Monday Mash

I Squeemed

I Squeem, You Squeem, We All Squeem for Nice Squeem Dept.

Searching for something else in this blog, I came upon my post extolling the virtues of the Squeem “Perfect Waist” waist cincher. Looking at the accompanying photo, I was impressed by my curvy figure and especially my flat tummy... so impressed that I thought I should revisit wearing the Squeem.

I tried to recall why I had given up wearing the Squeem. Knowing me, I was probably distracted by a new shiny object and abandoned the Squeem for it.

Also, I wondered how the Squeem would fit now that I am 25 pounds lighter than when I had last worn it, so I got it out of storage and tried it on. It fit perfectly. The only difference was that I had to use the “skinny” row of hook-and-eye closures rather than the “chubby” row of closures. 

I added my old Squeem to my arsenal of shapewear. 

Live Wigs Dept.

Big wig buyer that I am, everyday I receive email ads from various wig sellers. The Wig Company recently went above and beyond simple advertisements by introducing its customers to Tia, a wig expert who guest blogged “How To Make Synthetic Wigs Look Realistic. It is an excellent piece and includes a handful of how-to videos and a link to Tia’s YouTube channel that has even more – everything you wanted to know about wigs, but didn’t know who to ask!

Your Bra is My Bra Dept.

After 38 years of marital bliss, I can’t believe that I never knew my spouse’s bra size until I did the laundry the other day and discovered that my wife wears the same size bra as I do (or vice versa). We are so compatible – a match made in heaven!

Wearing Venus

Four femulators are on stage in this scene from the 2017 British film Glamour Dolls.

Putty in My Hands

My body is like putty. With my large collection of shapewear, I am able to mold my "baby fat" into a reasonable facsimile of a feminine figure.

When I was more weighty, I had a pretty good handle on what shapewear to use to rearrange the furniture, but now that I am quickly approaching my goal weight, what worked before no longer works as well when I was a full-figured gal. Twenty-five pounds makes a big difference, so I have been experimenting with different combinations of bras, girdles, corsets, waist cinchers, Spanx, etc. to create a female figure out of my less voluptuous bod.

I don't want to lose much more weight because then I will have too little fat to mold. I will probably settle with losing two or three more pounds and then maintain my weight.

By the way, it has been interesting how my body lost weight. It seems that most of my weight loss was in the trunk of my body, so now I look leaner and my wife has taken to calling me "skinny." On the other hand, the size of my breasts has not changed and my girls still fill a B or C cup depending on the style and/or brand of bra that I wear. But with the weight loss of my torso, I can feel my girls bounce...  something that wasn't there when my torso was fuller. (And I love it!)

Wearing Unique Vintage (Source: Unique Vintage)

The always classy and beautiful Rhonda of Rhonda's Escape fame.

Christmas in Women’s Underwear, Part Two

I mentioned buying a new waist cincher last week. Katherine and Marie wanted to know the brand and model I bought because, as Katherine remarked, if “it really gives you the right shape and it might be the one I am looking for.”

It's Maidenform's Waist Nipper, Style #M6868. Here is where I bought it. It is no longer selling at its Cyber Monday price of $16, but it is selling at a substantial discount on Amazon ($20.73).

By the way, I have now lost 14 pounds and may have to order a smaller size real soon now!

As a youngster, I was in awe of the Frederick’s of Hollywood advertisements. I wanted to look like the women appearing in those ads, so it comes as no surprise that I purchased my first wig, bra and waist cincher at a Frederick’s of Hollywood store.                                                                                                                                

Wearing Boston Proper.

Eve T., “I am a long-time reader (and crossdresser!), and you were kind enough to post a photo or two in the past. I live in Portland, Maine, 67 years young, married long time (she’s my hair stylist and makeup consultant!), grandparent, retired. I have been to conferences, meetings, fashion shows, dinners with friends and family. I contribute often financially to gender causes as generously as I can. I have been dressing for 65 years, and oh! the changes I’ve seen over the years. It is getting better in the “trans” world. Positive changes will happen over time. Social enlightenment occurs very slowly, but inevitably. The young today are beautiful, the future belongs to them. Do the right thing, lead by example, smile and be happy! (Sorry for the proselytizing bloviation!! I cant help it, I’m happy!) 

Three Shorts and Three Beauties

Trans Thinking

As a transwoman, I believe that I think differently than your average civilian. For example, when I saw the subject of a recent e-mail from Elle magazine ("50 Dresses Any Guest Can Wear to a Winter Wedding"), my first thought was, "I assume that includes male guests."

SRS Guide

Juno Medical recently published a Sex Reassignment Surgery Guide that you may find informative, as well as beneficial, especially if you are considering changing teams on a permanent basis. Here is the link to the guide: https://www.junomedical.com/en/sex-reassignment-surgery-guide

It's a Cinch

Eight years ago, I bought a waist cincher that I wore whenever I femulated. After eight years, I thought that the cincher was still in good shape, but I decided to buy a new one at a deep discount during the Cyber Monday sales.

The new cincher was exactly the same as the old cincher... same color, same style and same size, but when I tried it on, what a difference! After eight years, the old cincher had conformed to my body shape, whereas the new cincher shaped my body to conform to its shape.

So out with the old and in with the new.

Wearing Reem Acra.

Mishel Mood, male womenswear model

Juliet Evancho

Get Curvy

Recently, people have commented positively about my figure and Billie asked, “I would like to learn your secret to a wonderful and very womanly body!”

Over 50 years of femulating, I have tried various methods to achieve a girlish figure. I will not bore you with that history; instead, I will concentrate on my current modus operandi for getting curvy.

From top to bottom, I wear a bra, waist cincher, and panties. Over the bra and waist cincher, I wear a shapewear cami and over the panties, I wear a shapewear brief.

Waist Not Want Not

I wear a waist cincher to reduce my waistline by a few, but noticeable inches. My waist cincher is so old that the brand name tag is unreadable and I don't remember the brand, but it is nothing unusual. It is a dead ringer for this 12-inch long, front hook-and-eye closure Maidenform waist cincher that is available from JCPenney's, Kohl's, Macy's, etc.

Occasionally, I strap on my heavy-duty underbust corset if I think I will need a little extra curvature, but normally, my waist cincher is all I need.

For the Girls

Victoria's Secret claims that their Bombshell push-up bra will add two cup sizes. It is heavily padded to accomplish that feat. Since I am blessed with small, but decidedly female breasts, wearing a Bombshell bra makes my girls outstanding in their field without anything extra.

I am sold on Vicky's Bombshell bra and that is the only kind I have bought since they were recommended to me by a saleswoman at Vicky's. I think you will be happy wearing a Bombshell, but  if you are flat-chested, you probably need to wear a breast form to fill out the cups of the Bombsell. (Later, I will describe how to make your own breast forms.)

For the Boys

I wear panties under a Bali shapewear brief, although the shapewear manufacturers' claim that panties are not necessary "because they all make shapewear with a cotton crotch or an accessible crotch."

That being said, I wear panties to help manage my boy parts down under. I tuck and the panties help keep the tucked parts in place. I have had less success maintaining tucks wearing shapewear without panties, although your mileage may vary.

Whereas the panties keep my boys in check, the Bali shapewear brief flattens my tummy and rounds up my cheeks to achieve a more attractive and more feminine shape.

Smoothing Things Over

Over the bra and waist cincher, I wear Bali's cami torset top. It is a cami with the front cut out to allow you to wear whatever bra you want. Meanwhile, it smooths out any uneveness that may occur between the bra and waist cincher and it also eliminates the back fat that has long been an issue that I thought I would never conquer.

I tuck the shapewear cami into the shapewear brief to keep the cami from riding up.

Voila! That is how I achieve my girlish figure.

There are a lot of layers and they can warm you up, but I solved the overheating issue by wearing short skirts! Short skirts and a fab figure are a winning combination!

Back to the Girls

I mentioned above that I don't wear breast forms because my natural B cups sitting comfortably in a Bombshell bra are more than adequate. But if I am wearing something revealing that will show off cleavage, I use breast forms to help create that cleavage.

In the past to create cleavage, I used surgical tape to squeeze my breasts together then added makeup to enhance the squeeze. It was very effective, but removing the tape was very painful and often resulted in skin abrasions and minor bleeding that took days or weeks to heal.

I now use a painless method to create cleavage ― a combination of a Victoria's Secret Bombshell push-up bra and breast forms, which is just as effective as taping and a lot more comfortable.

I insert a breast form into a bra cup with one hand, lift my breast with the other hand and place the form under my uplifted breast. The uplifted breasts create the cleavage and the heavy padding of the Bombshell bra holds everything in place just like the surgical tape had done so in the past.

I have gone whole evenings without my girls moving out of place, but if there ever is any slippage, I can quickly lift my breast(s) back in place when I have a private moment (like in a stall of the ladies' room).

Makeup For My Girls

After my girls are in place, I add makeup, applying two shades of bronzer or powder. A dark shade adds depth to the shadows of the cleavage and a light shade enhances the front of the breasts to make them look more outstanding.

I apply the darker shade in the space between my breasts and sweep the powder upward and outward, creating a V-shape along the “natural” curve of the breasts, then I blend the powder until it looks like a shadow and not a strip of powder.

A little goes a long way, so don’t overdue it. You can always add more dark powder if needed; removing it is more difficult.

I apply the lighter shade to the front of my breasts and blend it back towards, but not all the way to the dark shade.

DIY 

I made my own breast forms using a female impersonator's recipe: birdseed in a sock. (I actually used dried green peas instead of birdseed.)

1.  Use birdseed or dried green peas to fill a thin sock (not a thick heavy sock) to the cup size you desire.

2.  Tie off the sock as close as possible to the ball of seed or peas.

3.  Trim off any access sock and fold the remainder over the knot. Under a bra, the knot does a good job of femulating a nipple.

I made my forms over 30 years ago and they are still holding up.

And so it goes.

Wearing JustFab.

Peter Outerbridge (right) in the 1999 Canadian film Better Than Chocolate.

Beneath It All

Circa 1963, my mother wore bras and girdles, so they were my foundation garments of choice when I began femulating. (I really had no choice; Mom wore bras and girdles, so that is what I borrowed when I femulated.)

When I mustered up enough courage to purchase my own foundation garments (in person at Frederick's of Hollywood and JCPenney), I stuck with bras and girdles (like mother, like son). However, since I was more Rubenesque than my mother, I bought longline bras and waist cinchers to supplement the girdles.

That combination of foundations suited me well for a very long time.

Then I discovered Spanx shapewear and its copycats. I packed away the girdles and waist cinchers and switched to a variety of Spanx-like shapewear, typically the Bali and Hanes brand knock-offs because Avon sells them and since I am an Avon rep, I can buy them at a discount.

In addition to losing the heavyweight girdles, I also packed away the longline bras because the Bali and Hanes shapewear permits me to wear regular bras like the cute, sexy bras sold by Victoria's Secret ("Hello, Bombshell").

Occasionally, I strap on my heavy-duty corset-like waist cincher if I think I will need a little extra curvature, but normally, Bali or Hanes and Vicky are all I need.

I'd love to hear what you all are wearing beneath it all. (Does anyone still wear a girdle or has everyone switched to Spanx?)

Sizing Me Up

Sheila from Tampa left the following comment to my Foundations of Femulation post:

Question: When you order slimming foundation garments and check the sizing charts, do you order the size indicated by your current dimensions, or do you order one size smaller (since you are hoping to have the garment give you temporary new smaller dimensions)? I will appreciate your sage advice.

My reply was that "it's complicated" and would require a whole blog post to answer her question. This post is it.

Caveat emptor: This is what works for ME; your mileage may vary.

For girdles, waist cinches, and lower torso shapewear, I get a size that is about 6 to 8 inches smaller than my natural waist measurement. On my body, the result is about half-way in between, that is, a garment that is 6 to 8 inches smaller than my waist measurement reduces my waistline by 3 to 4 inches.

It took me a long time to find the right size bra. I finally sought out expert advice.

Two separate bra fittings by professionals indicated that I should wear a bra that is about 4 inches smaller than my natural breast measurement with either a B or C cup (depending on the bra style).

Again, what works for me, may not work for you.

Foundations of Femulation

I have always been voluptuous, buxom, full-figured, whatever; I have never been fashion model thin or even close to it.

So foundation garments are my friends. They shape and mold my flesh into a womanly figure to help sell my femulation.

I have been femulating for about five decades and during that time, I have tried a variety of foundation garments.

Early on, when I was borrowing lingerie from my mother, bras and girdles were my mainstays. Mom owned a variety of girdles, but stuck with one style of bra, i.e., the traditional white, shoulder-strapped, rear-fastening style.

I tried them all and had my favorites. When I began shopping for my own foundation garments, I stuck to bras and girdles like Mom owned ("like Mother, like Son").

That is until I visited a lingerie shop in Kingston, NY. The little lady who ran the shop probably had seen it all, so when I mentioned I needed some foundation garments for my Halloween costume, I don't think she believed me. However, she was very helpful and after measuring me up, she suggested a heavy-duty all-in-one and handed me two models to try on.

The first all-in-one did nothing for me, but the second one did wonders. The proprietor insisted on examining me wearing the all-in-one and after giving me the once-over, she gushed about my great girlish figure. I enjoyed the compliment, but I was a little embarrassed and could not pay and get out of the shop fast enough.

I was sold on all-in-ones and wore them until they more or less stopped selling the heavy duty models. The lighter duty models were still available, but just did not have the same molding and shaping power of the heavy duty models, so I had to find something else.

I experimented with different things and finally found a combination that approximated an all-in-one: a longline bra, a high-waisted brief girdle, and a corset-style waist cincher. That was a heavy duty combination that, at times, was uncomfortable, but it worked and I stuck with that combo for a dozen years.

Spanx came along and I was intrigued, but I did not indulge in that modern line of shapewear until Avon started selling Bali's Spanx clone. With my Avon rep discount, I decided to try a high-waisted brief.

Wow!

Shapewear had come a long way; the Bali brief did a better job than the trio of foundation garments I had been wearing. Initially, I wore longline bras with the high-waisted brief, but after getting fitted for a "Bombshell" bra at Victoria's Secret, I dumped the longline bras and began adding Bombshells to my wardrobe.

Recently, I added Bali's cami torset top to the mix. It is a cami with the front cut out to allow you to wear whatever bra you wish. Meanwhile, it smooths out your back and eliminates the back fat that has long been an issue that I thought I would never conquer.

It took a half century, but I am finally all set! I now have a very womanly figure sans hormones or surgery.

my girdle is killing me... not

Mom, who was my role model wore girdles, so I wore girdles, too.

Truth be told, my first girdles were her girdles. They were "mine" only in a temporary sense; I wore them when I was home alone and returned them to her dresser drawer when my dressing session ended.

She owned a variety of girdle styles and it was wonderful experimenting with them all, but my favorites were the high-waisted, short-legged variety, which is the style I bought for myself when I began buying my own. And it is the style I favored throughout my lady life, until now.

I recently discovered the Spanx line of body-shaping undergarments and its copycats. Avon sells some of the copycats and since I am an Avon representative, I could not resist buying one with my representative discount.

I purchased a high-waisted panty-style body shaper and during my recent trip to Dayton, I wore it instead of my normal girdle and waist cincher combo.

The body-shaper is lighter in weight and more comfortable than the girdle-cincher combo. Its body-shaping capabilities were equal to if not better than the girdle-cincher combo. Since the body-shaper is a smooth, one-piece garment, I was not concerned about revealing any lumps or bumps that the various parts of the girdle-cincher combo sometimes show through my clothes.

"My girdle is killing me," is now a thing of the past. I am sold on these body-shaper undergarments and am adding other styles to my wardrobe.

However, a word of caution: these new body-shapers grip your body like a steel trap, so if you feel the need to attend to mother nature, don't wait until the last minute to visit the ladies' room because slipping out of these body-shapers can be challenging.