Smells like Gender Role Reversal

While searching the Internet for something else, I found something interesting that is Femulate-related.

My find was a series of short video clips from America's Next Top Model, "a reality television series in which a number of women compete for the title of America's Next Top Model and a chance to start their career in the modeling industry." (source: Wikipedia)

The latest season has both males and females competing. In one of the competitions, the models had to act in a perfume commercial, in which the gender roles were reversed, that is  the male models play the female roles and the female models play the male roles.

Here is the link to the Top Model webpage that has all the video clips from that competition.

Enjoy!

 

Actor Régis Laspalès (right) femulating in the 2002 French film My Wife Maurice.

 

Wearing Rag and Bone (blazer), Equipment (blouse) and Tory Burch (skirt).

Who Knows

The building I work in houses two companies. So today, when we had a fire drill, the employees of both companies filed out to the parking lot.

While I was waiting for the drill to end, I was standing next to one of my fellow workers, who is gay. I mentioned to him that you do not realize how many people work for the other company until there is a fire drill.

He asked me if I had ever noticed the transgender person who worked for the other company. He added that the trans person was very tall, wore heels and did not pass.

I admitted that I had never seen her. And the conversation shifted gears.

Here are a few takeaways from that exchange.

1)   My fellow worker used the word "transgender." It was refreshing to hear a civilian use the correct terminology. Perhaps, the fact that he is gay made a difference and/or maybe he used the correct term in deference to me, which brings up the second takeaway.

2)   He knows I am transgender. (Ya think!?!) Maybe after my three Halloween at work en femme appearances, he put two and two together (or should I say, three and three). He was very good friends with a former employee, who I came out to. She was prone to gossip, so maybe she told him.

3)   If he knows, I am sure other people at work know or at least suspect.
I don't mind or care who knows, but I am always curious about how people find out or figure it out.

 

Three femulators at a bar in Provincetown, Massachusetts, during Fantasia Fair in 1993.

 

Wearing Tahari Arthur S. Levine.

A Google Reader Alternative

I am aware that some readers use Google Reader to read this blog. I am also aware that Google Reader is going away on July 1.

If you are looking for an alternative to Google Reader, may I suggest Bloglovin'. I use it and I am a satisfied customer.

To make the switch from Google Reader to Bloglovin, here is a helpful article: How to Move Your Google Reader RSS Feed to Bloglovin’.

Have a great day!

The Joke Known as "Sizes"

About two weeks ago, I complained here about the "new" Spiegel, specifically that "their sizes now run small --- so small that their largest sizes no longer fit me."

So what possessed me to buy a Spiegel dress a few days later?

It was a very nice looking dress (just my style), but its $8.85 price tag (marked down from $149) is what pushed me over the edge.

I figured that if it did not fit, I would not return it because the shipping cost would eat up its sale price. Instead, I would sell it on eBay, let someone else pay for the shipping and I would probably make my money back (Even Steven!) or maybe make a profit.

The mailman delivered the dress in the middle of last week. I quickly stripped down to my manly underwear and tried it on. I managed to get it on, but it seemed a little tight and I had visions of eBay in its future.

During a break from all the Father's Day festivities (wasn't the parade fantastic!), I found time to slip into my unmentionables and try on the dress as it was intended to be tried on.

It fit perfectly and looked gorgeous!

Back in March, I had to return two size 16 dresses to Spiegel because they were way too small. One was so small that I could not get it on at all and the other was not much better --- I got it on, but it looked terrible because it was so tight.

The $8.85 dress is also a Spiegel size 16, so go figure!

 

Actor Walton Goggins femulating on television’s Sons of Anarchy, 2012.

 

Wearing DressBarn.

Lila and Stana: Separated at Birth

 

Actor Nick Kroll (left) femulating on television’s Kroll Show, 2013.

 

Wearing Minuet.

Potential

Joann Roberts, one of the people who helped me discover my true self died last week.

Jump on the wayback machine to the mid-1980s and you will find me religiously attending my support group meetings twice a month. Those meetings were my only opportunity to be en femme beyond my closet at home and I seldom missed a meeting.

I was still learning the art of femulation back then. My wigs looked like wigs, my makeup was all wrong, my heels were too high and my skirts were too short. (I guess some things never change.)

Besides giving me an opportunity to go out en femme, attending support group meetings helped educate me about the finer points of femulation. By chatting with the other girls in attendance and listening attentively to speakers who appeared at our meetings, I corrected the errors of my presentation.

Joann Roberts was one of our speakers. She spoke for about an hour and then hung back to chat with us as we perused the books she had for sale: her Art and Illusion: A Guide to Crossdressing and her Art & Illusion Companion, which was a supplement to the original Art and Illusion.

I bought a copy of both books. After I paid her, she thanked me for my purchase, then she added, "I could not help noticing you during my talk."

"Huh?" was my clever response.

"You are a natural and have a lot of potential."

I managed to squeak out a "Thank-you" and went on my way.

I will never forget what Joann said to me that night and thanks to her, I have been working on my "lot of potential" ever since.  

 

A femulator in 1970.

 

Wearing Jessica London.

Prom Photo Gal-lery

Not really.

They are photos, but they are not from any prom, nor are they photos of cisgender gals. Rather, they are a selection of the latest photos from various womanless events as uncovered by Starla in her never-ending search of the online high school yearbooks.

My pick for High School Femulator Most Likely To Still Be Femulating Today Award is Miss Nigel, the girl in the lower right corner, who femulated for Halloween back in 1997 at Ingraham High in Seattle.

As usual, I uploaded the new 101 images to flickr and you may view them in two ways:

Method 1: Open one of the Yearbooks sets (A through Z) and you will find the newest uploads at the end/bottom of the set. (The oldest uploads appear at the beginning/top of the set.)

Method 2: Open my photostream and you will find the newest uploads at the top of page 1. The uploads get older as the page numbers get higher with the oldest uploads on the last page.

By the way, the contents of the Yearbook A through Z sets are organized according to school name, for example, the photos from Hard Knox High School would be in the Yearbooks H set.

 

A happy femulator and her date, circa 1955.

 

Wearing Spiegel.

Poland jako kobieta

By Carolyn

In my quest to find the glove quality of yesteryear, I found a couple of glove makers online in Warsaw. Looking at budget airlines, I discovered a roundtrip flight to Warsaw for £38 (about $50 US.) I thought, "Why not" and promptly booked my tickets. I also found a B&B not too far from the city centre and booked that for two nights.

As the departure date loomed, I thought Caro would enjoy this trip too and packed for her. All had to fit into the tiny hand luggage space allowed by Ryanair, but it was not too much of a problem as the weather forecast promised lovely temperatures and sun, so I took my black cotton maxi dress and animal accessories.

I drove to Prestwick Airport in driving rain and sleet and just made the security check in time. The flight was good, short (2-1/4 hours) and uneventful. Getting to the city centre was easy on the bus.I found a cafe and sat in the sun with a beer enjoying the ambiance of a city I hadn't been in before. The weather was gorgeous! I took a taxi to my B&B (15 zł, £3 or $5 US).

On arrival, I was made most welcome by Awa my host. Awa lived on the ground floor and my accommodation was below hers, a lovely basement apartment, decorated beautifully.

I had decided before I departed that Awa must know who would be staying in her apartment and showed her a picture of Carolyn. In a moment or two with a bit of prompting she recognized me and was quite happy about my double identity. I went downstairs promising to return as Caro before I went out for the evening to the old town of Warsaw.

I rested for an hour or so and got ready: long bath, shaved everything needed to be shaved, lots of fake tan with slight sparkle and TV pan stick on my legs (I've got psoriasis), makeup and my black dress and leopard print wrap and matching accessories, not forgetting my kid gloves. I went up to Awa's apartment and she was most complimentary. We discussed where to eat in the Old Town and she ordered me a taxi and off I went.

The Old Town is in fact new, rebuilt in its entirety after the Nazis razed it during the Jewish Uprising. It was lovely strolling around in the warmth of the evening appreciating the coolness of my summer outfit. I chose a restaurant, ordered a glass of Chardonnay, and had dinner just enjoying being Carolyn.

It was lovely sitting overlooking the square watching the people passing by. I have never felt so relaxed as Carolyn, the people I met and talked to were polite even pleasant and never turned a hair. I strolled around some more after dinner having a drink here and a coffee there, returning tired to my flat around midnight. What a lovely introduction to the largest city in Poland.

Next morning, not too early, I got Caro ready again and knocked on Awa's door. I told her that I wanted to go to see some glove makers and she gave me some directions. She asked if I wanted a taxi, but I told her I would take the bus into the centre as the stop wasn't too far away.

I hadn't been able to find out how to pay for the bus ride from the airport the day before. Awa said I had to buy a pass at the many shops who sell them. I was looking for a place when the bus arrived, so got on and was in the centre quickly again without paying.

I had a Polish breakfast, which is as hearty or healthy as you wish (guess which one I chose) and set off to find the first glove maker. Poland still has a number of skilled artisans who operate from small premises producing high quality tailoring, shoes, etc. and what I wanted, gloves. I found the the place fairly easily and after a difficult discussion (me - no Polish, they - little English), I found out that they didn't have the thin kidskin I wanted.

A bit disappointed, I took a taxi to the next place. I say the "next place" because I couldn't find it as the address encompassed a whole block almost! I asked various passersby and eventually I found it. Tiny doesn't describe it. It was about six-feet wide and not much longer, where and old man was working, gloves, patterns and skins everywhere.

I thought, "This looks promising," but after another difficult conversation I discovered with the aid of my digital caliper that he too had no thin material either. I was really downcast, all this way and no joy. I know now the beautiful gloves like there once were are gone for ever, due to no demand for the dress kid operas which were once common, shame! There are other glove makers in Poland, but having done a fair bit of research before I arrived and choosing carefully the ones to visit, I think that's it.

Over a really nice lunch and a glass or two of Chardonnay, I reflected. The weather was beautiful, everyone was treating me like the lady I am  can't be bad. (A woman came up to me as we were waiting to cross the street and said, "Super!"). I was addressed universally as Madame, smiles and courtesy from everyone. Great!

After taking an open top bus tour of the city, I returned home on the bus without paying again and fell onto my bed exhausted but happy. Caro was having a wonderful time.

I woke up as it was beginning to get dark, well no too dark in Northern Europe at that time of year and prepared to go out for diner. I heard Awa coming into her apartment so went up to ask her to come to dinner with me. She said, "Thank you," but she was too busy (she runs three apartments). She ordered a taxi for me to the Old Town, so I set off again to experience the lovely evening.

I chose the most up-market place I could find and had a delicious meal. A seafood medley starter followed veal in a pepper cream sauce and a meringue concoction to finish 'twas wonderful with a bottle of Chardonnay to wash it all down.

I wandered off down through the little streets reluctant to end the evening, stopping for coffee a couple of times, finding myself the last customer in a cafe at the corner of the main square --- it was midnight! My pumpkin was waiting to take me home (well, a taxi). I let myself in and posed again and again in the mirror. Alas it was over, the best experiences ever as Carolyn.

It was morning and my brief stay in Poland was almost over. I went upstairs and Awa and I made our farewells and again I travelled into town on the bus without a ticket. I had another Polish breakfast in the Radio Cafe, famous as the meeting place of the Polish contributors to Radio Free Europe during the Cold War.

It was time to travel to the airport again, you've guessed, without paying. As the bus reached the terminus, I was congratulating myself on the cheap holiday I'd had when a ticket inspector appeared just as I was getting off. The free bus travel I had enjoyed wasn't free after all. I was fined 136 zł (about £27 or $20 US) A bus ride cost 5 zł and I had been wondering what to do with the all the złotys I hadn't spent, ah well!

It was the best time ever as Carolyn. To hell with the glove quest, I had a wonderful time. The Warsawians were either blind or really polite, but it was lovely.

(Stana adds, "For more about dressing as a woman in Poland, visit crossdressing.pl.")

 

A femulator in Poland, circa 2008.

 

Wearing Unrath & Strano.

Where You Can Be Fired For Being Transgender

Courtesy of The Huffington Post.

Wednesday’s Wash

I am now a housewife

My spouse's health has deteriorated to a point where she can no longer do some of the household chores she used to do. So, in addition to my full-time job, I now do the housekeeping that my spouse used to do.

I do the laundry, dust, vacuum, and perform most of the cleaning chores around the house. I have not cooked much since my college apartment-dwelling days, but I have begun cooking some of our meals, too.

Since I am now a housewife, I want to dress like a housewife, but I don't know any housewives who dress like Donna Stone!

Blame Godzilla, King of the Monsters

When I was young, I loved monsters and flying saucers. So it is no surprise that Sheb Wooley's novelty song Purple People Eater was number one on my hit parade when it came out in 1958.

In the ensuing 55 years, I never heard anyone else sing that song… until yesterday. I was visiting Peter Lappin's blog and discovered a version sung by Judy Garland (I kid you not).

Here's the link --- the song is at the end of the blog post.

 

A femulator, circa 2007.

 

Wearing Opening Ceremony.

Janet’s Story

By Janet Lynn Stickney

My name is Janet Lynn Stickney. Some, maybe most of you may know me from my writings, which are posted on the four major sites (Big Closet, Sapphires, Storysite, and Fictionmania) that have agreed to post my writings and some have even been translated into foreign languages!

During over 40 years in the trans community, I have always, until recently, been actively involved in promoting better laws and more education for the law enforcement community. In the early 7's, I became the first president of Crossroads Chapter located in Detroit, a group founded by my friend, Grace Bacon. Over the next 30 years, I held every post in the group until finally I retired from the board and was awarded a life membership.

I was president when the four founding clubs [Crossroads (Detroit), Paradise (Ohio), Transpitt(Pittsburg), and Tri-Ess (Chicago)} of the Be-All convention began. Our first convention was held in a hotel the was half the size we needed! We figured 100 or so attendees and 200 showed up! We can proudly point to our beginnings of the Be-All when we see what it has evolved into.

Even now, I look back at what we have accomplished in the trans community and remember when it was truly dangerous to go out. We have come a very long way. Not far enough, but moving forward.

I am now completely retired both from my job and as an active member of any group. My job because I had the age and time; the groups because I have suffered two strokes which have rendered my abilities to become Janet problematic. I can walk and talk and I have both hands, but I wobble and I shake a little. Tough to do eyeliner with the shakes and heels are definitely out.

I am NOT complaining. My God has been good to me, gracing me with two beautiful and very successful daughters, along with grandchildren that we adore. My bride has always been by my side during my participation in all of the events, conventions and meetings, both within and without the trans community. I love her dearly, and would be lost without her. I have it all.

The pictures included here, one taken when I was about 16, another when I was 17, and two when I was about 59, show the progression of both age and experience. In all cases, that is my own hair; I never used a wig.

In my writings I have always held what I thought was the higher ground, never debasing any of the characters, but trying to portray them in a realistic, but somewhat rosy way. Many disagree, but many others told me that they enjoyed the read, so frankly, I write what I like and leave it there.

Now that I have retired my heels for the flats, I look back on my many years as a proud member of the trans community and know in my heart that I have helped many of our sisters find that inner peace we need to live with, and possibly expose, that beautiful girl we have inside, as well as making it just a bit safer for us to go out. It is my fervent hope that all of you find that solace and someone to share it with. There is nothing better in life than knowing that you have that one special person to share your life with.

 

Bobby Darling, according to Wikipedia, “is an Indian actress who has acted in Bollywood and regional Indian films. Darling, who was born biologically male, self-identifies as a woman, insists that interviewers address her as such, and has had cosmetic surgery towards that end.

 

Wearing Emilio Pucci dress, Nicholas Kirkwood shoes and Swarovski clutch.

Be Gorgeous

As a gal stuck in a guy's body, I can use all the help I can get trying to be a gal. One source that I find helpful is my subscription to the Daily Makeover newsletter.

Last week, the newsletter had advice that I found very useful. Since most of my readers are gals like me, I am passing that advice along.

At my age, I am usually too pooped to Polka when the band starts playing an oberek. I worry that I look pooped, too, so I appreciated "Makeup Tricks To Make You Look Less Tired.”

I also worry about my foundation. What color? Liquid or powder? How to apply it? Et cetera, et cetera. As a result, "The 5 Rules Of Natural-Looking Foundation" was helpful.

Finally, I found "12 Drugstore Finds Beauty Editors Swear By" very informative. I plan to further investigate the items featured in slides 1, 2, 4, 9 and 11.

Be gorgeous, Girls!

 

Actor Robin de Jesus femulating in Camp, a 2003 US film.

 

 

Wearing A.B.S. by Allen Scwartz.