and hot water.

The products I use for shaving are more important than how I use them. I use a shaving gel (like Edge or its copycats) instead of a shaving cream because I found that I get a better shave with a gel.

Also, I use Gillette's Fusion razor (the manual version, not the powered version). Fusion is the best razor I have ever used, by far. The powered version might be better, but I have never used it, so I dunno, In either case, if you are prepping for an outing en femme, I recommend using a new blade or at a minimum, a blade you have used only once or twice, to get the best shave.

I shave in the shower. The steamy environment of the shower softens your whiskers, so they are easier to remove. Also, when you are done, it is easier to shower away all the shaved whiskers. By the way, I shave in the shower without a mirror and never nick myself; it takes practice, but not much.

By the way, the image above was from the cover of the March 1965 issue of Esquire magazine. For years, I thought Marilyn Monroe was the model shaving her face in that photo, but I was wrong. Although Miss Monroe was asked to be the cover girl, she turned down the offer. Instead, Italian actress Virni Lisi happily to pose for the cover.

Paris street style, March 2017

"Shave in Sydney" is how I named this photo when I saved it on my computer after finding it somewhere on the Internet five years ago. I have no clue about its significance, but I am pretty sure that there is some femulating and masculating going on!

Hard Work

My wife often comments that since it takes so long for me to get ready to go out as a woman, is it worth it?

Of course, it is worth it (what a silly question), but she does make a legitimate observation, i.e., it does take me a long time to get ready.

My excuse is that I am obsessive compulsive. According to Wikipedia , "The phrase "obsessive-compulsive" has worked its way into the wider English lexicon, and is often used in an offhand manner to describe someone who is meticulous or absorbed in a cause. Such casual references should not be confused with obsessive-compulsive disorder…" (So, I'm not nuts, just a little crazy!)

As a result, when I go out as a woman, I want to look as perfect as possible, which means flawless makeup and not a hair showing that should not be showing.

I love putting on makeup and if I have the time, I indulge myself in the makeup process and can while away an hour or so putting on the war paint. But usually I don't have the time and I must get the job done as quickly as possible.

After years of practice, I have my makeup routine down to about 35 minutes if everything goes smoothly. I see no way of reducing that time without cutting corners and I refuse to cut corners, so I invest 35 minutes putting on my face.

The actual dressing is the easy part. I usually have my outfit picked out beforehand and I can have it on from soup to nuts, or should I say from girdle to wig in 15 minutes or less.

The wig I wear these days is a "shake and bake" wig. I just shake it out, put it on my head, make a few adjustments, and I'm done. I use self-stick pre-glued nails and they go on in less than five minutes with no muss or fuss. So, once my makeup is on, I can be out the door in less than a half hour.

Now the part I hate: hair depilation.

I am hairy. It is everywhere and depending on what I plan to wear, it can take 30 minutes to an hour just to get rid of it all.

I have long legs and they alone take some time to depilate. If I wear anything other than a long sleeved dress or top, then I have to depilate my arms. If I am wearing anything that exposes my shoulders, then they must be depilated, too. And so it goes for my chest and back if I am wearing anything that is low-cut in the front or back. Shaving my face is a joy in comparison.

When I come face-to-face with my hairy problem, I start thinking that my wife might be right, is it worth it?

Yes, it's hard work, but I still think it is worth every minute of it.

Wearing Fleur Du Mal pants, Rag & Bone blazer and Alexander Wang sandals.

Sorcordia

Piercing and Shaving

Susie Hune recently wrote to me about piercing her ears and removing her hair. Her thoughts on these topics were interesting and I want to share them with you.

A summer or so ago, my daughter and granddaughter finally convinced my wife that I should get my ears pierced (took about three years). Conservatively, I’ve noticed that about 90% of the guys with any kind of earring are wearing them on both ears. (I think they can’t remember for sure which side they’re supposed to go in!)

So we all trooped over to the mall and Piercing Pagoda and got ‘em done. I got the little gold balls that were unobtrusive and wore them to Mass the next day. I had one comment by a friend of mine in the choir, followed by another member. Both were very positive! No comments from any of my other choir members… or even sneaky glances! It was a non-event and very anti-climactic. Not sure how I feel about that.

Now I have access to my wife’s earrings and have had fun going out to Kay Jewelers to pick out new ones (as Susie, of course).

So, no time like the present, Stana. In fact, give yourself a present!

This leads to another subject: outward appearances and what the public will accept.

I’m almost 70 and one of my greatest regrets is that I didn’t have something done with my body hair when I was younger. I body shave everyday and it’s time-consuming to say the least. Half-hour showers are the norm and I wish removal of gray hair with laser was possible.

If I have one suggestion for anyone in our shoes (heels), it’s find ANY excuse to get all the non-female hair removed from your body as young as you can!!! Laser or electrolysis… just get it removed! There will come a time in your life where you’ll regret not doing so. If you consider that I spend about 30 minutes per day for face and body… multiplied by 365 days per year… that’s a lot of shaving cream, razor blades, and water. The plus side is the feeling you have when you are hair-free below the neck. Oooh, that’s nice, particularly in a nightie!

And again, I go everywhere in the summer in women’s shorts with bare legs and no one gives me a glance (except for the few that know all about me and from them I hear “nice legs!”)
.
In summary, get your ears pierced, Stana, and encourage your readers to get all their masculine hair removed using any and all excuses available.

Wearing La Femme.

Xavier Dolan

Assumption

Having femulated as long as I have femulated, I have gotten a little jaded and assume that everyone knows everything I know about femulating successfully. However, when I do my workshops or read my mail, questions come up that make me realize that I assumed incorrectly, that is, everyone does not know everything I know about femulating.

So this week, while I am away at Hamvention (with little time to blog), flood my mailbox with questions that you have about femulating. Ask me anything and I will answer your questions after I return home and get back to blogging.

Meanwhile, I leave you with a question I received recently along with my answer.

"Stana, hoping you can help with this question. I maintain my legs, chest, arms clean shaven. However how do keep one's back clean shaven."

I use Mangroomer for my back. It is a battery-powered electric shaver with a folding arm that allows you to reach the unreachable regions of my back.

And so, ask questions!

Wearing Julia Jordan

Lolita